Prior to the New York Mets’ split-squad games on Sunday, team owner Steve Cohen spoke to reporters in the Mets’ dugout at Clover Park in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Cohen addressed a plethora of different topics as the regular season is rapidly approaching.

Pete Alonso. Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized

Pete Alonso

It is well documented that the Mets’ star slugger, Pete Alonso, is set to hit free agency at the season’s end. Cohen spoke specifically on the topic, confirming that the Mets have not had recent discussions on an extension with Alonso.

Cohen did make sure to point out that they did not with Edwin Díaz nor Brandon Nimmo either before their contract-year season, but each did re-sign with the team in the offseason. He specifically stated, “We know how to do this, we did it with Edwin, we did it with Brandon. We’ll figure it out when we get there.”

Cohen also pointed out he has a great relationship with Alonso’s agent, Scott Boras, and enjoys talking with him.

Expectations

When asked about his expectations for the 2024 season, Cohen said that making the playoffs would qualify as a successful year. He also addressed his previously stated three-to-five year World Series window from a comment in 2020: “I said I’d be slightly disappointed. In the end, you’ve got to set big goals.”

The above playoff goal for the 2024 season is much more realistic. Given the reset the Mets have gone through the last season, a playoff appearance would be an extremely successful, and attainable, outcome in 2024.

David Stearns and Steve Cohen. Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized

State of the Roster

With the regular season quickly approaching the Opening Day roster is slowly being put together. With that in mind, Cohen was asked if he’s tempted to add more pieces to the Mets’ roster and he said, “Well, that’s not my decision. That is David’s [Stearns] decision, you know, and obviously, if there’s something to do, he will present it to me.”

Most recently, the Mets were once again tied to J.D. Martinez, who is still a free agent. If there is a move to be made, it likely would be soon, as the March 28 opener is quickly approaching.

In also talking about the current state of the roster, Cohen made a point to discuss the team’s new focus on stronger defense. He said, “Last year, we were giving four outs in an inning.” He added that he believed that this improved defense, as well as an improved bullpen, will give the Mets a chance to be competitive all season long.

State of the Farm

One of the apparent goals of the “reset” the Mets have endured over the last season was to build back up the team’s farm system. New York has done exactly that, as the organization made several deals last season that brought in top prospects to the organization. Examples being Luisangel Acuña, Drew Gilbert, Ryan Clifford, Jeremy Rodriguez, among several others.

A common theme among all those prospects is that they are position players. With that being said, how does Cohen feel about the current state of the system’s pitching prospects?

“For the first time, I’m excited about what we are building in this farm system. We hadn’t developed pitching in a long time, and for the first time, it looks like we have depth. To me, that’s exciting because pitching is so friggin expensive.”

It is no secret that it seems like for the first time in the long time the Mets have several homegrown, intriguing pitching talents in their system. Examples being Christian Scott, Blade Tidwell, Mike Vasil, and Dominic Hamel, among several others. Cohen, himself, mentioned Brandon Sproat and Nolan McLean (two-way player) as two individuals he’s excited about after watching that Spring Breakout game.

Overall, Cohen said that the system overall is, “starting to look stacked.”

The Facilities 

Since taking over as team owner, Cohen has done several great things for the organization both on-and-off the field. As has been reported in the past, one of those initiatives off the field is the “Metropolitan Park” concept. When asked about it, Cohen said, “The fans are going to live it, what we’re planning is going to amaze them.” For full project details, click here.

For those curious, no, Citi Field will never have a roof. When asked, Cohen said, “That ship has sailed, too expensive.”