Steve Cohen officially became the new owner of the New York Mets on Friday after his deal to purchase the team closed, and the billionaire hedge fund manager has wasted no time making serious changes.
The Mets announced on Friday that they are firing Brodie Van Wagenen and several other members of the team’s front office. The other executives who are leaving include Omar Minaya, Allard Baird, Adam Guttridge and Jared Banner.
One of Cohen’s first orders of business with the Mets was to bring back Sandy Alderson as president of baseball operations. Alderson was the GM of the Mets until 2018, when he left the role due to a recurrence of cancer. The 72-year-old is credited with helping to build the Mets’ 2015 NL championship team.
Van Wagenen served as GM of the Mets for two years. He was caught up in an embarrassing controversy over the summer, though it seems likely he would have been fired anyway.
The Mets finished 26-34 and in last place in the NL East during the shortened 2020 season. It is no surprise Cohen wants a blank slate after spending $2.4 billion to purchase the franchise.
