The New York Mets could be under new ownership in as soon as a few months’ time.
The New York Post’s Thornton McEnery and Josh Kosman report Wednesday that Mets owners Jeff and Fred Wilpon are motivated to sell the team by the end of 2020. The report adds that the Wilpons will begin to field first-round bids for the team in July with the ultimate goal of locking in a buyer by Oct. 1 so that they can close the deal before the end of the year. Potential buyers Josh Harris and David Blitzer, who already own such professional teams as the Philadelphia 76ers and the New Jersey Devils, are also said to have offered $1.4 billion for the Mets, minus their television network SNY.
The Wilpons have been sole owners of the Mets since 2002 and have owned at least part of the team since 1980. A deal that the Wilpons had to sell the Mets to businessman Steve Cohen for $2.6 billion fell through earlier this year over a number of disputed issues.
Meanwhile, celebrity power couple Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez are putting together a renewed effort to purchase the Mets with the help of some major investors. The number that the Wilpons ultimately sell for though will probably be a lot closer to the Harris-Blitzer number than the Cohen number, especially in the current economic climate.
