Former Mets GM Joins Jay-Z's Roc Nation Sports as COO

Former Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen is joining Jay-Z's Roc Nation Sports as the company's chief operating officer, Van Wagenen announced on Wednesday.

Van Wagenen worked with Roc Nation when he was the co-head of Creative Arts Agency's baseball division. Van Wagenen took the Mets job in October 2018 and left the agency.

"We believed in the vision Jay and [Juan Perez] had back in 2013," Van Wagenen told ESPN's Jeff Passan. "We've stayed in constant contact with them. It was a natural homecoming."

"Brodie's knowledge of the business is indisputable and unparalleled," Jay-Z said in a statement to ESPN. "Since we first worked with Brodie, we realized the shared commitment to athletes both on and off the field. He's always been extended family and now it's official."

After new owner Steve Cohen purchased the Mets last year, the franchise fired Van Wagenen and began overhauling its baseball operations department. The team brought back Sandy Alderson to be their team president and hired Jared Porter as their general manager. Porter was fired on Jan. 19 after he reportedly sent unsolicited and inappropriate texts and images to a female reporter in 2016 while working for the Chicago Cubs.

Van Wagenen's Mets tenure began with acquiring former Van Wagenen client Robinson Cano and All-Star closer Edwin Diaz in a trade with the Seattle Mariners. The club's 2019 season was marked by tensions with manager Mickey Callaway and saw the team go 86-76. Last season, New York went 26-34 and missed the postseason for the fourth straight year.