Steve Cohen: Other Owners ‘Need to Look More at Themselves’
Steve Cohen doesn’t care that the other MLB owners don’t like his spending ways.
Cohen spent big this offseason, around $500 million, to retain Edwin Diaz and Brandon Nimmo, while bringing in Justin Verlander, Kodai Senga, Jose Quintana, among others. He also nearly signed Carlos Correa to a 12-year, $315 million deal.
This spending spree brought the Mets’ payroll to a record-setting $369.9 million. Cohen’s club will be taxed $98.6 million for exceeding luxury tax thresholds.
In an interview with Jeff Passan of ESPN, Cohen acknowledged the other owners complaints about his wild spending.
"I've heard what everyone else has heard: that (owners) are not happy with me," Cohen told ESPN. "I hear things from people who are maybe more neutral - that they're taking a lot of heat from their fans. I kind of look at that like, you're looking at the wrong person. They're putting it on me. Maybe they need to look more at themselves.
"I'm not responsible for how other teams run their clubs," he continued. "I'm really not. That's not my job. And there are disparities in baseball. We know that to be true. I'm following the rules. They set the rules down, I'm following them."
Cohen has also drawn comparisons to late Yankees owner George Steinbrenner.
“George seemed bigger than life and passionate about baseball and brought a lot of life to the game. He made baseball interesting. And he did it his way. I’m going to do it my way. I don’t know if I’m making baseball interesting. … I didn’t know I was going to have to spend like I did. I actually was a little naive in that regard. But once I got comfortable and realized, OK, what’s it going to take to put a great team on the field, I still had made a commitment to the fans, and to baseball, that I was going to come in and turn this thing around. I came in saying I’m all-in. And I keep my word. … We’re in New York, and I’m competitive. If you’re going to own a team -- I came in with a commitment that I was going to put a good product on the field. And I think I’ve done that. I had no idea what it was going to cost to put a good product on the field, but I’m in a position where I make a good income, right? So I can do this.”
Cohen purchased the Mets for $2.4 billion in 2020. He has now setup an 101-win team for another season of contention in 2023.
Read More:
- Carlos Beltran Joining Mets' Front Office
- Juan Soto Likes Instagram Comment About Coming to Mets
- Mets' Kodai Senga had 'Iffy' Physical
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