Lefty Steven Matz is headed to the Cardinals on a four-year deal, pending a physical — the culmination of what appeared to be a rather competitive market for his services. MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reported in the leadup to Matz’s decision that eight teams had made offers, and some details on those offers have begun to trickle out. Jon Morosi of MLB.com tweets that the Blue Jays made a three-year offer to retain Matz. Heyman lists the Jays, Red Sox, Cubs and Mets as finalists.
Grabbing the most headlines in the morning hours after Matz’s decision, however, was Mets owner Steve Cohen’s displeasure with the manner in which the free-agent bidding drew to a close. Cohen, never afraid to speak his mind on social media, blasted agent Rob Martin of Icon Sports this morning via Twitter: “I’m not happy this morning. I’ve never seen such unprofessional behavior exhibited by a player’s agent. I guess words and promises don’t matter.”
In a follow-up with Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter thread), Cohen made clear that his frustration lied with the agents and not Matz himself. However, Cohen and the Mets were under the impression Matz’s camp would circle back one final time before accepting an offer elsewhere, which didn’t happen. Heyman tweets that the Mets would have matched the four-year, $44MM offer from St. Louis but were never afforded the opportunity.
“Most relationships I have had with agents have been wonderful,” Cohen tells Sherman. “The conversations have been good, they really have been. But here this was different. This was something so over the line. I can’t imagine what the agent was thinking in the context of how they reached out to us and the reasons they wanted to come back. I have ever (sic) had an agent do that before with me.”
Martin initially declined comment but eventually, as Cohen’s comments continued to mount, issued a statement of his own (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal):
“We are aware of Mr. Cohen’s tweet. It’s unfortunate that he chose to take his frustrations to Twitter. I will not do the same and instead will take the high road which is consistent with both my character and the character of our client. Steven Matz grew up a Mets fan, loved his time there, and continues to invest in the New York Community through his efforts supporting NY’s First Responders. As a result of all that, there was a strong pull to return to the Mets. But ultimately he made the decision he felt was best for him and his family. Steven is and always will be grateful to the Mets and Mets fans, but he now looks forward to his next chapter with the tremendous franchise in St. Louis.”
Some may wonder about possible long-term ramifications of the spat, but Martin tells Sherman that he called Cohen to speak to him not long after this morning’s tweet. Martin suggested that tension was lessened and that his agency and Matz hold no grudge toward the Mets organization.
Why god, why?
business as usual for Billy Eppler.
Matz is a ground-ball pitcher going to the #1 defense in STL.
He would (probably) not discover any new-found success, back in NYC. The infield defense in Queens is not necessarily that good.
I also (believe) he lives near Nashville now, so STL is closer to home. I don’t think it would have gone well in NY.
I suspect Cohen had reasons for publicly melting down on Twitter.
It depends what happens in free agency. If the Mets re-sign Baez and have a full-time double-play combination of Lindor and him, I think most pitchers would be comfortable with that.
You mean, with no one at 3b and Alonso the butcher at first? OK.
Alonso isn’t that bad of a fielder
fieldingbible.com/TeamDefensiveRunsSaved
You wrong. The Mets were 9th in D.
I think this is very indicative that Matz just didn’t want to stay in what some people would call the “ish show” that is going on with the Mets front office an organization right now.
I don’t mean that as any offense to Mets fans but I have read and heard many people refer to the Mets with those words. I think they have the ability to change it around in the future if they play their cards right. It just seems at this moment no one knows what direction the franchise is going. They way overpaid for Lindor. Their players boo their own fans. No player seems to trust Alderson to be able to even have a positive influence on the organization. Have they even hired a manager yet? I’m not worried about the past mistake hires because they are just that. In the past. Only the future matters. None of this lets players know that the team even has one concise plan for the future though and that seems to be a problem for players. It seems like this is just Billionaire Uncle Steve getting his feet wet as an owner and learning as he goes so anything can happen. Interesting? Sure. Reliable? Not at all.
I think this also shows my previous point about Cohen hiring Eppler has more to do with Eppler’s history of being Arte Moreno’s puppet than him being some kind of good GM. If Cohen wanted a GM or PoBO who actually makes the moves what was he doing negotiating with Matz’s agent at all? It’s very rare for an owner to talk to a players agent especially a player as unknown as Matz unless they are micromanaging. There is always the occasional exception for a huge contract player like A-Rod or something. Since when does Matz fall into that category?
I also believe it is possible that Cohen was upset because this might not be the first time this happened this offseason. Cohen wanted to keep Syndergaard so much he was willing to pay him $10 million for what he knew would be a mostly lost injured 2021 season. He offered Syndergaard the $18.4 million QO and likely assumed it would be accepted. Syndergaard even wanted the offer according to what he said. Then Syndergaard leaves for $21 million? I’m thinking if Syndergaard wanted to go back to New York Cohen would have paid him the extra $2.6 million to match the offer. Syndergaard probably didn’t give him the chance because he wanted to leave. Either that or he did give him the chance and the Mets were one of the teams who “offered Syndergaard more money for 1 year” and Noah still turned them down. It seems like he just really wanted to leave the Mets.
I don’t think Matz’s agent is to blame at all for this. Agents always want the player to take the most money because that’s how the agent makes the most money. The only reason this could have happened is because Matz told his agent he wanted to sign with the Cardinals and did not want to go back to the Mets. He didn’t even want a counter offer. The agent did exactly what he should have done and gave his client what he wanted. I don’t believe the agent was ever trying to prevent Matz from becoming a Met. What would he have to gain??
Yeah the 2020 narrative on his defense needs to die- kid worked hard and was actually good this year
Yeah still not #1 and 5 gold glovers and more candidates for a gold glove. Well plus we aren’t the Mets….2006 and Yadira’s Homeric haunting you or Wainwright curve?
Guess you don’t watch a lot met games calling Pete a butcher. He’s an above
avg 1Bman. Guess you’d say the same for Buckner after game 6!
Well, if they bring back Baez and also sign Correa to play 3B, then your are looking into an All Star INF my friend !!!
Anyone that calls Pete Alonso an “above average” 1B clearly needs to remove his Mets homer goggles or clearly has a low bar for what average is..
You mean fielding-wise? Cuz he’s clearly a very good hitter. Glove is somewhat leaden, but who cares? It’s first base.
@Cosmo2, the person made that statement in response to someone else calling Alonso a butcher on defense.
Is somebody going to tell Cohen what’s up, that Matz simply didn’t want to play for the Mets.
Doesn’t matter if the Mets were allowed to match the St Louis offer, Matz still would have chosen the Cards.
Other than for geographic reasons or a lot more money, who in their right mind would choose the Mets over the Cards?
Take a hint, Cohen.
St Louis stinks as a location. Why do you think their football team moved out twice. Matz was innings only. And the Cards do not have Toronto’s hitting, so get ready for another crappie year from a pitchers that was babied all his NY career.
You have NO idea what you are talking about.
I find it laughable that a Mets fan is stating that Matz was babied in his NY career (which was with the Mets).
St. Louis is a great location.We would still have the Rams if it wasn’t for greedy, crooked kronke and goodell. NFL is a joke that only cares about $ and not the fans.
bvl it’s not like the Rams owner who relocated from LA to St. Louis wasn’t crapoy, greedy. I laugh when St Louis NFL fans complain about their team being stolen.
Marx always had trouble with the long ball at the most in opportune time and still does… I think Mr. Cohen dodged a bullet here.
To the uninformed- It was Matz who came to Mets wanting to return…told Mets they would get last bid. What happened is the one market that coddles it’s players made an offer. Matz is such a headcase that he accepted rather than have a NY fan base actually hold him accountable
Terrific – You just confirmed in your last sentence that he didn’t want to pitch for the Mets. If it really was Matz who approached the Mets, and if he really did promise them last bid, then he was clearly trying to drive up the price. It was a negotiating ploy, nothing more.
Was it ethical? No, but if it got him a few more million then he’s not going to be remorseful about it.
Without backing up Cohen, who probably isn’t the most stable owner in the game. Nor NYC, Not the safest city in the nation? Maybe Cohen’s rant was towards lawyers in general who just lie and lie with no penalty. In fact? Get looked toward as heroes by many for some reason.
lolllllll. Steve Cohen made his pile of $ at Goldman Sachs and his own hedge fund. He’s perfectly happy with lawyers who lie and lie as long as its in pursuit of something he wants. The financial services industry plays a different game by these very same rules., and I expect he’s embarrassed that he got outplayed. Or maybe he’s not accustomed to dealing with someone who walked away from his deal for a reason other than money. Or maybe he’s upset that once players are freed of artificial constraints on their ability to earn what they’re worth and work where they want, they don’t really have any loyalty to the owners who impose those constraints.
Why why why
The Mets organization is just a bad reality show.
A bad reality show? I don’t think so. I enjoy watching their many many many many moments. A really good comedy series.
BAD reality show? I disagree. A bad reality show is something like Real Housewives. This is more like a reality show your girlfriend makes you watch because she has poor taste. Then just by chance half the cast gets murdered before the season ends. Then you’re sitting there thinking about how if she didn’t trick you it would have been impossible for you to see all these reality show cast members get murdered in real time. I’m no fan of that happening to people but that’s about as interesting as reality tv can get. What’s that show Tiger King? It’s like that. Or the one where that millionaire guy Robert Durst was a serial killer and got away with it 3 times but only got caught because he was dumb enough to take part in a reality show. The Mets front office is up there with those shows. That’s as good as they get. Don’t besmirch them by comparing them to the housewives. The Angels. The White Sox. The Yankees. The Orioles. The Rockies. The Padres. The Reds and maybe even the Cubs are bad reality shows. The Mets are a step above. I haven’t seen anything this interesting this century.
I find it comical the Mets owner who has a boat load more money than the dewitts is “frustrated” by the way this went.
Matz will do great in STL if he can stay healthy having a career ground ball rate of about 49%. Id rather play in front of a infield consisting of 4/5 gold gloves at the positions than whatever the Mets have to speak of…. did Mr Cohen ever think of that? Maybe he should buy a better infield?
Maybe Brodie was Matz’s agent, haha
Who did the Mets trade away for Cano and his entire contract?…..
The mets would be a cool TV show.
The tv show that airs April thru September is not cool
This is how the emotions of the Mets TV show would go. Happy, happy, sad, sad, happy, laughter, sad, sad … Miserable
What would they be happy about?
Degroms starts
The bronx is burning = queens is flushing
Matz got an offer he liked and didn’t want to be a part of that dumpster fire franchise. He probably told his agent not to bother calling them back.
That is exactly the impression I got as well.
Think we all did. Maybe turned a corner this year and doesn’t want a reunion.
Who wouldn’t have done the same thing? You want me but will only pay me more if another team does? I don’t want you to match a offer, you better beat it and by a few million at least.
Who knows if the Mets were even his 2nd choice anyways.
Cohen doing his best to further discourage other free agents from signing with the Mets.
You came up short and you lost. Whining about it makes YOU look like the unprofessional one in this story…
Exactly. Open mouth and insert foot. It isn’t like other agents are watching.
A lot of “high power” types, top business executives, very wealthy people, they aren’t used to be told no, or, being told I don’t want to do business with you. They act like 2 year old when it happens. So… boxes checked, not surprised.
@GASoxFan I was thinking the same thing he’s a spoiled brat stomping his feet cause he didn’t get what he wanted. I pictured the kid from that Richard Pryor movie The Toy.
If you really want to get the guy, then make him an offer he can’t refuse, and don’t give him the opportunity to shop it around.
Cohen is a clown. Agreed why should he come back and allow you to raise your offer? Make your best offer and you wouldn’t have to worry. In live bidding you don’t get a 2nd chance once the hammer falls.
because Cohen doesnt want to be used to up the price
Alderson was the first mistake, Trying to make James McCann into Realmuto was a really bad evaluation. and not signing Springer was the next. You look at the team and you think they should be much better even with those mistakes.
Who is trying to make McCann into Realmuto? That’s not a thing.
Official Mets Twitter literally made it a thing. Once McCann was signed, they tweeted a very odd stat line in an attempt to imply McCann was just as good, if not better than Realmuto. Which of course is stupid. Another self-inflicted wound by the Mets. I don’t buy all this Mets dumpster fire nonsense, but I do think the Mets make things worse for themselves sometimes.
Ok. Yes, the Mets are terrible at PR. Thought that would end when the Wilpons left but it seems not.
@Cosmo2
Is the Mets PR team really terrible? Every year they hype the Mets up to make a bunch of people think they’re better than they actually are. They get the vast majority of the fan base to drink the Kool-Aid every single year. They maximize the concept of “a sucker is born every minute”. And let’s not get into the Mets “Hyperbole”.
So, are the Mets PR team really terrible at what they do?
What I mean is that they are constantly doing odd public things. A perfect example: a few years ago the team tried to get fans to sign a “loyalty oath”, no kidding. The odd tweets, the leaks that always seem to make fans think players are causing trouble… they’re not the train wreck folks make them out to be but they do tend to shoot them selves in the foot public image-wise now and then. And I don’t think many Met fans “drink the Kool-Aid”, most are very sceptical and distrustful. Does your average Met fan think spending equals winning? It seems so, but most are pretty grim in their outlook and despise upper management.
St Louis stinks as a location. Why do you think their football team moved out twice. Matz was innings only. And the Cards do not have Toronto’s hitting, so get ready for another crappie year from a pitchers that was babied all his NY career.
St Louis doesn’t stink. We have McDonald’s and Chuck E Cheese’s.
Exactly. But how do we know they didn’t do that? 4/44 is a lot for Matz. It’s not like you’re going to start out at 5/60m for Steven Matz
Maybe they put in 3/39 thinking that’s a top offer
And then they’re thinking about the well being of the player I think. Is 4 years really the best situation for Matz?
Meanwhile the agent is thinking “most money”
The agent takes his ques from player.
Agents get told all the time to make a deal with a particular team.
Other agents get told to get THE most money possible..
Not according to commenters on this site like Ducky. They have said on multiple occasions that Free agents sign with whomever offers the most. Every time I read that I want to scream. Couldn’t be further from the truth. There are so many examples of players signing where they want regardless of the money. Really shows a lack of awareness of what really goes on in these player’s minds.
#@ SuperSloth;
Ducky and his fellow Yankee fans know nothing about MLB team building or playing the game to win.
It’s a NYC thing. Mets fans are the same.
They think everything is about who spends the most money. They have no comprehension of MLB by-laws that have been enacted to level the playing field as to what FO’s can do. And neither the Yankees or Mets can compete on a level playing field. At least the Red Sox owner figured that out.
I think examples of players signing for other than money reasons are few and far between. Scream all you want but players almost always just go for the biggest money offered.
@ Cosmo2;
You are a NYC baseball fan.
Apparently that doesn’t hold true for FO people – because dozens didn’t even want to interview for a promotion….which would have meant more money for them.
I’ve not seen anything like this since owner Peter Angelos fired Davey Johnson as Orioles manger and GM Pat Gillick walked out the door behind him. That organization is still struggling to recover…..and that was 23 years ago.
Front office is totally different than players, which is what we are talking about. Salaries, situations are totally different. You seem to all of a sudden be on a kind of weird anti-NY kick these days. You’re making a lot of sweeping generalizations without much in the way of actual evidence.
Actual evidence is what has happened – in-season and since the post-season started….firing the hitting coach, attacking players on Twitter, demanding they hit with power…in a pitchers park, undermining the manager, then the interview process and they still don’t have a POBO or a manager, and every player that could leave so far has, and no one has been brought in other then a few minor league pickups.
Again, it’s been decades since I’ve seen this sort of dysfunction. And I loved watching the Mets in Brodie’s first year. Those players were not the best in the NL East, but the last month they played their hearts out for a playoff spot. It was fun for viewers, and crowds at Citi Field were jacked up. Truly exciting times.
Firing the hitting coach is evidence of dysfunction? That’s quite a stretch. Obviously the search for a POBO has been a fiasco. The rest of your laundry list doesn’t really amount to much. A lot of generalizations, supposition and opinion presented as fact.
@Cosmo2 Samuel has really been reaching here for a long time to find someone who agrees with him. Unfortunately, those who bite on his low hanging fruits are trolls and they aren’t the most engaging types. So he keeps on it.
@Samuel I’m a Yankee fan and I can safely say your comment is mostly wrong. I don’t think that spending the most wins anything that’s obvious to anyone with a brain. It helps to have the resources but if you can’t evaluate talent properly money gets you nowhere at all. I do agree that Boston has realized that you can win games without spending stupidly but I also question if titles can be attained without spending more than most. I feel like in order to win a title you have to be in the top half of the league as far as payrolls go. The Rays have shown you can get to the rodeo but if you don’t have the horses you won’t win the trophy and horses are expensive. Why Tampa felt they could win it all with the pitching they brought with them into the tournament is beyond me and if they do that again they’ll get the same result. Show me one team in the last couple of decades beside KC that’s won with a payroll in the bottom half.
That’s a good way to always over pay and never win anything
Maybe the Mets should I invest in infrastructure that makes their organization a desirable destination for free agents. Just a thought.
Go back to your bobby axelrod life and let eppler do whatever your penny pinching self allows
think axelrod would close the deal to get the player, not give him a chance to shop it around and get a better one
Penny pinching? They have one of the highest payrolls in the game.
Steve Cohen is a perfect match for the Mets.
GameStop short seller and now left at the altar by Matz, Poor Steve
This was a classic Snooze/Lose deal
Careful Steve, you burn too many bridges and NYC is just a couple of cold islands. I think I AM LEGEND started something like this.
I’m sure all the dysfunction in the Mets FO doesn’t get you much good will. Clean up your house Cohen.
If Cohen insists on acting like a petulant child he better be prepared to be treated like one. You’re in the Big Leagues now sir…
I actually think this was a strategic move on Cohen’s behalf. He knows his fanbase is a powder keg and losing Matz could set people off. By sending out this tweet, he tried to tell his fans it was because of shady agent dealings, not their inability to spend. He also attempts to paint himself frustrated right along with the fans.
nah, he poured gasoline on his own fire, that’s all he did.
I’m sure that was his thinking. But he failed.
I mean, it’s the Mets so it’s on brand
Yes all those Mets fans upset to see someone else give Matz a 4 year contract…
Inability to spend? Where are people getting this nonsense from?
“It’s unfortunate that he chose to take his frustrations to Twitter”. This isn’t always the case and might not be the case here, but that line sure is conveniently self-serving; if the accusation is true, just misdirect with a red herring about how the accusation was made, rather than respond to the accusation itself!
One reason to “go public” is because you have a point and want people to know the truth. Once, someone I knew was going to have her father put in a nursing home against her will, and out of options to directly fight the effort she send communications to family and friends about what was happening and how it was not her doing and she was against it. Whether that would get the other party to back off out of embarrassment or not (in this case, it worked), at least the truth was known. That other party could have easily whined “it’s unfortunate that this was not kept private”, but really that’s only unfortunate for the person being underhanded, breaking promises, or whatever the case may be. Unless the public accusation is false, of course.
Cohen’s complaint was that Martin said the Mets were his first choice and that he enjoyed being a Met. Nothing more. At no time did he agree that Matz would sign. How many agents did he turn off by his public tantrum? Stevie continues to make public what should remain private. Stevie is a jerk.
There’s no such thing as turning off an agent unless, as an agent, you want to lose all your clients.
It’s more just another data point to teach agents how to deal with the guy.
You can turn off players with that type of behavior though. Any player could see that, call their agent, and say “yeah… maybe not the Mets if they call.” That’s what they SHOULD be worried about.
Can’t believe I had to scroll so far to see this opinion. If Martin promised Cohen a phone call, he could have easily called and said “Sorry, but Matz has made his final decision.” End of story and everyone moves on.
WTF? Promises… what promises? The promise that “hey maybe we’ll give you a phone call?” That promise? My god. Those promises are broken from time to time. Cohen should know that (considering he’s probably done that in the past) and move the heck on.
Don’t forget that professional sports is a business. If the agent promised a chance to match any offers and reneges, the team could lowball future clients or manipulate negotiations. If I remember the last time you spurned me, I’ll have no qualms about returning the favor next time.
None of us know exactly what happened. We have rumors and he said, he said. There’s little reason to rip either side.
gbs No one knows everything that was said. We do know that Stevie made public private discussions and blasted Martin in a public display. Coming off his pitiful public calling out of his own players.
dodger – Soon after I posted my comment, I realized it was a bit silly. We’re all posting here to voice our opinions. I just get a little tired of posts where the person acts like they know *exactly* what happened or are getting inside players/owners/agents heads, and then trashing one side or the other.
Anyway, happy Thanksgiving to you and everyone else.
If you had a choice between playing for the Cards or the Mets, what would you choose?
Or the Cardinals or cubs?
Cards over Cubs any day!!!
Loser Cubs.
Chisux fan
And the White Sox have done what lately?
Cubs will be rebuilding for decades!
Ha!
If I was Matz, I’d pick the cards. If I’m me I’m picking the Mets because I’m a met fan.
But Matz is a Mets fan
It’s all about the mon-ey
Big leaguers are fans of the team who pays the most money.
I actually disagree. The offers were probably competitive enough that the Cardinals’ offer would have been matched or even beaten by the Mets.
The more likely answer is that a ground ball pitcher chose to play with the National league’s best defense behind him in an effort to preserve his career for the long haul. The defense in St. Louis is locked in during his tenure there so it makes perfect sense.
If it comes down to that or playing in front of a black hole defense, it’s a logical decision. Add that the organization he chose just made an impressive run to the postseason and that the Mets truly don’t have their house in order and I’m not sure a decision can get much easier.
100%
How can you say that? We have seen SO MANY examples of players not signing where they could get the most money. You think Morton couldn’t have gotten more the last few years if he hadn’t limited where he wanted to play? This is yet another example with Matz. He liked the Cardinals and didn’t want to play the back and forth game between them and the Mets. It’s almost assured he could have gotten more money if he had. We tend to forget these players are actually human and have more than one motivation for doing what they do. How many players wouldn’t play for the Yankees because they don’t like the spotlight that goes with it? Just so many examples that at this point it’s really a lack of understanding of what truly goes on behind the scenes many times.
Cardinals by a very wide margin.
Mets fans > Cards fans
St Louis
LOL
He had half a dozen other offers to choose from as well. And I believe among those, 7 out of 8 of the offers included Matz knowing who would be walking out to the mound to take the ball from him when his day was done. That’s part of the offer the Mets couldn’t match even if given the chance. There’s a unique time sensitivity to the offseason this year that some players are not going to wait on. Matz obviously wanted to sign before the Dec. 1 CBA expiration. Even with a 4 year deal, he’ll still hit free agency again. He probably wants to know who he’ll be working with and what resources are available to him to perform at his best.
Laughing stock of an organization.
I think the Signing of Lindor is not Helping matters Lot of money tied up in one player
There’s no crying in baseball!
I think Cohen is ok. He wants a definitive finish. He’s not going to circle and dance around in the octagon. He’s one of these fighters that wants the KO, wants a definitive conclusion either way
Maybe that’s bad politics, maybe he’s a fool, maybe he’s a genius, I don’t know, but we’ll see how it ends up
Steve Cohen is not doing the Mets any favors. His tweets are an embarrassment. The Mets will be fine, but Cohen isn’t helping anyone. Complaining on Twitter is more unprofessional than anything Matz’s agent did. Bring back the Wilpons.
It’s worked for fellow NYC billionaire Donald J Trump. Maybe Cohen is laying the foundation for a presidential run…
“I’ll take the high road”… Uggghhhh agents are all the same.
yep
The Mets act like they didn’t trade this guy…
I love Martins comment back, what a G
This makes me so happy:) I can’t stand that crook Cohen. He has been swindling money from everyday Americans for decades and finally someone swindled him.
Skute23, did you lose money with Cohen. Ohhh good. Everyday Americans. It was his firm.
Cohen just makes the Mets incompetent with more money. Lindor, McCann, May were all bad signings and it wouldn’t surprise me if they throw 200 million at Mr. Strikeout Javy Baez
Any free agent that goes to the Mets will be a huge overpay. It will take about 1.5yrs for the Mets to get to the highest payroll, and they will struggle to win 85 games.
Okay yeah, Cohen is an absolute clown here, but I will never not laugh at a guy like this agent when they publicly say “unlike the other guy, I’m taking the high road.” yeah, bro, the bigger man doesn’t brag about being the bigger man.
Lolmets
I commend the agent for not being Boras-like. They got an offer they liked, and they signed it. None of this dancing around and forcing teams to bid against themselves.
This is how the process is supposed to work.
Cohen’s doing this to prevent other agents from using the Mets for leverage. He’s gonna call you out rather than keeping it under wraps. Doesn’t make for good optics but snakes can spot each other.
Every other agent is going to use him now and laugh their asses off doing it.
Love Steve for it. Airing out bs tactics. Say what you what about the Mets, I got zero problem with the man calling BS. There’s dumpster fires all over the league. Happy Thanksgiving to all ya’ll.
Maybe just maybe he has had enough on NewYork
Lmao your entire organization is unprofessional!
All this fuss over a mediocre starter whose not gonna put any team over the top.
Maybe Matz wanted a opportunity to work with Maddux?
He may have a point. There’s a certain way of conducting yourself as an agent that you need to live up to – otherwise you end up damaging relationships, which impact other agents and future clients. All for the sake of a few million today.
Word gets around about dodgy agents very quickly – it may not seem like much, but all it takes is one GM deciding not to deal with you, and you end up screwing your own portfolio in the long run.
When you’re in the industry of selling something, you can’t afford to have your customers think you’re toxic.
The Mets still suck though.
Cohen wants all the other teams to negotiate with Matz, then before he signs for the highest bidder, Cohen wants a chance to match it. Doesn’t work that way Stevie, if you want a player, go get him and don’t be a whiny little crybaby about it.
Without knowing what was said between agent and owner, I can’t say one way or the other. If Cohen was told they’d circle back around, he does have a gripe. I do find it funny how people say that the players shouldn’t be told to “shut up and play”, they are more than happy to tell owners to “shut up and pay”. If it’s good for the goose, it’s good for the gander in my book.
Even if Cohen does have a point, and I don’t think he does, you don’t go to Twitter and publicly call out the guy. All that accomplishes is making Cohen look like a sore loser and making other free agents wonder why they would want the headache of playing for an owner who takes every compliant straight to Twitter.
This is the kind of stuff you don’t expect to read, but here we are. If Matz wanted to pitch in NY, he would have not signed with STL. Doesn’t the player technically have the final say, or rather the player tells their agent when to accept the deal? If Matz wanted to pitch with the Mets, he would have told him to make sure to wait for NY first, no?
Matz never had any intention to go to the Mets. Why would he? He spent 6 miserable years there
The fact that Cohen and Eppler don’t grasp basic logic like that is a red flag to me
Camden, what is your evidence that Matz found NY to be miserable? I watched him for 6 years, never saw any indication of misery.
Not l owing who the manager is is the biggest reason why Matz didn’t sign with the Mets
You know this how?
Agent: “I’m a piece of garbage but I’ll take the high road on this one”
Why is he a piece of garbage? Cohen basically wanted the agent to do all of the work, another franchise to set the value… and Stevie just wanted to cut a check. It’s lazy and a bit shady.
Let me ask you this: if the Mets have the high offer when the agent doubles back, do you believe they stand behind it? It kinda undercuts Matz’s negotiating position?
Cohen is acting like the spoiled child here.
No. Matz contacted the Mets and expressed interest. The Mets did not pursue Matz, but when they heard he was interested, they made an offer
They then used the Mets offer to drive up the Cardinals offer. When the Cardinals upped it, they signed immediately. They never gave the Mets the chance to up their offer
That goes against standard etiquette. You’re being completely dishonest about your true intentions and just using an organization to up an offer somewhere else with absolutely no intention of ever signing with the Mets
And it’s dangerous for agents. They can lose clients this way. Free agents are going to want to negotiate with the Mets, and if they have Matz’ agent, they’re going to have to change agencies
In other words, agents don’t ever do it. Until now. That’s why he said he never had an agent act so unprofessionally. And he’s making it public to drive clients away from the agent
Why is an owner even involved? Do you see the Dodgers, Cardinals, Red Sox etc…. owners tweeting about negotiations? Of course not. They hire competent people to run the organization snd that’s why they’re successful. Cohen is a clown owner who’ll have limited success, get frustrated and ultimately sell.
Another thing Cohen is doing, which may be part of his genius (or foolishness), is just airing it all out and getting it all out there
If you’re Jared Porter and you have shady dealings in your past, it’ll come out if you go to the Mets
That’s weeding out all the people who aren’t spotless ethically or have anything in their past
As a parent I encourage my kids to air it out when they’re frustrated. But not on Twitter. So maybe Cohen is just doing what any child should do. But not on Twitter.
Okay but Stevie boy is so ethical. That guy has done so much illegally crap with his trading. He is the definition of insider trading. Maybe people don’t want to work for a trash human being. I know I wouldn’t. Maybe sell the team to a more ethical owner and you might get better players that want to play for you.
A bit surprising he’s this upset over losing out on what, or 4th/5th starter? He wasn’t nearly as upset when the Bauer fiasco occurred last year. Big market teams have always been used to drive up the price of FAs. Cohen is by far the richest owner in baseball and they flat out said that money won’t be an issue since day one. Of course agents are going to utilize that as a tool that benefits them from time to time. Nothing matters for the Mets if they don’t acquire at least two top-end starters. They can get Suzuki, re-sign Baez, etc… but with no one of substance to pitch behind deGrom it’ll all be for nothing.
Did the Agent choose St Louis or did the player?
Perhaps Steven Matz didn’t want anyone to think he was named after Steve Cohen.
Stop crying Cohen and open the checkbook like u said u were, start signing players before they’re gone already
Why would any player sign with a team not knowing who the manager is? This is all on the Mets and their pathetic soap opera of a franchise
The LOL Mets always entertaining, my favorite TV series
Steve Cohen needs to shut up.
Hmm – I wonder why all those others turned down the opportunity to be the Mets GM.
This should help attract talent. We’re all laughing at you.
Cry me a river, Cohen. Waaahhhhhh
Wow what a unprofessional fool Steve is ! Acting like this here in nyc is not only going to get the press to destroy him but less Free agent talents and player agents are going to want to come to/negotiate with the Mets smh
You have their players fighting each other, their players turning on the fans and now their Owner being publicly salty over negotiations. Just classic lol
Billionaire who did not get his way, goes on social media crying foul, think maybe he needs some cheeze to go with that whine!!!!
Wow Stevie you really showed him. And by showed him I mean why he made a good decision.
Spoken like a billionaire who’s never told no…..
Tell Cohen there’s no crying in Baseball!
After seeing this I’m happy Matz left to the Cardinals. That organization is more classy (outside of the hacking thing they did to the stros)
The Mets can’t even get mid tier free agents who have spent time in the organization to sign with them but their fans think they’re going to convince the big dogs to climb aboard that sinking ship. That organization is in a sad state
David Wright leaving costed the Mets the only class they truly had in recent years
Cohen needs to call the complaint line at 1-800-CRY-BABY
love how Cohen is complaining but he ain’t the GM….
Yea he’s only the owner
I have a suspicion is that this might be mission accomplished by the other clubs owners. The recent public rejection by execs was deliberate and designed to create/enhance the basket case of a club image. Therefore agents/players don’t go back there for a final offer. Mission accomplished in terms of limiting the new guy with no idea but lots of money driving up player contracts.
The negotiations go thusly, a number of teams are interested. Cards offer the most, Mets offered less. Matz and his agent say, we can go back to NY, and ask for a similar deal. But where would you be more comfortable? Go to a team that looks to be a playoff contender, or return to the Mets who are a mess. Go to a team with the best defense in Baseball. Go to a team that makes you feel at home, or go to the Mess. Go to a team with a valued pitching coach, and the games best handlers of pitchers in Molina. Go to a team with high quality players, Molina, Wainwright, Goldschmidt, Arenado and Edman. Go to a pitchers park, filled with adoring fans or deal with Queens. Live near your home, of Nashville, or try to get a canceled flight, horrid traffic, and the whole NY scene? And only make the same amount of money, with higher taxes. Think about it!?
The Mets don’t seem to be a good landing place for players now that Cohen own’s the team. His Tweeting and involvement in the team has turned players away it would seem. Hiring Alderson looks to be a mistake. It might be time for the owner to look in the mirror before it’s too late. Syndergaard and Conforto not taking the QA was the first sign of trouble.
He’s going to have to seriously overpay to draw talent to his team. The appearance is just terrible.
Everyone knew Conforto was rejecting it. Market was always going to be there for him. It was Thor that caught most by surprise.
Just maybe Uncle Steve should have made a more compelling offer to the free agent. Best of luck Billy Eppler.
Incredibly arrogant take on Cohen’s part. He’s so mad that another team beat his offer… he didn’t have the rights to last offer, because that doesn’t exist. I love the fact that, after everything is done, the owner says he “would’ve matched that” offer. Just an idea, but maybe be the first one to make the offer and you’ll get the girl.
Steve Cohen would be the one to break up (the initial trade) with someone, but then decide he wants to date again… but it’s cool if they see other people while dating… unless someone proposes to the person, then Cohen would like the chance to match the proposal.
I though Cohen was going to be great. But I’m starting to second guess that.
The problem was that many Mets fans believed he would spend simply because he has money. They refused to see him for what he is…a billionaire who got there by NOT spending his money.
He was never going to come in and blow past the CBT, offer ridiculous contracts (Lindor the obvious exception), and not care about his checkbook.
He SAID that he was going to spend freely, it’s not an assumption. I personally think mega contracts are always a mistake and believe Cohen will come around to that understanding but he did mention a willingness to spend, including saying he was willing to go well past the threshold.
did he put it down in writing? another rule billionaires live by.
Cosmo 2: No doubt you’re right. But just like the Yankees in the offseason, when Hal and B-dog say they have money to spend…. Then they wait and “monitor” the market while FAs sign everywhere and we push out virtually the same team. Eventually, even when they say it, we have to realize there’s only one thing most owners consider winning – increased bank accounts.
Meanwhile the Dodgers treat the CBT like a personal charity.
You Yankee fans join Mets fans in not getting it at all.
You’re about as smart as your FO’s.
The morons who thought spending in every available free agent is a good strategy should give Oliver Perez, Jason Bay, K-Rod, and Pavano a call. See how that works out. Spending like a drunken pirate vs spending sensibly are two different things.
The Wilpons’ Revenge: sell the team to someone who will give the illusion of being a better owner.
Just heard the collective sighs of the 100 executives who weren’t interested in the job. All regrets have been put to rest…
Steve’s a definitive fighter. He throws the gauntlet down, lays it all out there
That weeds out the people that are afraid of the fight, want to hide somewhere
I want the players/people that want to work with Steve. That aren’t afraid of the battle and being in the arena, win or lose
LOL – You only want players who have agents who are fighters?
Care to think that one through?
So, I am trying to figure out what you want. The Mets need to develop some players. I highly doubt Steve understands that? It really sounds like Steve wants a bunch aging veterans.
He used you for leverage, smart one Cohen… It’s called baseball. Nobody wants to go to the toxic Mets anyway. Cardinals or the Mets? What a tough decision.. Not. No disrespect to Mets fans.
Did the Mets make Matz an offer before St Louis? IMO if Mets really wanted Matz why wait for another team to make first offer then hope the Player comes back and says you need to match or beat offer. Mets needed to make Matz an offer he can’t refuse thus no need to go elsewhere
They made a good offer, StL just made a better one. You can’t literally make a strategy out of overpaying guys so much that there’s no competition to sign them. Doesn’t work that way. Plus, it’s Matz. We can handle this loss.
Has anyone pointed out to him that the agent works for the player and that the player doesn’t have to give the Mets a last chance?
He probably didn’t know Steve needed the agency 101 primer. since he has enough money to have used agents outside of baseball.
Pissing off the gatekeepers of baseball talent isn’t very bright either but players who like drama will probably accept top dollar from them anyway.
Maybe Matz just preferred the Cardinals. Cohen’s overreaction shows us why. Dysfunctional organization.
If the Mets were smart they’d focus on bringing back an innings eater who’s from NY as well in Stroman. Not cry about a guy they traded last year not signing with them a year after .. Mets are acting like the crazy ex gf with Matz that they threw out the door now want him back… cool.
Yea I don’t get all this hubbub over Matz.
I guess matz wants to be in the WC race next year… good luck. Btw I love Cohen. He is a bully. Just like me. We get what we want.
That’s great if what you want is last place in the NL East.
I guess you wanted to be the laughing stock of these forums and Cohen wanted to be the laughing stock of MLB. Congrats, guys!
Cutest, most chubby cheacked, spinny capped, overall wearing, sand pale carrying bully ever!!! =))
would’ve been battling for a WC spot in NYM as well.
You got what you wanted last year?
Mets v. Cards? Not even close. Good for Metz!
Er, … Matz!!
If Cohen is bully then act like one instead of a sore loser because an agent didn’t come back to Mets to increase offer. Thors agent did the same.
Anyone think Cohen is seeing everyone laughing at him and thinking, “watch this”.? “This” meaning insane offers to multiple free agents.
Stroman – 6/120
Baez – 8/250
Bryant – 8/240
Rodon – 3/63
Iglesias – 4/70
@ vtadave;
And that’s the problem…….
There’s a good chance that all of those players are at their peak, and while they may have a few decent ones in them, laying out that much money for 3 to 8 years is something only a delusional FO and their fans think will take their team to the WS.
It’s the way NYC baseball fans think. Both teams.
Have some cheese with your whine.
The whole thing feels a little staged. In the end, the player makes the decision, and Matz had to be thinking this might be his last contract (he’ll be 31 in May) and the Cardinals are consistently competitive with a great defense. Cohen may have felt he was played, but that’s the business.
There’s nothing quite so joyously entertaining as NY Mets dysfunction. I live for this stuff.
I did find it interesting that the Matz news broke in the middle of the night. Clearly Cohen and Martin had a conversation, and I’m sure Cohen thought he’d have the opportunity to match any other team’s offer, but that doesn’t mean Matz would take it. He decided on the Cardinals. The fact, though, that Martin didn’t at minimum insist that the news be held until he had a chance to call Cohen is interesting. There is a part of this story here that hasn’t leaked out yet.
Cohen’s comment that the Mets would have been willing to go over $40 million does indicate that they hadn’t offered that much. I could certainly see the Cardinals making the 4/44 offer with the caveat that it had to be accepted late last night, or the deal was off the table. It’s a way to prevent a bidding war with Cohen. That said, it’s still perplexing that Martin didn’t accept for Matz with his own caveat that they don’t release the news until 7 am so he could give Steve Cohen the courtesy of hearing the news from Martin. That does indicate the Cardinals really were trying to send a message to Cohen.
Cohen’s tweet was dumb. There’s nothing positive that comes out of it, unless being the focal point of bad news and negative commentary is his goal. It’s one thing to have everyone talking about your team; it’s another to have them only saying bad things. This will do nothing to want to encourage other front office talent, or even players, come to play for the Mets.
I try to give Cohen credit. We know he was and is a smart businessman at running his hedge fund. That’s a very different world. The education of Steve in MLB is an ongoing affair. Will he eventually get it?
Right now the Mets have to be considered one of the more poorly run MLB franchises when factoring in their resources. The Royals are up there too for different reasons, but they’ve at least been able to turn their constant losing into a good farm at the moment. We’ll have to see if they can turn that into wins, and if they can avoid more stupid and unnecessary extensions like the one they gave Dozier. The Mets aren’t as far from winning as many assume, but Cohen isn’t helping the cause. Will he learn?
SNY’s Andy Martino revealed Matz’s agents reached out to Cohen on Saturday to let him know of Matz’s desire to return to the Mets due to unfinished business. This resulted in a zoom meeting the following day where similar sentiments were shared
Rob Martin, Matz’ Agent “Steven Matz grew up a Mets fan, loved his time there, and continues to invest in the New York Community through his efforts supporting New York’s First Responders. As a result of all that, there was a strong pull to return to the Mets. But ultimately, he made the decision he felt was best for him and his family.
So for those who say he didnt want to be a Met, you are wrong. He had offers from 8 teams and it came down to a choice of two, the Cardinals not far from Tennessee where his wife’s band performs, and the Mets, his roots. He chose his wife, he did what he thought was right for his family.
Had nothing to do with “dumpster fires” or “Aldersons” or all the other negativity in comments about the Mets. (period)
@ ProfessorFalken;
Were you in on the negotiations? I wasn’t. I have no idea how they went, and if it came down to 2 teams.
I’d venture to guess that no one posting on these boards KNOWS what went down. But that doesn’t stop people from jumping to conclusions.
I look at the results of actions, and try to pick up patterns. (It was a prerequisite for what I did in my career.) I see nothing at all positive about the Mets FO since the season started, and definitely not since the post-season began.
Words mean nothing. Actions are what counts.
Damn right, too many people (including actual sportswriters) presenting half-baked speculation and biased opinions as facts.
Dumpster fire franchise. You aren’t on the payroll no need to type three paragraphs in the defense of a trash franchise! (Exclamation point)
I am a life long met fan, and I am not here to bash the team but when the cornerstone guys like Thor, comforto, matz (worthy of the contract or not is not the question here), something has to be questioned about the front office and it’s owner. Players are not going to talk until their playing days are over , but something is seriously wrong with the Mets.
Everyone should take a deep breath and relax. Are things very unsettled now? Of course. Will the team seriously contend next year? As of now, doubtful. But there are still plenty of free agents to sign and trades to be made and potentially a nice stockpile of draft picks. The long term outlook is positive once you push aside all the nonsense and tune out the noise.
” The long term outlook is positive once you push aside all the nonsense and tune out the noise.”
@ meckert;
Why?
These next few months are crucial for the Mets. A couple of wrong moves, and they can quickly turn into Orioles 2.0 with multiple 100-loss seasons. That’s not the kind of thing that will fill the stands at Citi Field. Nor is it something that can be fixed by overspending for players. Meanwhile, they still need a field manager. Mets fans will be furious if Eppler hires his former Angels skipper Ausmus for that job. At this point, it won’t be a shocker if that happens.
Maybe he should go back to insider trading. He’s clearly not as good at making deals when he has to follow rules.
Cohen trying to take the mantle from Dolan as the dumbest sports owner in New York or something?
I could see Mets, jays have interest in one of the A’s pitchers on trade block, Sean Manaea. Who’s a lefty and could slot in place of matz. Wouldn’t take more than one top prospect and a lower piece
@Asfan0780, a top prospect, a lower one, and some of Cohen’s cash, in all likelihood. The trick for the Mets would be to top other teams’ offers.
So Cohen wants to be next George S……think of all headlines in the Post and Times he gets. Gotta find some way to keep dem fannies in the seats.
Not sure if you’re joking but there is probably a lot of truth in what you said. Cohen is probably thinking that even negative attention is good, keep the team in the headlines, create stories, get everyone talking Mets.
Nah I was serious. Cohen knows that there’s really no such thing as bad press, and, with NY’s 2 NFL teams pooping the bed, he gets the headlines with his front office nonsense that looks more like a scene from “Dallas” than anything else.
What the heck. The Yanks are going out of their way to be boring; Cohen might as well try to capture the town.
Matz will regret signing with such a garbage franchise.
I like Cohen. I like that he wants to make the Mets a playoff team. And one day he will.
This whole Matz thing reminds me of the Mark Texeira FA negotiations, unfortunately. The Orioles’ GM McPhail laid out a great offer on the table and thought he’d have an opportunity to match any competing offers from other teams. Boom – the Yankees swoop in and give Tex what he wanted, which was, apparently, to play for the Yankees for even more money.
The O’s owner was pissed, and many Orioles fans were disappointed. Orioles ownership and mgmnt were under the impression they’d be able to match any further offers. They were wrong.
Furthermore, ownership didn’t want the fans to think he wouldn’t spend big when the team needed to…and so boom – the irrational Chris Davis contract.
Hope Cohen shrugs this Matz thing off, has Eppler sign a Manager that is good with vets(like Showalter), and then has Eppler sign or trade for 3 vet starters.
And I very much hope Cohen doesn’t try to compensate for this one lost battle by signing a guy to a huge overpay contract. Cohen’s heart is in the right place, and the Mets could be good soon.
Relief to see dissenting opinion from the peon masses, but this mess does scare some of us. I wonder if this is what they said about Steinbrenner
MLB shouldn’t have approved Cohen to begin with. No sympathy here.
@GarryHarris, It came down to Cohen and Team A-Rod. Not a good look for the sport in what should be one of its strongest markets. While the A-Rod/J-Lo breakup would have been a tough one for MLB to navigate, they wouldn’t have come with nearly the baggage that Cohen brought to the table. What’s happening isn’t just bad for the Mets and their fans, but for the sport in general. With all the great young talent in the game today, MLB should be thriving. Instead, we see stupid situations like this one. The owners did themselves and the game no favors by approving this guy.
Let’s Go Mets!
Take a chapter from 60’s Mets fans – laugh at this mess and find a few players to love.
I dislike the Mets as much as anyone, but if the agent told Cohen he would circle back around to him and he didn’t then that is pretty lousy. Now if Matz told him he wanted to go to St. Louis and didn’t want a final offer from NY then it is what it is.
Guess now it’s added pressure to sign Stroman.
Could be, but that’s also why I questioned what I did above. Why did they have to dump this news in the middle of the night unless the Cardinals wanted to basically give Cohen a black eye. Matz’s agent, Martin, should have said I made a commitment to Steve Cohen and I should at least give him the courtesy of hearing the news from me. I would do the same for you (meaning the Cardinals). That’s the part I can’t quite reconcile.
A handshake agreement plus a quarter is worth 25 cents.
The Mets went through what 15 people before Eppler agreed to be their GM. What makes Cohen think the first pitcher they go after will go there?
Yeah, and it won’t be easy to just move onto the next pitcher on their list, especially someone like Stroman who has watched this disaster unfold close-up. These guys want to get paid but they also want to win and be part of a stable franchise.
The Mets gave Oliver Perez $36 million for 3 years in the Minaya days. Matz was a steal.
I’m a Mets fan, but would much prefer the St. Louis defense as a pitcher.
Not the first time this has happened. This just happened last off season with Bauer. This is also why Noah decided to sign elsewhere because of instability. This is why the owner should not be involved in negotiations. You deal with the general manager.
Maybe Eppler was still in orientation which is why Cohen was involved.
At least things have changed under Cohen’s ownership.
Congrats Mets fans!
I wish Matz well in STL.
Whatever happened during negotiations between Cohen and Agent Martin, we will never know for sure but I don’t trust Agent Martin in this case. Cohen had a reason for his comments and I’ll stand behind him in his comments. I’m not fond of Twitter but if that’s how he wants to communicate with the fans, that’s his right and should continue to do so. Just one person’s opinion.
I remain much more concerned about Agent Smith.
“Agent Martin” will not be seen tonight, so we can bring you a very special episode of “Blossom”.
MLB Network analysts said that Eppler’s job on Day 1 is to focus on getting the Mets organization in order. This is clearly an echo of why that statement was made.
The new owner is a classless New York dick. What is it about New York that makes New York people so difficult?
You actually seem like the people you’re describing.
You should come to Brooklyn and ask a few people that and find out.
Matz contacted the Mets and expressed interest. The Mets did not pursue Matz, but when they heard he was interested, they made an offer
They then used the Mets offer to drive up the Cardinals offer. When the Cardinals upped it, they signed immediately. They never gave the Mets the chance to up their offer
That goes against standard etiquette. You’re being completely dishonest about your true intentions and just using an organization to up an offer somewhere else with absolutely no intention of ever signing with the Mets
And it’s dangerous for agents. They can lose clients this way. Free agents are going to want to negotiate with the Mets, and if they have Matz’ agent, they’re going to have to change agencies
In other words, agents don’t ever do it. Until now. That’s why he said he never had an agent act so unprofessionally. And he’s making it public to drive clients away from the agent
Now, Cohen knows Matz has no intention of ever signing with the Mets. He’s going along with the charade and then making it public so the agent loses clients
Camden I don’t know if what you are saying is accurate. Who said Martin contacted Cohen? Why would you believe the Cardinals are dumb enough to believe any agent or empower that agent to “drive up” any offer? Who said Martin promised to give Cohen a chance to meet any other offers? Curious as to exactly who was party to the interactions between Cohen and Martin that you spoke to.
WHY ARE YOU FOLKS MAKING ANYKIND OF COMMOTION ABOUT A MEDIOCRE PITCHER?.? HE SNOOKER THAT TEAM INTO A HIGH PAID CONTRACT WITH HIGH RISK… LIKELY THEY GET GOOD YEAR THEN THE REST SUBPAR RETIREMENT YEARS OF DISAPOINTMENT…
LT CONTRACTS FOR PITCHERS IS FROUGHT WITH PERILS..
GOOD LUCK WITH BUMMER !
.
Why are you yelling?
Maybe he’s just not that into you, Steve.
The Mets are now officially toxic…..
I can sum this encounter up quickly and clearly:
Some peon had the nerve to tell a billionaire “NO”, and said billionaire went all 13-year-old ballistic.
‘lolmets’ continues to be the gift that keeps on giving.
cohen is the most hated owner in the game. Even other owners hate. I’m starting to miss fred Wilpon a little bit,lol
Same thing happed to the Pirates with JA Happ. The agent was supposed to give the Pirates the opportunity to match or beat any offers so that the Pirates could retain him. That agreement was probably made prior to Toronto making it’s offer. The Pirates not just about any other team did not realize that Toronto was a destination choice of Happ and his family. From what I read when it happened, Happ and his family loved Toronto from when he was there for a few seasons prior. They jumped at the chance to go back.
For Matz, St Louis may have been his destination of choice. Wife is a country singer and their offseason home is in Nashville. St. Louis is a lot closer to Nashville, offers a winning team and a very good defensive team. Sounds like to me, it was a similar situation in that maybe Matz originally wanted to go back to the Mets since he is from Long Island but did not count on an offer from St Louis. St. Louis makes the unexpected offer and he takes it because at that point, he is signing where he really wants to be.
Bad optics. Just move on. Especially since they traded the guy.
See. now, not putting you best offer forward, what the value is to you, it’s true worth, is insincere.
Al Avila doesn’t seem to understand this either sometimes.
If serious Cohen should have put best offer out there.It is very easy to now say we would have matched it.Don’t let it go that far if you really want someone.Cohen once again is the HEADLINE by making stupid comments.
This goofball is mad because Matz didn’t want to go back to the rotten Big Apple? As The Rolling Stones sang, “Don’t mind the maggots!”.