Sandy Alderson has officially transitioned from Mets’ team president to an advisory role, owner Steve Cohen announced this morning (relayed by Tim Healey of Newsday). It’s the culmination of a process first announced last September.
Alderson, the New York general manager from 2010-18, returned to the organization as team president once Cohen purchased the franchise from the Wilpon family at the conclusion of the 2020 campaign. Alderson and the club had a mutual understanding he’d spend a fairly brief amount of time in that capacity, with the sides agreeing last fall to transition the veteran executive to an advisory role around the time his original two-year contract expired.
Last fall, the organization indicated Alderson would remain the team president until the Mets settled on his replacement. They’d been conducting interviews for the role for some time but still haven’t filled the position. Cohen suggested this morning they could now leave it vacant for the entire 2023 campaign, though he didn’t rule out the possibility of making a hire. As of last September, most of the candidates under consideration came from business backgrounds rather than baseball operations career paths — with no indication the club was interested in curtailing the daily baseball operations responsibilities for general manager Billy Eppler.
Alderson, 75, has worked in baseball operations or the league office for the better part of four decades. He’s previously spent time with the Oakland and San Diego front offices. Alderson remains with the Mets, though he’s presumably ceded some of the responsibilities he’d taken on over the past couple years. Perhaps not coincidentally, Cohen has taken on a more active role with the club. The owner told Healey and other reporters that he’s now part of weekly meetings with his staff.
Alderson drafted well though for some reason blocked some of his draftees with Jay Bruce. Sandy also made excellent trades, and also got lucky that Nimmo’s medicals were flagged otherwise Nimmo for Bruce would have a bottom ten trade in Mets history at best. The free agent signing were more bad than good. Obviously with Sandy the Cohen’s never get approved as Mets owners. I’d rate Sandy as an average gm here.
Without Sandy they don’t get approved I mean.
I heard it’s Mr. Met whose operating as Team’s President now.
As long as it isn’t Brodie inside the costume.
The Mets and Cohen have said they are looking for an “organizational President” – not a baseball guy. So Stearns, and any other recycled GM names are “probably” not on the radar.
My hunch is someone Cohen knows well – possibly a Point 72 person – gets the job.
And we should NOT care. This person is not President of Baseball Operations.
Not a story.
If you believe Stearns isn’t going to join the Mets, you’re kidding yourself.
You are David Klein right? I thought you were someone else though
Stearns is on the way
I’m 65 and take medication. What’s my pric
$9.95!
Plus shipping and handling
“Tree-fitty”
I’m on to you succubus
Free-99
It will be good to work with Sandy in the advisory role. Nothing to it.
He’s in a different class than you, personally and professionally, no doubt.
Good glad to hear that. Move to Venezuela please.
Mets needs a new PBO and James Click is still looking for a job. That’s bad news for the rest of league.
DRASSCO.will you please show me or lead me to an article where james click says he is looking for a job.
From that first line it sounded like he’d crossed the rainbow bridge.
Just here to see the deluge of misguided and hateful comments about Alderson
NO SANDY DISRESPECT
Yeah me too. GM is often times a thankless job. Everyone expects them to have crystal balls to see into the future as to whether or not their potential signings will be successful. Keep in mind that for 85% of his overall tenure with the Mets, Alderson had the Coupons to deal with. Talk about being set up for imminent failure.
At 75, perhaps his balls are crystal. But I think you make a good point. People usually remember the bad moves a GM makes over the good moves.
Stopped reading at “Sandy Alderson has officially transitioned…”
🙂
He’s keeping the name Sandy though.
SANDY SOUNDS DANDY
Ha ha. I bet he is part of weekly meetings.
Maybe Cohen is waiting on Epstein. Perhaps Epstein is trying to get a ownership piece of the Mets and that’s been the delay.
Cue the “2015 never happened” choir. Alderson was far from perfect and had some disaster hires like Callaway. But the team recovered from an unprecedented crisis with Madoff. Better days are here for NYM fans. Lean into that
If Steve C Is looking for business/ baseball guy to fill the job of Sandy A why not pick phone and call the Chicago White Sox and talk to Kenny Williams.
You kill two birds with one stone Kenny has both business background and he a world series winning VP of baseball operations.
F – – – that guy. He’s washed.
Kenny was a scout. Doesn’t have business background
Very easy to judge him. But I can’t lose sight of the fact that he operated under the worst ownership in NY Baseball history, possibly even NY Sports History, period. One could argue Dolan. But a.) he at least isn’t cheap and b.) the Rangers are successful and have a chance every year.
Definitely not the worst ownership in NY Sports History. Not even close. Wilpons spent big often, just not enough. Revionist history likes to act like the Mets never signed a FA before the Cohen era. Mets are definitely better off with Cohen, and the Wilpons last few years were ugly, but fans tend to exaggerate how bad it was. The Jets exist.
More non sequiturs from that truly American genus known as Dumb Sports Fans.
James Dolan has an enemies list — Steve Cohen does not.
LOLMETS
Mets gonna met
This was always the plan. How is this remotely “Mets gonna Met?”
Anderson never should have been hired anyway way past his prime and the game has passed him by. I was laughing he was still even a part of the organization he should have been placed in a retirement community years ago.
Of course they don’t need a PBOps. Cohen’s the acting GM, while Eppler handles minor GM duties and most of the administrative tasks—what did people think Eppler was here for, really? Billy Eppler, the only GM ever trolled by the team that fired him, so bad at finding pitching that the Angels, in the draft after he left, drafted only pitchers and nothing but pitchers, the first time in MLB history that’s ever happened.
Incredible, that Alderson isn’t treated by Mets fans as a pariah, given how for most of a decade he was happy to sell his reputation to the Wilpons for $4m a year, allowing them to stay on as team owners while doing their dirty work, including playing David Wright into the ground, onto the DL, and off the team when Wright was known to be seriously injured. At least Alderson’s on his way out, formally.
JackStrawb,
You can’t make this stuff up lol
Phil Regan, former Mets pitching coach, suing team for age discrimination
https://nypost.com/2023/02/21/phil-regan-ex-mets-pitching-coach-suing-for-age-discrimination/
Mets hire an 82 yo pitching coach and then fire him by telling him he is too old Unreal
Cohen turning into the Jerry Jones of the MLB lol. This should be fun.
More appropriate comparisons would be with Chelsea Football Club, FC Barcelona, Juventus FC, or Manchester City Football Club.
The NFL has a salary cap — baseball and European soccer do not.
I do sometimes worry that baseball goes the route of football (soccer) in terms of owners.. While Cohen is fun, there are owners who cannot spend anywhere close to what he spends. We’re already seeing a few ownership changes. Down the road will baseball owners simply be the Oil Tycoons we see in FIFA? Is that the only way owners can spend on the Cohen scale? Or am I being ridiculous? Probably the latter.
Hasta la vista baby
Interesting. I’d say you don’t need a traditional GM if you are simply going to out-pay everyone else. But the NYM farm has been pretty productive over the years. I wonder who’s jurisdiction that is?