Mets Payroll (quit bitching)

[nymr83]

[Warning: paywall]

https://theathletic.com/4234695/2023/02/21/mets-payroll-projection-2023/https://theathletic.com/4234695/2023/02/21/mets-payroll-projection-2023/



I found this tidbit particularly interesting and a nice fuck you to all the whiners about Cohen - especially the hypocritical yankees fans (you know you know one) with the nerve to complain

...the Mets' player payroll ... is 28 percent higher than the second-highest payroll, that of the Yankees. On a relative basis, that's the biggest gap between No. 1 and No. 2 since … 2021, when the Dodgers' payroll was 28 percent higher than the second-place Yankees. ... The Mets are still not outspending the league at the same rate the Yankees did in the aughts. Let's look at some historical payroll numbers courtesy of the Associated Press. From 2003 to 2010, the Yankees spent at least 30 percent more than any other major-league team, topping out in 2005 when they spent 69 percent more than any other team. The Yankees had the highest payroll in the game for 15 consecutive years (1999 through 2013), and in 11 of those seasons their payroll was more than double the league average and the league median. (In 2005, it was triple the league median.)

[TransMonk]

Britton at the Athletic has had a few articles this week focused on Cohen's spending. My favorite was from yesterday:



https://theathletic.com/4232983/2023/02/20/mets-steve-cohen-spending-payroll/The Mets keep talking about their long-term blueprint. Are other owners listening?

“I'm pretty clear about what I want to do, right?” Cohen said. “Hopefully people are listening to what I want to do as far as this being a bridge to a stronger farm system. I mean, it is a marker of success of my ownership reign.”

I'm even more comfortable with spending now to win in order to build the farm and win by spending less later. The ultimate WIN/WIN!

[batmagadanleadoff]

It's a very sensible plan, but it's a lot easier said than done, even for a superduper rich guy like Cohen. I mean, your prospects and draft picks have to pan out. That ain't necessarily gonna happen just because Cohen's got lotsa money. The thing about signing top tier free agents still in their prime is you have a better handle on what you're gonna get than you do with draft picks.



Everybody has plans. But like Mike Tyson liked to say, "everybody has a plan to beat me, until I punch 'em in the face the first time".