After narrowly dropping the National League East title last season, then bowing out in the NL Wild Card round to the San Diego Padres, New York Mets owner Steve Cohen has entered this offseason with a vengeance.
New York Mets owner Steve Cohen is making history with money this offseason
In an offseason that has included the signings of Justin Verlander, Kodai Senga, Jose Quintana, Brandon Nimmo, David Robertson, and others, the payroll for the New York Mets has skyrocketed well past $300 million for next season. With that high payroll comes a high luxury tax as well, and it will be a luxury tax that could well eclipse the overall payroll numbers of six other MLB teams.
As of now, Steve Cohen's luxury-tax bill of roughly $80 million is more than the projected '23 payrolls of six teams (A's, PIrates, Orioles, Reds, Rays and Royals).#Mets
— David Lennon (@DPLennon) December 11, 2022
New York will open its season on March 30 at the Miami Marlins with the largest payroll that any MLB team has ever sported. That payroll was increased even further on Saturday night when the Mets inked Japanese pitcher Kodai Senga to a five-year, $75 million contract. The San Francisco Giants were reportedly chasing Senga, but were simply outbid for the pitcher’s services.
That has been a common theme of the offseason. If there is a player that Cohen and the Mets want to have, there has been little that has stood in their way of acquiring him. That mindset has led to a history-making moment for the game of baseball.
The Mets' payroll will likely wind up in the $300 millions, but Steve Cohen's total outlay, factoring in his luxury tax payments, is going to exceed $400 million. We've never seen anything like this in the history of baseball.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) December 11, 2022
Will the spending spree bring a World Series trophy back to Citi Field? While that’s unknown, one thing is for sure: Steve Cohen is doing everything he can to make it happen.