Two offseasons ago, New York Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner was on vacation in Italy and made a now-infamous phone call in the middle of the night. Team star and reigning MVP Aaron Judge was on the cusp of signing with the San Francisco Giants; in fact, it had already been falsely reported earlier that day.
Steinbrenner’s call to his star was clear: Tell me what keeps you a Yankee, and we’ll make it happen. Nine years and $360 million later, Aaron Judge was the Yankee captain. A “Yankee for life” as he had put it before.
Well, there’s a new Hal Steinbrenner in town in the form of New York Mets owner Steve Cohen. The hedge fund legend did his own last-ditch pitching in free agency this year but to Juan Soto, who turned in a stellar contract year for the Yankees in 2024.
On Sunday, Soto agreed to a record 15-year, $765 million deal with the Mets. The contract contains escalators to make it worth upwards of $800 million, plus an opt-out after the fifth season. The Yankees, by comparison, offered 16 years and $760 million. Cohen wanted his man, and he got him. Very Hal Steinbrenner indeed.
Except, looking at the Mets’ long-term, this is a move more reminiscent not of Hal Steinbrenner two years ago, but his father George two decades ago. Back when the Yankees spent, spent, and spent some more with little regard for the farm system.
What does this have to do with the Mets? Well, we’ve already discussed how even in adding Juan Soto, the team’s pitching staff needs a lot of attention. Especially when the “Make Clay Holmes a starter” experiment goes south. As of now, Kodai Senga and Frankie Montas are the only reliable starters in the rotation.
Neglecting the pitching staff’s long-term sustainability in favor of boosting the lineup: Something old-school Yankees fans remember all too well about George Steinbrenner, especially in the 21st century. Just as Moneyball was taking off, as SNY’s Andy Martino details in his book The Yankee Way: The Untold Inside Story of the Brian Cashman Era, the Yankees were so behind other teams’ embracing it that they unknowingly traded potentially high-value minor leaguers for practically nothing.
At the same time, particularly between 2003 and ’04, George Steinbrenner essentially seized control of roster decisions. Any free agent who filled a need and had a remotely good contract year? Come to New York!
This is how the Yankees made two comically bad signings in pitchers Carl Pavano and Jaret Wright. Pavano was particularly bad, managing only 26 games in four seasons in the Bronx.
Granted, this wasn’t anything new for Steinbrenner. He did the same thing throughout the 1980s, except it was trading young pitching for aging hitters. Additionally, even with awful signings in Wright and Pavano, the Yankees weren’t adversely affected. Last I checked, they still haven’t finished sub-.500 since 1992!
Anyway, back to Steve Cohen, the Mets, and Juan Soto. On the whole? Great signing. Juan Soto is a top talent and whatever contract he received from any team would have been justified on “But it’s Zava” points alone. Pitching woes aside, the Mets are serious contenders in the National League.
But everyone knows that in baseball, victories tend to be short. Sooner or later, Steve Cohen and team president David Stearns will have to look at the books and do the financial calculus to make top pitching fit into the budget. Gambling on prospect Christian Scott coming back in top form only accomplishes so much, same as banking on his fellow prospects Brandon Sproat or Blade Mitchell.
The Mets can only hope that there’s enough remaining in Cohen’s seemingly bottomless coffers. At some point, the pitching piper must be paid.
Will they be ready? We’ll soon find out.
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