Jorge CastilloMar 2, 2026, 07:00 AM ETCloseESPN baseball reporter. Covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for The Washington Post before covering the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.Follow on XMultiple Authors
Steve Cohen: As long as I own the Mets, there will be no team captain (1:04)Mets owner Steve Cohen explains why he doesn’t feel the need to name a team captain. (1:04)
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Steve Cohen went to sleep annoyed the night of Jan. 15. The New York Mets’ billionaire owner hoped Kyle Tucker would accept his club’s four-year, $220 million offer, but the star outfielder chose the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers. With the winter’s best free agent off the board, the Mets, in the process of a thorough roster revamp, were eager to pivot. And everyone knew it.
Then came a transaction blitz in less than a week to land the plane after two turbulent months. Bo Bichette, the top remaining hitter in free agency, signed the day after Tucker opted for Hollywood. Four days later, the Mets acquired center fielder Luis Robert Jr. from the Chicago White Sox. A day after that, All-Star right-hander Freddy Peralta and swingman Tobias Myers were acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers, and veteran right-handed reliever Luis Garcia agreed to a one-year deal.
Once the roster surgery was complete, the Mets reported to spring training with some new faces but comparable championship aspirations. Time is ticking. When Cohen bought the Mets in November 2020, he said he would be disappointed if the team didn’t win the franchise’s first World Series title since 1986 in three to five years. This is Year 6. And he’s annoyed.
“I’m absolutely annoyed,” Cohen said. “Every year that goes by, I get frustrated. I’m really committed to this team. And I know how much the fans care. I know we’re celebrating the 40th anniversary of 1986 [this season], and that’s just too long.”
Stearns and his front office formulated various plans in October. They listed specific targets — in free agency and via trades. They hypothesized various scenarios. They attempted to predict when the targets would come off the board.
The Mets made significant moves the previous winter — among them, giving star outfielder Juan Soto the richest contract in North American professional sports history — that raised expectations coming off an unexpected appearance in the 2024 National League Championship Series. But this winter offered an opportunity for Stearns to reshape the roster’s DNA.
“We don’t have a CSI-like board with strings going from one to another,” Stearns told ESPN. “We went into this offseason understanding there was going to be change. In my opinion, there needed to be change. We didn’t know exactly what change that was going to be. What deals were going to emerge that made sense for us. What the market was going to be on certain players.
“But we knew we needed to get better defensively. We knew we needed to add to our starting pitching. We wanted to get a little more versatile positionally with our position player grouping. And so, those led us down a variety of paths.”
Semien is four years older, but his contract is three years shorter, giving the Mets more long-term flexibility. He’s also a Gold Glove winner. Nimmo, tossed into an awkward situation, waived his no-trade clause after discussing it with both parties. The move registered as shocking.
“I think people knew some things might need to change,’ Mets right-hander Clay Holmes said. “And so, obviously, the Nimmo trade was very surprising, and it was kind of telling of the direction maybe they wanted to go and rebuild things.”
The Mets offered the three-time All-Star closer a three-year, $66 million contract with substantial deferrals. But Díaz went to the Dodgers with the offer and didn’t turn back, agreeing to a three-year, $69 million deal with less money deferred. Díaz’s negotiation tactic “perplexed” Cohen.
“These are players that sort of grew up in my ownership and got to know personally,” Cohen said. “So from a personal standpoint, it’s tough to say goodbye.”
A week-and-a-half later, on Dec. 22, came the fourth blow to the fanbase. Veteran utilityman McNeil was traded to the Athletics for Yordan Rodriguez, an 18-year-old pitcher who spent last season in the Dominican Summer League. Four of the franchise’s most recognizable players, with 31 combined seasons in Queens, were gone in a month.
The sudden exodus stirred emotions from the fan base. Stearns signed veteran infielder Jorge Polanco and former New York Yankees relievers Devin Williams and Luke Weaver, but fans were displeased. They wanted more.
“You don’t really know how key pieces of the team you’re rooting for are going to come together, and that’s anxiety-inducing,” Stearns said. “I get that. I get that. That’s important. If that doesn’t exist, we don’t exist here, right? So, it doesn’t bother me. If we don’t have fans shouting from the rooftops and talk radio hosts and columnists shouting from the rooftops, we don’t get to do our jobs. And so, all of that supports what we do, and I and we are very aware of that.”
The behind-the-scenes work has borne fruit, with a farm system that ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel recently ranked fifth in the sport even after sending two top-100 prospects to Milwaukee for Peralta and Myers. Several rookies, headlined by right-hander Nolan McLean and outfielder Carson Benge, are expected to contribute in 2026. But Stearns believed several moves were required to contend. So did his antsy boss.
“I felt what the fans felt,” Cohen said. “The worst part was these players left, and yet, we hadn’t signed or figured out who was going to fill those positions. And I describe it as I was feeling anxiety. Like, how are we going to get there? But David kept cautioning me and telling me to stay patient, that it’s a long offseason.”
Stearns said he kept Cohen constantly updated. There were text messages, emails, phone calls, and in-person meetings. They engaged in conversations. They exchanged ideas. But Cohen, seasoned from his early years in control when his patience ran short, left the decisions to Stearns.
“Ultimately, he’s trusting our baseball judgment, and he’s supporting our baseball plan,” Stearns said. “He asks great questions as we move through it; he pushes us. He ensures we’ve got a plan and reasoning for what we’re doing. And clearly, he’s one of the most dedicated owners in all of professional sports, and that’s a huge advantage for us.”
The Mets, fresh off Tucker’s rejection, had a deal in place with Bichette the following morning for three years, $126 million to play third base — a position he has never played as a professional. He wouldn’t be the only Met adapting: Polanco, signed to a two-year contract in December, would be playing first base for the first time in the majors.
Bichette’s contract includes player opt-outs after the first and second seasons, essentially making it a one-year pact should he avoid a major injury and produce to his capability. The $42 million annual average value is tied for fourth highest in the majors. It was enough for Bichette to spurn the rival Philadelphia Phillies’ seven-year offer at the 11th hour.
In all, the Mets’ 40-man roster includes 13 players who were not with the organization when it dropped its season finale to the Miami Marlins on Sept. 28, completing a collapse from best record in the majors in mid-June to October spectator.
“I feel like this team is better than last year,” Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor said after the team reported to camp last month.
Lindor underwent surgery on his left hamate bone Feb. 11. The return-to-play timetable is at least six weeks, putting him right against Opening Day. Lindor, who has not been on the injured list since 2021, and team officials insist they are optimistic he will be ready for March 26. But the procedure can sap a hitter’s power for months after recovery.
Soto, meanwhile, will move from right field to left field — a position he has played extensively, but a transition nonetheless — after grading out as one of the worst defensive outfielders in the majors last season.
Lindor and Soto were also central to speculation of clubhouse discord last season. Soto’s every interaction with teammates was dissected in his transition from the Yankees. His relationship with Lindor was closely scrutinized. During the offseason, Mendoza described the clubhouse last season as “corporate” — a far cry from the loose bunch that sang and danced its way through an enchanting run to the NLCS the previous October.
Soto and Lindor denied any issues between them. Clubhouse chemistry was not among the reasons Stearns publicly cited for the offseason roster overhaul. But voluntarily moving Nimmo and McNeil, along with letting Alonso walk without a contract offer and not retaining veteran outfielder Starling Marte, significantly altered the team’s leadership dynamic.
“This is different, obviously, with a lot of new faces from the player side and from the coaches’ side,” Mendoza said. “It’s going to be a priority of ours, building the relationships, earning the trust.”
Though strikingly different, the roster remains exceedingly expensive. Cot’s Baseball Contracts projects a $377.8 million Mets payroll this season. Only the Dodgers’ roster is slated to cost more. But the Dodgers have won three World Series over the past six seasons. Under Cohen, the Mets have reached the postseason just twice in six years, and have yet to win an NL East title.
A successful 2026 season, Cohen said, would at least mean reaching the playoffs. He believes not qualifying in consecutive years is unacceptable. He aspires to have his club become an annual entrant, maximizing its chances for a parade, not the roller coaster ride he has experienced at the helm. He’s annoyed, but he has learned that winning it all isn’t as easy as he initially thought.
“The longer I’ve been here, the more I’ve realized that all I can do is commit the resources, allow my baseball people to pick the places, and a lot of it goes year-to-year,” Cohen said. “It’s dependent on injuries, it’s dependent on a lot of things. And it’s really hard to predict the future.”