Billionaire hedge fund manager Steve Cohen has entered into an exclusive negotiating period to purchase the New York Mets with a deal expected to be reached in a matter of days, according to sources familiar with the ongoing deal. The news was first reported on Twitter by the co-anchor of CNBC’s Squawk on the Street David Faber, with Jennifer Lopez announcing via Instagram and Twitter that she and Fiance, Alex Rodriguez, will no longer be bidding on the Mets.
“Alex and I are so disappointed!!” said Jennifer Lopez on Twitter, adding that “we still haven’t given up!” It is believed that the Rodriguez-led group is believed to have offered as much as $2.3 billion in their bid with an investor group that included Florida Panthers owner, Vincent Viola, Vitamin Water Founder, Mike Repole, and Jet.com co-founder and current CEO of Walmart eCommerce, Marc Lore.
It is anticipated that Steve Cohen, who originally agreed to a deal to purchase the Mets in 2019 for $2.6 billion for just 80%, will have a bid agreed to north of $4 billion dollars for both the New York Mets, and their regional sports network SportsNet New York (SNY).
Any deal will require the approval of 23 of the 30 MLB owners.
The Wilpon family has owned and operated the New York Mets as the controlling investor since 2002.
