What’s long seemed like an inevitable pairing has come to fruition, as the Mets have reached an agreement with David Stearns to oversee their baseball operations department, SNY’s Andy Martino reports. Stearns, who was the president of baseball operations with the Brewers before stepping down and taking on an advisory role following the 2022 season, will hold that same president of baseball operations title with his hometown Mets. He’ll officially start in his new role at the end of the regular season. He will be signing a five-year contract, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Martino adds that Billy Eppler will stay on in his general manager position.
Stearns, now 38, has long been speculatively connected to the Mets based on his roots. Born and raised in Manhattan, he worked for the Mets earlier in his career, though his baseball journey would take him to many other places before winding back to New York. After graduating from Harvard, he interned with the Pirates, then worked for the Mets before bouncing to Major League Baseball and then Cleveland.
In November of 2012, he was given the title of assistant general manager of the Astros, working under general manager Jeff Luhnow. That club was deeply committed to a rebuild at the time, as that year was their second of three consecutive 100-loss seasons. They would eventually emerge from that period of futility in 2015 by going 86-76, starting a run of excellence that continues to this day, having made the playoffs in every full season from that year to the present.
But for most of that success, Stearns was in Milwaukee, having been hired away by the Brewers in September of 2015. That club made him general manager and hoped to follow a similar trajectory to the Astros. The Brewers had been hovering around .500 for a few years but dipped to 68-94 the year Stearns came aboard. The next three years saw the win total increase to 73 and then 86 and then 96, as the club won the National League Central in 2018, their first of four consecutive trips to the postseason.
As the Brewers flourished under Stearns, rumors about bringing him back to New York naturally followed. As far back of November of 2020, when the Mets were looking to replace general manager Brodie Van Wagenen, Stearns was connected to the job. But the Brewers had already signed him to an extension and promoted him to president of baseball operations. Standard practice in baseball usually sees teams allow their front office employees to pursue promotions but not lateral moves. Since Stearns already had the top job in Milwaukee, the Brewers denied the Mets the opportunity to speak with him.
As Stearns stayed in Milwaukee, the front office search for the Mets didn’t yield a permanent solution. Jared Porter was hired in December of 2020 but fired just a few weeks later when it was revealed that he harassed a female reporter in 2016. Zack Scott was then named acting general manager but was charged with driving while intoxicated in September of 2021. He would eventually be acquitted of those charges but the club had already moved on and hired Eppler as general manager in November of that year.
The results of late have been mixed, to say the least. Owner Steven Cohen has signed off on unprecedented spending levels, with the club signing many marquee free agents in recent years. That resulted in 101 wins last year, the second-best record in franchise history. But the club was quickly eliminated from the playoffs and didn’t carry their success into 2023. Various injuries, particularly to the starting rotation, quickly pushed the club out of contention and they went into the recent trade deadline as sellers instead of buyers. They are currently 65-78, just half a game ahead of the last place Nationals in the East division.
As the Mets have been going through those highs and lows over the past few years, they would continue to be connected to Stearns in rumors but his position in Milwaukee continued to be an obstacle, with his deal running through the 2023 season. Stearns stepped down as president of baseball operations last October, though he stayed with Milwaukee in an advisory capacity for the final year of his contract. At the time, he said he was “looking forward to taking a deep breath, spending time with my family and exploring some other interests.”
This led to immediate speculation that Stearns was setting the table for a move out of Milwaukee. The Astros parted ways with general manager James Click at the end of last season and owner Jim Crane was reportedly interested in bringing Stearns back to Houston. That job ultimately went to Dana Brown and Stearns stayed in Milwaukee with diminished responsibilities. It was then reported a week ago that Stearns had been reinvigorated by his smaller role and was contractually able to pursue other opportunities after August 1. He had already spoken with the Mets and Astros and now, at long last, he and the Mets are officially reuniting. As mentioned, he’ll take on the president title with Eppler beneath him as the general manager.
The Mets will be hoping that this is the perfect marriage to set off a proper dynasty in Queens. Since taking over the club at the end of 2020, Cohen has cited the Dodgers as a model franchise that he wanted the Mets to emulate. The Dodgers hired Andrew Friedman away from the Rays in October of 2014, allowing him to implement the creative, data-driven and analytical approach he deployed in Tampa but with more resources for signing or retaining star players. That club has continually produced significant players from its own system and indeed spent at the top of the market to great success. They last finished under .500 in 2010 and haven’t missed the playoffs since 2012.
Stearns already has a strong track record from his time in Milwaukee, even without massive financial resources. Per Cot’s Baseball Contracts, Milwaukee’s payroll was never in the top half of the league during the Stearns tenure, topping out at 17th place in 2019. Their success has been built on homegrown players like Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff and Devin Williams, as well as trading for players like Christian Yelich, Willy Adames and many more. The Mets, on the other hand, ran up the highest payroll in baseball history this year.
Time will tell what kind of timeline the club has in mind for its next steps. After being traded to the Rangers, Max Scherzer said he was told that the Mets would be taking something of a step back in 2024, focusing a bit more on the future and being a bit less aggressive in pursuit of short-term competitiveness. Eppler and Cohen responded and more or less confirmed that would be the case. Perhaps Stearns will take a year to get to know the club’s inner workings, keeping the moves modest until he gathers the necessary information to guide the club into the future.
The short-term trajectory will be revealed as the summer turns to fall and then to winter. But the long-term goal seems clear, as both Cohen and Eppler have long stressed the importance of building a strong farm system to supplement the club’s financial might. The Mets and their fans will be hoping that the combination of Stearns leading the baseball decisions and Cohen writing the checks will lead to a similar run of success as the Dodgers have enjoyed.
Images courtesy of USA Today Sports.
SonnySteele
How many seasons before fans start to clamor for Stearns to be fired?
solaris602
I’ll say two. He has to make some genuine magic in short order. The big question is: what does this mean for Billy Eppler?
LordD99
Supposedly when Cohen hired Eppler he told him he was eventually hiring a PoBO above him, and he would have known Stearns was the guy. Reports indicate the two have a friendly relationship. Also, I believe, the Brewers locked up two of Stearns’ lieutenants, so my guess is Eppler stays, at least for the next year. I believe Showalter might be more at risk than Eppler, at least initially. Counsel is unsigned past this year.
JackStrawb
@solaris602 I’m amazed anyone gives a damn about Eppler, but there’s no chance Stearns doesn’t sideline him—give him tasks at which he might succeed but through which he won’t hurt the club, and with which he might contribute, but otherwise keep him in his corner. Have him be part of the groups that reaches out to Yamamoto’s people if he has an in with Japanese ball, for example.
Eppler was fine as the figurehead for owners who wanted to play GM with their billions. He did it LA, and he did it in NY. That’s pretty good for a guy with no evident talent, who is the nominal GM of a team that can’t not only _not_ build an average bullpen, but has had all season to find just one guy who might contribute from the pen in 2024 and couldn’t succeed even at that miniscue task. Who dealt away the player who’d become the Giants cleanup hitter for four months in exchange for dross. Who couldn’t recognize that JD Davis was an above average 3Bman and as a result signed Escobar to be the placeholder with money that would have helped elsewhere; whose rotation construction ensured 40% of the Mets starts would go to Carrasco, Peterson, Megill, and worse… on and on and on.
Eppler’s a ridiculous figure, a walking Peter Principle, but he has a good personal p.r. team. That’s clear, but he’ll never GM again. Still the only GM to be trolled in the draft following the year in which he was fired. The new Angels FO had a sense of humor, anyway.
MLB Top 100 Commenter
Hey David Stearns, what’s in your wallet?
Hemlock
> Hey David Stearns, what’s in your wallet?
Billy Eppler
MLB Top 100 Commenter
Nah, Billy is in Steve’s out-basket
Maybe they can permanently reassign him to be their Nippon scout
dugmet
Evidence please.
Curly Was The Smart Stooge
I don’t know whose hand is in his wallet, but we’ll leave the light on…
pt57
Cohen’s credit card.
cleonswoboda
don’t leave home without it.
afsooner02
5 games.
njbirdsfan
All of whom will clearly know more than Stearns but don’t understand why teams aren’t interested in their trade packages involving middle relievers for multiple time all stars.
braveshomer
as a Braves fan I don’t personally like this hire! lol….He should bring some balance to helping build the team imo. Good hire
farscott
As a Braves fan, I agree. With the resources the Mets can bring to bear and someone proven competent to wield them, the Mets will be formidable within the next few years. The NL East will be contested just considering the Braves, Mets, and Phillies. Should make for good baseball down the stretch with the pennant being decided similar to the way the AL East pennant is.
JackStrawb
@farscott Far from a sure thing. Within a few years the Mets will be carrying too many expensive players in their 30s and on the downsides of their careers. They have a #10 farm and the only FV55 players they have look like busts. They don’t have any serious pitching anywhere in the system, and if two of their FV50 prospects in the upper levels bust, the farm won’t contribute meaningfully for 5 years.
At the same time, if Stearns signs Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who’s young enough to contribute in 2024 and 2029, and he can add two MOR starters as well this offseason, the Mets will contend even in ’24. (Assuming Stearns isn’t as absurdly inept as Eppler in stocking a bullpen.)
If he adds a serious DH on a short deal and builds a real bench, the Mets will be fine in the short term, contenders for a wild card, without compromising 2026 and after.
raisinsss
I’d put money on people here blaming him for 2023.
Watch.
Captain-Judge99
Nah I really love this move for the Mets. I wish the Yankees could have Stearns, and the Mets could have Ca$hman. Any takers out there? Lol
roob
Well, they missed out on Chris Getz. So many teams were disappointed when he went with the Sox after Jerry looked down the hallway and said, “Hey you. Come over here. I need a GM.”
worthington
Cohen makes the decisions. He should fire himself.
Blue Baron
What an amazingly dumb comment.
Someone should fire you.
wedgeant27
Already happening
Deadguy
New York… I gotta give it to you, your my spoiled little brother who gets everything you want. Congrats, stay off the hard drugs at least
Bil 2
2 years
Dodgerfan34
2 weeks
PoisonedPens
Seasons plural?
ib6ub9
wow didnt see that coming. lol
Chris from NJ
Let the turn around begin.
bobbyvwannabe
Awesome
juice04
Thanks for turning around the brewers. much bigger task fixing the mets and that dumpster fire ha
joeyrocafella
I’d rather be in the Mets situation then where the Brewers are, a team that’s consistently just barely good enough to make the playoffs but never good enough to go past the first round. They’re the Atlanta Hawks of MLB
_Soulrocker_
And the Mets are the Cleveland Browns
sfes
Coming from the coming from fans of a team that STILL don’t have a championship trophy, that’s rich.
Phunkzilla
Brewers fans hate him and Counsell. Legit idiots in that state.
rct
“And the Mets are the Cleveland Browns”
Browns have been to the playoffs once in the late 20 years and currently have a rapist at QB. Mets were in the playoffs last year with 101 wins and have been in the playoffs plenty, with a World Series appearance. Not comparable. Browns have no comparison in MLB.
JoeBrady
Brewers fans hate him and Counsell. Legit idiots in that state.
===========================
That’s probably the same with every team. Some RS hated Theo & Tito, and they might’ve been the best GM/Manager combo in BB history.
EasternLeagueVeteran
Previous posts about Brewers and Stearns and Counsell BY BREWERS fans have indicated they appreciated their work and efforts both. Joe Brady, if you are to troll, troll with evidence. You are not a Brewers fan.
EasternLeagueVeteran
It is not tampering because the request to speak to Stearns about a job was denied. Any fool and any judge would know there had been interest before, and to be honest, Mark Anatassio knew that two years ago and chose to hang onto Stearns probably out of spite. My guess is he was hoping the Mets would get desperate and offer compensation prior to the end of his contract. But the Mets and Stearns waited it out. Milwaukee in the meantime had every chance over twi years to sweeten the pot, make a bugger commitment to Stearns, but chose not to.
SalaryCapMyth
JoeBrady DID respond to another fan; Phunkzilla. Would it have made you happier if he had asked if he was a Brewers fan or did you just not pay enough attention?
brewsingblue82
You’d rather be a team that spent well over 300 million and still missed the playoffs? Weird
marcher18
Who gives a hoot how much money is spent? How does that affect you and me lol Steve Cohen is making money every year regardless it’s not gonna tank the Mets financials regardless. I would rather be literally any other team besides the handful that haven’t ever won a ring, especially the won that just lost their bright mind that built their successful system
stymeedone
The more money spent in proportion to the wins, increases the perceived level of incompetence. That’s how it affects the team.
BaseballisLife
Sty,
The Mets won 101 games last season so does that mean you were touting Eppler’s genius and competence after the season?
brewsingblue82
Also, the Brewers made the NLCS in 2018, and if you go back further, also made it in 2011. 3 of the 8 times the brewers have made the playoffs in their team history, they’ve made it to the NLCS, or further. But, sure. Our last 3 appearances have been quick exits. They still haven’t spent even half of what the Mets spent this year only to miss the playoffs.
sfes
Still no trophy. I’ll take having seen that in my life. Brewers aren’t exactly spectacular in their fabulous recent NLCS appearances either. They also crapped out the wild card last year. The best you can say is recent NLCS. The best I can say is champs. So yes, I would.
sfes
Also, this didn’t start with someone insulting the Brewers. I’ve rooted for them to be champs recently. I came out defending nym and pointing out that that org isn’t exactly the Yankees or Dodgers either.
sfes
This site is full of pre pubescent morons who do nothing to further any conversation. What has “In Stearns we trust” changed his name to this time?
TGH31
The Mets payroll is 2-3 times what the Brewers is. The fact that any Mets fan is trying to show relevancy against a Brewers team at a distinct competitive advantage is crazy. Goes to show you how inept the Mets franchise has been for a bit.
Samuel
sfes;
I think many of the “pre pubescent morons” are into their 40’s and 50’s, although I do think there are a lot of teenagers and younger on here.
It’s just groupthink. Someone starts a narrative using selected statistics and most jump on.
sad
sfes
Thank you. It’s sad how this sites comment section has become a dumpster fire. I’ve been reading it since like 2005 and it amazes me how few people can have a decent conversation on here without sounding like preschoolers.
sfes
Nobody’s trying to compare relevancy. Neither team is quite frankly on the level of , say the Dodgers. But I’ll die knowing I at least saw a title.
its_happening
You play in a soft division. Be thankful.
Phunkzilla
Were they ever a 1 seed? NO!
Phunkzilla
You seem to think lower seeds are favorites on the playoffs. Better check who the idiot is
outinleftfield
NL Central has more playoff appearances than any other NL division over the past decade. 4 more than the East and 7 more than the West.
Stormintazz
The Mets have a million reasons they can improve. Brewers do not. Brewers play for the championship every year. The National League Central.
ellisd19830
Brewers have about 100 million reasons to not have a better farm system… and yet it’s not even close… Plus we still have our 2 aces.
raisinsss
Fg has Mets 8th and brewers 14th.
So whether you’re trying to say the Mets or Brewers are better, you’re wrong, because it is pretty close.
ellisd19830
Well if gilbert and acuna are worth 100 mil… what would chourio, misiorowski, and quero be worth cause the Mets can’t touch any of those 3.
Stormintazz
Not much longer. Burnes will go this off season.
Stormintazz
Chourio, MIsiorowski, and quero aren’t worth anything until they prove they can play in MLB. Otherwise, prospects
Bud Selig Fan
And pipeline has them 3rd and baseball America 2nd, not including the 7 rookies on the team this season. All that talent accumulated WITHOUT a sell-off or high draft-pick. Amazing actually.
That’s what Stearns will do for the Mets — build a monster infrastructure that will draft & develop with the best of them.
JoeBrady
Chourio, MIsiorowski, and quero aren’t worth anything
=============================
I have $24 in my pocket. If those three prospects aren’t worth anything, then I presume I can send Mil my $24 on behalf of the RS, and then Mil would make the deal?
sfes
This has been Cohens plan all along. Rebuild the organization from the ground up and spend a bunch of cash just to try to compete while they do. The Dodgers model is the goal, at least. Nobody on this site cares about facts though.
User 401527550
Well Chourios OPS in the minors this year is a whopping.796. Don’t hold your breath on him being elite major league talent any time soon.
sfes
Ask the mid-20 teens Mets about how far a handful of aces and no bats gets you. That’s IF health is perfect. Hell I’ve rooted for Milwaukee to win in the post season several years.
outinleftfield
FG is a joke. MLB has the Brewers #3 and the Mets #11. Far more realistic rankings
mlb.com/news/mlb-pipeline-2023-midseason-system-ra…
raisinsss
Oddly enough, fangraphs uses estimated future $ value to asses farm systems.
So if you were actually interested in the answer to your question, you could easily find it.
raisinsss
The whole “prospects aren’t valuable unless/until they’ve performed in mlb” is reasoning at about a third grade level, if you went to public school.
BrianStrowman9
MLB.com prospect rankings are a joke. Fangraphs actually backs there’s up with a serious methodology…..
outinleftfield
Fangraphs has ONE guy that does prospect rankings. ONE guy. MLB has a team of 12 that report to TWO guys who then compile the rankings.
Baseball America typically agrees pretty closely with MLB. In this case they are one position different. Baseball Prospectus is two positions different.
When everyone else is really close and Fangraphs is not in the neighborhood, who do you think is right?
BrianStrowman9
MLB.com has a fine top 100 list. After that it’s absolutely laughable. FG does a much better job covering org prospects. MLB.com slaps a 50 grade on every Tom, Dick, and Harry in an organization.
Jeremy320
Brewers are not trading Burnes short of a King’s ransom.
Sid Bream Speed Demon
Wasn’t he a 19 year old the entire season playing at AA?
JoeBrady
Chourios OPS in the minors this year is a whopping.796.
=================================
1-AA
2-19 years old
Context matters.
stymeedone
“All along”- You mean for 2023. For 2024, it seems to have changed to “step back”. Face it. No matter how you want to phrase it, it will be a rebuild. Until it happens, no one knows for sure how it will go. Sterns may be the NYM version of Bloom in Boston. Cohen has the Money, but its not yet known if Sterns knows how to spend what he’s never had.
stymeedone
Those are all “opinion.” Even FG and MLB have to sell to the audience. Big market bias to ensure clicks is prevalent. This means the only way to know is wait and see.
vtadave
And it’s .890 since 7/1.
And he’s 19.
Jeremy320
Chorio had a poor first month in double-a as an 18 year old but since has nearly 1.200 ops….monster and 40+ steals.
Stormintazz
Won’t be much coming back. He is only one year away from FA. Since Boras tells all his cients to file.
outinleftfield
FG has one guy trying to cover every prospect. Just one. There are thousands. So, he cannot be nearly as thorough as a team of 12 being overseen by 2 of the most experienced prospect graders in the sport.
Baseball America agrees with MLB most of the time within a spot or two. So TWO of the most respected sports organizations say that FG is wrong.
Keep on believing what you want though because its your right to be ignorant of the facts.
Stormintazz
OK can’t wait for a list of those teams who have won a world series using A,AA,AAA players. I’ll wait.
Stormintazz
They can’t afford him. Boras is his agent who tells his players to test FA market.
outinleftfield
Nearly as many players Boras is the agent for decide to sign extensions as wait for FA. The players decide, not the agent. Sometimes its better not to listen to stupid fans and actually take a look at what actually happened.
outinleftfield
Chourios is a great prospect. He might be in the majors at age 20.
sfes
Nope. All along. Bump up they payroll to try to compete now, keep the prospects they had and rebuild the organization. So, yup, all along.
raisinsss
What are ESPN’s rankings?
Bleacher report?
Or wait, did you want to ignore all ranking sites/systems that don’t agree with you? Lmk, boo.
I mean… my point was that neither farm was “by far” better than the other.
Tell me I’m wrong, dork. Do it. Say: “we need to ignore the rankings that don’t agree with me because: not enough guys do it, too many guys do it, __________(insert arbitrary reason). And so I am right! The Brewers’ farm is MUCH better than the Mets’ “
raisinsss
Alright, it looks like I need to be the one to tell you this. Better strap yourself in…
EVERY RECENT WORLD SERIES CHAMPION WAS COMPRISED ALMOST ENTIRELY OF PLAYERS WHO SPENT MULTIPLE YEARS IN THE MINOR LEAGUES.
outinleftfield
When all those opinions from all the other experts agree and one doesn’t from a lone guy, I know which ones I will take as accurate.
outinleftfield
raisin, ESPN? I like Kiley McDaniel, but even he says that he is a one man crew for ESPN. Which is part of the reason I don’t pay $10 per month to read what he has to say.
A blog? Seriously? I don’t even bother to read Bleacher Report. Do you even know who they have doing their prospect reports? Joel Reuter. His last job before them was Sales Associate at Ace Hardware and before that a high school student reporter. PLEASE don’t believe me, look him up on LinkedIn. Last I heard all they did was average what everyone else said. In any case, he has no qualifications that you and I don’t have. Not even a journalism degree.
BA has guys that have been employed by MLB teams in their scouting and analytics departments. Same with BP and MLB, who has a huge team of former scouts and analytics guys doing the research for their prospect rankings. FG has ONE guy. That’s it. Ask him yourself.
You are wrong and you are a dork. No, your comment is just stupid on so many levels.
We need to pay attention to the rankings that are by scouting groups that are known to employ multiple people that are experts in their fields to look at prospects and we need to ignore ones that have one guy to look over thousands of prospects.
It takes multiple days to scout just one guy. Even if you are talking about just the top 10 on each team that is 300 spread over 4 levels of play. Many levels of play its difficult to get any video. I scour YouTube and other sources including several scouting sources I pay for to watch video on guys in the Angel’s system, plus I attend 40 or so minor league and spring training games a year, and there are some I have never seen anything on. Nothing. Longenhagen and McDaniel undoubtedly get some video from scouts for the teams and other sources I may not have access too, but it still takes time for each one. They cannot possibly watch video for the top 40-50 for each team to make an educated ranking of the entire system all by themselves. There are not enough hours in the day.
mookiesboy
Awesome!
LordD99
Will he be Friedman? Or will he be Bloom?
outinleftfield
Bloom had his legs chopped off payroll-wise. Stearns will be given free reign.
User 3180623956
Where’s your proof? bloom has spent plenty, he has just spent poorly.
outinleftfield
Here you go. Receipts.
legacy.baseballprospectus.com/compensation/cots/al…
User 3180623956
Thanks for proving my point. Over 200m spent the past three years with nothing to show for it. He overpaid for Story who was already injured and pretty much sucks offensively. He outbid himself for Yoshida who is falling apart and having an awful second half. He’s wasted all sorts of money on pitching including 10m wasted on each of Kluber and Paxton. bloom is in over his head.
outinleftfield
Just proved you wrong. Every season substantially less spent than in the years preceding Bloom and not once even CLOSE to the CBT. $50 million less than in 2019. Since they have nearly $500 million in annual revenue, spending up to and even over the CBT is easy and still profitable for the Red Sox. Instead they went cheap and hamstrung Bloom
Now go away kid. I have no time for the terminally stupid.
User 3180623956
He went over last year like an idiot, but thanks for trying. Your name calling just amplifies your mental weakness.
Jake Biggar
I was really hoping he’d be the guy to replace Bloom this off-season. Mets got a good one it looks like
paddyo furnichuh
This will be Cohen’s smartest addition to the organization.
acoss13
Cohen hired the best option available. I wish other owners were like that…
stymeedone
He was too slow to sign Getz. Gotta be faster.
acoss13
Jerry knew Getz was going to get a lot of offers so he seized the moment by not looking outside the organization and hiring Getz ASAP. Jerry knows what he’s doing! /sarcasm
10centBeerNight
Excellent move by NYM. Fans should be thrilled.
brooklyn62
The Hallelujah Chorus is ringing in my ears at this news!
Samuel
brooklyn62;
It’ll take a few years to build an organization, but Stearns record is that he brings along people that have the capability to be brought along (if not he sends them out and brings in others). And this time he’ll be able to build a farm system.
Got to catch up to the Braves and Phillies though. They have organizations in place.
The ball is now in the Yankees court. They keep running a franchise with Hal and Cashman making baseball decisions – along with bringing in consultants to do “studies” – and NYC again becomes a National League city for the next few generations.
harrycarey
All those championships with the Brewers and no money and now he has endless cash with the Mets. Brian Cashman is getting nervous with the competition across town.
rememberthecoop
Here comes Craig Counsell?
A'sfaninLondonUK
@the Coop…
Totally off topic, but you mused about any pitchers to win three games in a world series other than the Babe on another thread…
There might be others, but Mickey Lolich 1968 Detroit Tigers 1968 is definitely one.
Any others out there?
Cheers, Peter in London
JoeBrady
Bob f’n Gibson.
rememberthecoop
Thanks for that knowledge @A’s.
A'sfaninLondonUK
Thanks Joe, thanks Coop. I’ll have scuffle for any others.
If the fable of Gibson throwing at a guy trying to time his hits on the on deck circle is true, it is utterly old school….
Astros Hot Takes
Lew Burdette did it too – here’s the list
sabr.org/journal/article/world-series-rarities-the…
A'sfaninLondonUK
Thanks Astros Hot Takes – top link…
solaris602
I see that being Stearns first move. Brewers, for whatever reason, seem ready to move on from him. Maybe they’re prepping for a rebuild. Next up for Stearns is deciding whether or not to replace Eppler. Maybe he gives Billy one season as a courtesy, but I doubt it.
TBBC
He moved on from the Brewers. He felt he had done what he wanted to and had developed GM-type material below him and took a step back.
brodie-bruce
nah he’ll keep billy around some has to fill out the contracts after the deals are made
Stormintazz
Counsell will either go to the front office and take over for Matt Arnold. Arnold contract ends at this season end. Otherwise, Counsell will step away to spend time with his kids who are going off the college.
TGH31
Arnold signed an extension. That stuff isn’t publicized though.
EasternLeagueVeteran
As a parent, you don’t spend time with your college kids. College kids spend time with their friends, not their parents. Parents can watch “ from the sidelines” so to speak.
Host them for holiday dinners and birthdays and other important family events.
Know who their friends are, but expect to hear “ Mom and Dad, I’m going out with my friends.”
Stormintazz
Thanks Dr Phil
JoeBrady
but expect to hear “ Mom and Dad, I’m going out with my friends.”
=======================
Actually, you should “hope” to hear that. I see this over and over. My kid is charming with adults, but I’d make a decent-sized wager that she is counting the minutes until she can join her friends at the bar or restaurant.
It’s healthy, imo.
Mikegna
Maybe he can tear an Achilles too and be out for the season.
A'sfaninLondonUK
To be honest, it’s a great appointment but I’m surprised that this type of role didn’t preceed the splurge on players..
geofft
@ A’sfaninLondon… The Mets tried, but Stearns was under contract. Numerous other candidates turned them down for various reasons.
A'sfaninLondonUK
@Geofft – thanks Geoff
I’d be intrigued as to whom – no disrespect- allegedly or more conspicuously- turned that role down?
geofft
@ A’sfaninLondon Farhad Zaidi, Theo Epstein, Kim Ng, and even Stearns himself, for openers. This is the Mets third attempt at Siearns: it was believed that Stearns’ contract, terms of which were never made public, was up a few years ago. We later learned that it included an option year which Milwaukee then exercised. The assumption was that the Mets would pursue Stearns the following year. But we later learned that Stearns had then signed a two-year extension…. which brings us to now.
Epstein removed his name from consideration almost immediately, while Ng and Zaidi allowed things to simmer a bit before saying they were no longer interested. There were others.
The Mets then retained Sandy Alderson as an acting PBO while setting their sights on hiring a GM. They were again rebuffed by a number of candidates. One of the issues was that Alderson’s son Bryn was an assistant GM. The would-be candidates felt it would be toxic to have someone working directly under them who might be gunning for the job himself and is also the boss’ son.
Not a clever name
Mets dodged a bullet with zaidi, unless you like celebrating a 30 plus until toy player reclamation project who’s hitting .240 with 12 HR’s and plays average defense as the sign your team is about to turn a corner, every year. Oh and if he hits .270 with 20 he probably has an opt out clause on his 2 year deal just to make sure any hope of future contention is crushed.
A'sfaninLondonUK
Thanks Geoff – that is indeed intriguing…
3768902
Finally, some good news for fans of NY also-rans. A torn Achilles ain’t gonna break this stride!
0523me
Hey, the Mets did something right for a change!
sergefunction
Random timing given the open secret of this inevitable pairing? Or, is Steve Cohen sneaking this in on Achilles Day for some reason?
ChuckyNJ
They announce major news when the local NFL clubs are dominating the news cycle.
LOLmets endures always and forever.
Hemlock
His dad Howard has a great radio show.
rct
His grandpa Bear did a poor job of managing finances, though.
drewm
I can’t think of a more qualified candidate to be hired to oversee the Mets in a role that will be continually overruled by idiotic ownership
Evil_MrM
The idiots are long gone. It just took awhile to find replacements because they didn’t want to hire new idiots.
drewm
You can’t fire ownership.
Samuel
I think Cohen and Stearns will get along. Cohen simply needs someone he respects to hold him at the door and explain situations to him to stop him from interfering. Like what Joe Torre did with George.
stymeedone
If not new, what type of idiots did they want to hire this time?
ctbronx7
How much compensation will now be goin go to Milwaukee after the Mets finally snag the guy that they’d been all too blatant about wanting for several years.
brodie-bruce
none because sterns contract is up, unless the brew have some hard proof of conclusion, then again wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility that nym gave the brew a large some of money to make some back door deal
eddieocasek
Exactly- if there’s no compensation then this was clearly tampering. This better not be the end of the story
geofft
@eddieocasek It was not tampering at all. Just to be clear, he has not been the PBO at Milwaukee for over a year. He stepped down from that position last year and was working as a “consultant” while he rode out the contract. That contract, btw, allowed him to find a new job and leave after August 1st. And
everyone knew his intent was to leave the moment his contract was up.:
AlBundysFanClubPresident
I believe in a previous article he was allowed to begin talking with other teams once the trade deadline passed. It also stated that is what happened. The Mets (and Astros, I believe) were mentioned then as having reached out.
As much as I’d like MKE to get something from this, I don’t think there’s any reason the Mets are required to.
eddieocasek
They have been telegraphing this for years, thus it’s tampering. The reason we all knew this was going to happen was because it has been done so transparently.
CKinSTL
If there was indeed tampering and they can prove it – great. They aren’t going to penalize the Mets because the end result was predictable.
It doesn’t seem far-fetched that David Stearns can effectively read the job market in his industry. It doesn’t take tampering for Stearns to realize that the Mets had their PBO position open and that he would be a front-runner for that job… Stearns could probably assume he would be a front-runner for any open FO position with any team.
When the Mets got wind of the public news that Stearns was stepping down and they intentionally held their PBO position vacant, with a hope of hiring him.. this is also not tampering.
Maybe there was tampering and they have been having private discussions all along.. but if both sides are just reacting to publicly available information, that isn’t tampering.
briar-patch thatcher
Unreal. Ripping the Brewers’ hearts out during a CRITICAL playoff run for a franchise that may be relocating? Cohen definitely has a pair of titaniums, that’s for sure. He’s earned my respect just on the sheer audacity to pull this off.
Stormintazz
Being a Brewers fan. All of us knew Stearns was leaving.
AlBundysFanClubPresident
You’re reading way too much into it.
A. Stearns stepped down as the Brewers top guy almost a year ago. The “advisor” thing was slapped on him to let other teams know he was off limits until his contract was up, or MKE agreed he could pursue/consider another job elsewhere.
B. That time was after the trade deadline this season.
C. I don’t recall any mention of relocation until this summer, when mlb actually informed the team that if stadium maintenance/improvements weren’t done to their standards, and when they required it, they would make a decision on relocating the team.
D. If mlb doesn’t step in, my understanding is their lease runs until or through the year 2030. It’d be rather difficult to move before then.
E. Everyone knew he was leaving as soon as he stepped down after last season. It’s neither unexpected nor that big of a deal.
Stormintazz
I’m glad he left. He did fine but it was the same thing every year. Same roller coaster offense.
RockinRobin
Even when Stearns stepped down a year ago (A YEAR AGO) I don’t think the Brewer fans felt their hearts ripped out. Maybe you didn’t know.
All the best to him.
Monkey’s Uncle
If Cohen provides the budget and otherwise lets Stearns do his job, great move.
Doubtful, but it could happen.
briar-patch thatcher
The best are RARELY available!! Much like the jungle, one must pounce on the opportunity expeditiously! Cohen is a bulldog!
nitnontu
Congratulations and good luck, David
Stearns. You will be missed by at least this Brewers fan grateful for the success you brought to my hometown team.
SFBay314
Step 1, Fire Eppler
Samuel
SFBay314;
No need. The way FO’s work today the people holding the title of GM where there’s a PoBO in the house are what used to be Assistant GM’s. They do the groundwork in communicating with other teams, agents, coordinate intercanal communication between departments, etc.
If you missed it, Eppler never had much power at all. He brought in the last 4-5 players on the roster. Cohen negotiated for Lindor, Schurzer, Verlander, Corra, even the big international signings….
made decisions on who was being called up from and sent back down to the minors.
Truth be told, it takes a lot of experience to abide by MLB bylaws and speak with other veteran department heads. He did a good job for what he was tasked to do.
Hurricane Sandy
I have to be honest, Eppler impressed me for the first time this trade deadline in snagging some good prospects for Scherzer / Verlander. Especially Scherzer. I can’t believe they even found a taker for that overhyped old man. Maybe he’s actually a talented GM when the owners lay off.
Samuel
Hurricane Sandy;
Eppler brought in 2-3 veteran FO people with him when he was hired. I believe they had past experience with him in scouting and the like.
We’ll see if they stay.
JackStrawb
@Hurricane Sandy If you want to understand what a stiff Eppler is, you only need to look at his inability to add a single reliever during the entire year that produced, or that will be on the 26-man at the start of the 2024 season.
That’s astounding incompetence at multiple positions of need. Little wonder the Angels trolled Eppler after he was fired by using the following draft to draft nothing but pitching. Not a single position player. That was cold. But warranted.
getrealgone2
This is good for the Mets. This’ll keep AA on his toes down in Atlanta.
rct
Don’t forget the Phillies, plus the Nats are up and comers. Not sure what is going on with the Marlins but the NL East is shaping up to be a fun race over the next few years.
BaseballisLife
Least surprising news of the week. Welcome to Queens?
Atlanta Jack
White Sox must have been a close second.
Buzz Killington
Deeee duuuh the ashtros our gona sing hem
30 Parks
… finally an adult in the room. Good luck lifting the Titanic from the sea floor, Mr. Stearns.
10centBeerNight
Wash rinse repeat NYM fans. They significantly upgraded their farm at deadline. This is a great hire to lead organization. Assume Buck is not retained?
Flanster
I think that Buck is gonna walk off into the sunset at the end of the season
BaseballisLife
And Counsell will step in since his contract is up at the end of the season.
CubsWin108
very good move for Mets, Stearns will do a very good job for them. He will make sound decisons and hopefully be alot more flexible with budget. Also if theres one major thing that Sterns instilled in the Brewers org, its having depth to fill injuries, something the Mets need. Overall this should be a very intresting offseason, the Mets dont really need offense with all the players they have at the MLB level and in the minors. Theyre gonna spend big on pitching, Yamaato, Nola, Urias, are some solid targets.
BaseballisLife
Urias will probably not be playing anywhere in 2024. Maybe California Penal League.
CubsWin108
wdym?
outinleftfield
Urias has been placed on administrative leave for his 2nd domestic violence charge and this one is a felony. MLB is going to come down hard on him.
CubsWin108
wow s*** man I had no idea, looking into it now yea he is so done
JackStrawb
@CubsWin108 The last thing the Mets need is someone like Urias with a cloud over his head, particularly after their 2021 fiasco. Yamamoto, yes. Then two MOR starters to limit Peterson and Megill’s participation—one that’s good enough to handle postseason starts. . A real bullpen behind Diaz and probably Robinson, another setup man, and Raley.
Then a serious DH, at least, for 2024 and probably 2025. And if they somehow think Baty or Vientos should try to handle 3B, a serious backup 3Bman on the bench, at least of Escobar’s caliber as of 2022. They can also use a corner OFer given the agonies this season of Marte and McNeil—assuming Mauricio plays 2B.
This is the obvious way to build a contender. It’s also the only way, for now, with maneuvering here and there on multi-year deals to get the right balance of contend in 2024, contend later.
If Stearns can’t aim for 88 wins in 2024, a very solid wildcard contender, I’ll be amazed.
CubsWin108
yea, somehow completely missed the Urias news lol.. Nobody is gonna sign him, they need playoff starters, they need to let the kids pl;ay cuz they have ALOT of soild young hitters, reminds me alot of the 2016 Cubs, just get some pitching
Slibb
$10 says he tears his Achilles on the first day of free agency after four signing attempts
Yeti
The cost to ruin your reputation forever is whatever they are paying this guy now. Good for him. As we have learned about Mets players, coaches, front office staff, everyone has a price at which they will involve themselves with an organization such as this.
davengmusic
Mets have graduated from LOL for now. Introducing LOLPadres!
Armaments216
Graduated? Maybe that explains why the article includes a copy of Stearns’ high school yearbook photo.
Slider_withcheese
His first move should be to bring Counsell with him to NY.
abc123baseball
Dude will be fondly remembered by Brewers fans. In this era, the Crew squeezed the most out of every penny, generally drafted well (especially pitchers), and made some of the best trades in franchise history.
Good luck to Slingin’ Stearns in the Big Apple.
TGH31
I dont think their is a brewers fan that wishes him ill will. To be able to go back to your childhood team and run it? How can’t you wish him success? As long as the Mets aren’t playing the Brewers i wish him well. For as inept as that organization has been run if the Mets brass and fans give him more than a year or two to erase mistakes they will like what the team will become.
citizen
wonder if the crap hader trade forced stearns to step down. none of the players milwaukee got are in the majors let alone a brewer and McCutchen said that took the sail out of their 2022 season, small franchise that couldnt get over the hump of winning much in the post season.
Remember, hes a met now. Cursed.
TGH31
They weren’t winning anything last year. That trade netted them esteury ruiz who was flipped in the braves/athletics/brewers deal in offseason. Brewers got Joel payamps and his 4 seasons of control and william Contreras and his 5 seasons of control. Also have Robert gasser ready for next season. They got plenty out of that trade, albeit not directly.
JoeBrady
Mil is way ahead. In fact, it is over.
1-Hader was NOT going to continue to be the closer. That job was going to Williams.
2-They wound up with 4.7 bWAR for Contreras & Payamps in 2023 in exchange for Hader’s 2.1, with 7 more years of control for their guys..
outinleftfield
Not in the initial trade. They got Taylor Rogers, Dinelson Lamet, Robert Gasser, and Esteury Ruiz. What they got in later trades is not relevant because those trades were not with the Padres.
Also WAR is a counting stat in that the more innings you pitch or play in the field, the higher your WAR. So, when comparing closers or relievers of any kind with position players, just throw it out the window.
Hader had a 0.87 ERA in Sept/Oct last season and a 0.00 ERA in the playoffs
He has a 1.29 ERA this season and a 318 ERA+ The conversation for best reliever this season in baseball is between two guys, Hader and Bautista.
Williams had a 2.53 ERA in Sept/Oct and the Brewers missed the playoffs.
He has a 1.71 ERA and a 259 ERA+ this season. Good, but not Hader good. If Arnold had a do over on that trade, he doesn’t make it.
TGH31
Hader was gone in the offseason regardless. Let’s not forget when the Brewers moved him he was in an extended slump for the Brewers. It was a push due to his slumping. Hader’s August last year suggested it was the right move. Yes he turned it around in Sept/Oct but we would have been long out of it with those slumping August numbers. We got a fine surface level deal for where Hader was at in his prolonged slump. I agree though, that Arnold would not do that deal again. He failed to take into consideration the emotional aspect for the remaining players. The Hader deal was fine with what we got initially and it’s even better now.
JoeBrady
If Arnold had a do over on that trade, he doesn’t make it.
===============================
I’m not sure who Arnold is, but that was a trade Mil had to make.
At the time of the trade, Hader has a 12.54 ERA for July. Williams had a 1.56 thru the end of July, and a 0.96 in his previous 19 games. You have to make Williams the close whether you keep Hader or not.
stymeedone
@outinleftfield.
What they got in the later trades would not be relevant if there were years in between. Since the subsequent trades were done that off season, they may not be relevant to Padres fans, but very relevant to Brewers fans.
BaseballisLife
Hader was still controllable in arbitration for one more season.
The reason he was traded was to save money at the behest of Attanasio.
The Padres weren’t long out of it because of one bad month from a reliever. Why would it have been any different for the Brewers?
BaseballisLife
Hader started the season by not giving up a run until June 7th and he had given up 3 runs as of July 3rd.
There was no reason to even consider Williams to close before then.
Hader had one bad month for the Brewers. It happened most likely because his wife was hospitalized prior to giving birth and for a time after giving birth. He nearly lost both his wife and his unborn child. That would have blown my head to pieces.
If they give him time off and keep him they are a playoff team.
Instead Williams lost 4 games and they missed the playoffs by one.
citizen
brewers were 3 1/2 up before the trade, missed the playoffs afterwards. stearns persisted the padre closer received by the brewers was just as good as hader but better and cheaper. he wasnt and left after the season. should have been in a win now situation.
the other trades occurred under a different GM after stearns stepped down to clean up that mess.
BaseballisLife
Taylor Rogers and his 6.94 ERA in Sept/Oct was a big part of the reason the Brewers missed the playoffs. His 9.31 ERA in July was the reason the Padres shipped him out. His 4.35 ERA with San Diego was higher than Hader’s 4.24 with Milwaukee at the time of the trade. Rogers 3.42 career ERA to that point is not comparable to Hader’s 2.49.
The Brewers took on the same salary total for 2022 with Rogers and Lamet. What they didn’t have is a possibilty of a pitcher for 2023.
outinleftfield
The guy they traded for was in an extended slump and he didn’t have the talent Hader had shown as recently as early July.
Hader had another season of arbitration eligibility at the time of the trade, so he was not necessarily gone at the end of the season. Only a cheap owner would guarantee him leaving at the end of 2022.
Thanks to poor pitching by Rogers and Williams in high leverage situations down the stretch the Brewers were out of it anyway.
outinleftfield
Glad to help you learn more about the execs around the league.
mlb.com/brewers/team/front-office/matthew-arnold
BaseballisLife
The trade Attanasio forced by saying cut payroll?
RobM
I suspect he got a slight bump in pay.
Tomas7
I feel this can be really good for the organization, the aren’t all that bad right now, it’s been a lot of pitching breakdowns in the bullpen when they were in many games, similar to the Padres, just inconsistent most of the way around. I hope Buck can come back, he’s great with the right material, Bob Melvin is going through the same thing in San Diego, one of the best managers in the game. I feel positive about this move for the Mets.
SoCalBrave
A very un-Mets hire
Jesse Chavez enthusiast
Man, really smart deal for the Mets.
stymeedone
He just said that.
Jesse Chavez enthusiast
Who are you referring to?
Bill
So much for “his wife is from Houston, he’s going there”.
Rsox
Stearns could be a great hiring for the Mets, if Cohen stays out of his way
DBH1969
So I guess he’s not going to the Red Sox? Hmm. I was pretty sure that rumor floated out from Henry, so it had to be true
But I Do
Unlike many fellow Brewers fans, I always thought of Stearns more as “merely good” than “elite.” Did a great job finding and developing starting pitching, but his drafting was mediocre overall and he was terrible at drafting and developing hitters. He mostly remade the team into a contender via trades in 2015–2017, resulting in few homegrown players on that 2018 team that nearly made the World Series. The farm started to bear pitching fruit in 2019, but never hitting. He had to trade for hitting, always.
And after the Yelich trade, his trades were mostly mediocre to bad. The Adames trade looked like they won until Rasmussen became a stud and Adames started struggling in 2022, now an average bat. The Hader trade was a disaster of course, but the Trent Grisham trade looked awful for a bit too. Now not as bad but still not great. A lot of his deadline moves weren’t great either, like the Curtiss and Norris deals that got them ZERO. Or Bush which might as well have gotten them nothing. Moustakas is the only good one I can recall.
His successor pulled off the Contreras/Payamps heist.
Never quite as good as Friedman was in TB.
maris61!
Your story has an error. The Astros have not made the playoffs in every full season since 2015. They missed the playoffs in 2016.
Seamus O'Meara
Should have gone with Jim Bowden. Bad move
Doug
Brings his record of consistent mediocrity to Flushing.
LFGMets (Metsin7) #InEpplerIsGone!!!!
Stearns will be the best President of Baseball Ops if he fires Billy Eppler the day after the season ends. Worst GM ever
@DaOldDerbyBastard
LFGM How about we wait to see if we can get that Japanese pitcher and kick the tires on Ohtani? Knew you’d have something negative to say though.
LFGMets (Metsin7) #InEpplerIsGone!!!!
@DaOldDerbyBastard If you believe we have a better shot at signing Ohtani or Yamamoto than with any other GM then your insane. I don’t even want Ohtani, he will be out for all of next year. Why spend 500 mil on an injury prone player when they could easily get 2 guys at 250 mil each who can play when either are hurt. If Ohtani becomes unable to pitch well after surgery, he becomes a 500 million DH. Signing Ohtani would be a mistake
metslvt17
Why do you give a crap about the money? There’s no salary cap, and until cohen gives us a reason to think a contract will prohibit him from improving the roster, stop worrying. Cohen can just as easily sign Ohtani and one of those other guys you want.
JackStrawb
Even Cohen showed he has limits when he shut down the Mets in FA after Correa—so the Mets couldn’t even fill out a contender’s bullpen. That means adding Ohtani isn’t spending $50m a year somewhere else.
oscar gamble
I hate guys who are younger and better looking than me, which at this stage of my life is practically everyone……
BaseballisLife
Lol. Welcome to the club.
SheaGoodbye
I remember when everyone guaranteed me that Buck was going to be a good hire due to his track record and experience; look at how that turned out. And how about Bloom being a terrific hire because he came from the Rays organization? People tend to blindly fall in love with big names, hindsight-based results, and general consensus, often making assumptions along the way.
As tends to be the case, I’ll reserve judgment until I get eyes on Stearns myself. Certainly, his track record seems to indicate a minimum level of competency, but without having the experience of following him as a fan of the team I’m not going to automatically label him as a great hire. Frankly, when it comes to front office hires, most of us are too far out of the loop to be able to make any sort of worthwhile prediction beyond simple stuff like “retread Y is bad”.
More importantly, Cohen needs to stay out of Stearns’s way. just keep the checkbook open and let him do his thing. I think he will do just that, but given some previous meddling—perhaps a result of not trusting the prior front office personnel—it’s not a sure thing.
@DaOldDerbyBastard
I loved him in The Legend of Curly’s Gold. I hope he’s as good at making baseball decisions.
Angry Disgruntled Sox Fan
Welcome to the clown show
MarlinsFanBase
So, Stearns is the next “savior” of the Mets.
Carry on.
MarlinsFanBase
“The Mets will be hoping that this is the perfect marriage to set off a proper dynasty in Queens.”
They better make sure that the Braves get this memo. And inform the other NL East teams to just lie down for the Mets. Otherwise, this statement…well…wash, rinse, repeat.
outinleftfield
Steve and Darragh, “Eppler and Cohen responded and more or less confirmed that would be the case.” ??????
No, they didn’t.
Cohen said he was asked by Scherzer if he would “be all in on free agents” and he told Scherzer he couldn’t promise that. LITERALLY Cohen’s next sentence in that interview was that they WILL be involved in signing free agents. ““It doesn’t mean we’re not going to bring in free agents.”
More from that interview – “That doesn’t preclude us from being very competitive next year,” Cohen said. “I’m competitive, OK? I’m opportunistic. So we’ll see what happens over the winter.”
Eppler has also said the team would be involved in the FA market.
Instead of posting opinion, quote the people involved. You have the articles ON your website as a reference and certainly have subscriptions to the Athletic and other publications to quote them directly. Please do so in the future.
stymeedone
You left out the part where he told Scherzer they would be taking a “step back.”
BaseballisLife
Cohen didn’t say that. You can actually read the entire interview on the Athletic. I highly recommend it.
GarryHarris
Turn off Francisco Lindor’s key to the owner’s office.
CarryABigStick
They are resurrecting the former NBA Commissioner?
pdqguy23
I think stearns will be ok , yeah the brewers don’t make it to the big dance but at least they went to the post season consistently…. I think the Mets need at least that much right now
pmollan
I wonder what he’ll get for Alonso?
pdxbrewcrew
A Burnes for Alonso (plus a prospect or two) deal would benefit both teams.
Sid Bream Speed Demon
The offseason joy of all of the 5’5″ LOLMets fans from Staten Island and Teaneck NJ is going to fun to watch get crushed about 3 weeks into next season. Mets fans are so insecure that many of these comments reference the Yankees, Padres, Braves, and Phillies.
The Saber-toothed Superfife
Wow. So…Who knew? Surprising isn’t it?
Robrock30
I have been watching Mets baseball since 1967 with Tommy Davis getting standing ovations every at bat since he was a Brooklyn Dodger mostly. I grew up with the ’69 Championship and the ’73 World Series teams. Ed Kranepool attended my Little League Dinner and I have spoken with Ron Swoboda at length. Used to attend many baseball games at Shea during those years.
I left for University and returned in 1983 with the arrival of Darryl Strawberry and had full season tickets to the Mets during that era. The Mets need a Frank Cashen to resurrect their brand which has been in the toilet since 1990’s and has been mostly an unwatchable product. I wish David Stearns the best but the organization needs to be nuked as it is rotten all the way through from nearly 40 years of neglect. A very tall task indeed.
Robrock30
Stearns isn’t a Frank Cashen who won WS with the Orioles prior to joining the Mets with a pitching staff of 4 20 game winners and trading for Frank Robinson.
I watched how he created the Mets ’86 dynasty swinging trades and drafting top talent building a very deep roster. Mets fans can delude themselves and Steve Cohen may have been tricked once again as he was with Max, Verlander and Lindor.
I have seen Frank Cashen in action and David Stearns is no Frank Cashen. The Brewers have had weak drafts, never won a Championship and he traded Hader and there are bad contracts.
BaseballisLife
They won 101 games last season and have invested more in scouting, baseball operations, and analytics since Cohen bought the team than they did in Ole’ Sticky Fingers.
Cohen has already made huge strides to overcome what the Ponzy Scheme Brothers did to the organization. Stearns is the icing on the cake.
Robrock30
twitter.com/bmadden1954/status/1701963929323176379
Hearing Stearns deal with the Mets is $10m a year equallng
the Dodgers Friedman as highest paid Baseball Ops chief in the game
BaseballisLife
Stearns took a Brewers organization that had 2 playoff appearances in 32 years, a bottom 10 farm system, and a 94 loss season and in 3 years built a team that had a 4 year run in the playoffs and a top 5 farm system.
Stearns is one of the best and brightest. That is why Cohen was willing to wait for him and a seasoned GM was willing to take the job with the Mets knowing Stearns would be his boss soon.
Every GM has bad contacts. Some are even told by the team owners that they have to cut payroll mid season even though they are leading their division like Stearns was by Attanasio. Few have 4 straight playoff appearances while being in the bottom 12 in the league in payroll every season.
Loved Cashen, but it took him 7 years to get the Mets to the playoffs. Granted only two teams from each league made the playoffs back then, not 4 like during Stearns time with Milwaukee.
Robrock30
BaseballisLife & JackStrawb,
Interesting read in Bill Madden’s Daily News regarding that David Stearns may not have been all that with the Brewers.
gazettextra.com/sports/national/bill-madden-steve-…
Robrock30
But it is also worth noting that the key components of those Brewer championships, co-ace Brandon Woodruff and the lights-out bullpen duo of Josh Hader and Devin Williams, were all acquired by Stearns’ predecessor Doug Melvin..
What Stearns did do was execute one great transformational trade in January 2018, fleecing Derek Jeter and Marlins out of Christian Yelich, the 2018 NL MVP, for four inconsequential players who never made it. But other than that, and perhaps his 2015 trade of Melvin holdover first baseman Adam Lind to Seattle for right-hander Freddy Peralta (presently their top winner), Stearns’ trade record with the Brewers was spotty.
In 2016 he got nothing of substance in return from the A’s for outfielder Khris Davis, who went on to have three straight 40-home run seasons in Oakland. That same year he traded away Martin Maldonado, who has since become an indispensable catcher for the Astros who’s caught three no-hitters. And Braves’ All-Star shortstop Orlando Arcia was also traded away by Stearns in 2021 for two pitching prospects who never made it.
And then last year, he made the trade that effectively ended his tenure — by his own doing — in Milwaukee when he dealt his closer, Hader, at the trade deadline to San Diego, with the Brewers in first place. It was a trade that made no sense other than Hader, who was not having a great season, was a year away from free agency and Stearns didn’t think the Brewers would be able to afford to keep him. But it set the Brewer clubhouse, not to mention the fan base, into a fury. The Brewers collapsed and finished seven games back, missing the postseason for the first time in five years, and Stearns succumbed to the pressure from the fans and players and stepped down as head of baseball operations.
But he still had one more year on his contract and despite the ramifications from the Hader trade, Brewers owner Mark Attanasio refused permission for Stearns to talk to any other teams — and as recently as two weeks ago made one final overture to get him to stay. But he couldn’t compete with Cohen’s money and determination to hire him. It does not appear as if Cohen even interviewed anyone else for the job, even the obligatory minority as per the Selig Rule.
People who worked with Stearns in Milwaukee say he’s very bright and a nice person, but didn’t have a whole lot of interaction with the rest of the organization except for his small cadre of analytics assistants. And other than replacing the scouting and player development directors, he hardly hired anyone else. Craig Counsell, the manager, was Melvin’s hire, and was allowed to hire all his own coaches. Although Counsell is a free agent after this season, he’s expected to take next year off, dispelling the rumors that Stearns was preparing to bring him with him. That, of course, could all change a year from now when Buck Showalter’s contract is up.
Time will tell how Stearns navigates the high pressure of New York and the (at least initial) daunting task of making the Mets competitive with the Braves. Considering what he’s paying him, Cohen must think he’s getting the second coming of Theo Epstein, and maybe he is. But Cohen is fairly new to baseball and he probably has no idea that the most successful general managers of our time — Hall of Famers Pat Gillick and John Schuerholz, the Phillies’ Dave Dombrowski and the Braves’ Alex Anthopoulos — all had their roots in scouting and player development.
BaseballisLife
Lmfao. How hard did you have to search to find that BS? Or do you actually subscribe to the Daily News?
Robrock30
David Stearns is an analytics guy and has no player development or scouting background unlike The Braves & Phillies guys. LMAO
Robrock30
Cohen didn’t adhere to the Selig rule and interview an obligatory minority. Trouble
Robrock30
Also Rizzo with the Nats has scouting background.
Roll
I think between the humbling of this season and hopefully Stearns touch will put the Mets in a better place. The only thing that i can say was smart by Eppler and Cohen was all the big dollars they did is done after next season nothing is over the top. Degrom and Rodon still have years after that. Hopefully Degrom get back to normal after TJ and maybe does Verlander and Rodon turns it around but both right now are not looking too hot.
Mets really need to look at their hitting coach / hitting instructors because everyone is way down this year. Maybe they have a different approach than last year but wow.