The New York Mets saved all of Steve Cohen’s money by passing on Craig Counsell

THE New York Mets hired a manager on Monday and it wasn’t the manager everyone expected.

After weeks of rumors about Craig Counsell, the Chicago Cubs came out of left field to send the Milwaukee Brewers fanbase in a spiral of sadness. Counsell signed a five-year, $40 million contract with the Cubbies – a record for MLB managers – and left the Mets high and dry to sign Carlos Mendoza, the New York Yankees“Bench coach.

Of course, the Mets fan base was ready to hire the best manager in baseball, not the second-in-command to their enemies across town. Aaron Boone has been under fire from Yankees fans all season, so hiring his right-hand man doesn’t exactly inspire confidence in the Mets.

The Mets have a lot of issues to resolve after last season’s disaster. Mendoza played in the Yankees minor league system and joined the Yankees bench as an infield coach for the 2018 season. In 2019, he was named bench coach.

Now he’s the head of the Mets. A decade of coaching experience and his minor league playing career are likely what attracted the Mets to Mendoza. But he was also cheap – at least compared to Counsell – which probably doesn’t hurt.

Counsell will receive $40 million from the Cubs. Mendoza’s contract with the Mets is for $4.5 million over three years with a club option, according to SNY’s Andy Martino. So about a tenth of the price with potential for loss if it backfires. Steve Cohen’s wallet can rest easy tonight.

Naturally, Mendoza is a perfectly qualified candidate who would eventually get his shot in the coaching chair. The Mets dug him an early grave with the pursuit of Counsell, which raised every fan’s expectations, but Mendoza can get out of there quickly if the Mets win ball games. In the end, past achievements and money don’t matter: what matters is who is playing in the present.

The Mets made Counsell an offer, according to Martino, but declined to approach the Cubs’ lucrative threshold. Counsell has made clear his desire to reset the market in favor of future managers, a trend the Mets obviously didn’t want to start.

Steve Cohen and the Mets haven’t been afraid to spend big in recent years, so it’s a little surprising to see them balk at Counsell’s asking price. But it could allow David Stearns and the new front office to funnel that money into expensive free agents. Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto won’t come cheap.

Mendoza deserves a fair shake. The Mets fandom will likely come to terms with it once the painful pain of losing Counsell wears off. But for now, it’s a delicate subject. Just give the Mets fan in your life time to process their emotions.