|
It must've felt good for Mets owner Steve Cohen to punch send on his angry tweet Wednesday morning, his vitriol and endorphins and frustration released by directing his social media ire (and his more-than-200,000 followers) toward little-known agent Rob Martin. Cohen referred to Martin's actions in the Steven Matz negotiations as "unprofessional" and all but called him a liar. What Cohen doesn't seem to understand, or care to acknowledge, is that every time he publicly gripes about agents, his offense, or the fans, he is denting the franchise that cost him $2.475 billion. Tweet by tweet, he is feeding the perception among rival executives and agents, and, most importantly, among players, that the Mets have somehow become more dysfunctional under Cohen than they were under the Wilpon family, the previous ownership group -- and that is an extraordinarily high bar. He is feeding the perception that the Mets are evolving into their own Big Apple Circus, with the owner looming as a threat to attack everything from agents to slumping hitters. With each social media post, Cohen probably makes it a little more difficult for the franchise to realize his stated goal of winning the World Series in the next two to four years. In a sport in which players must be courted, and building organizational success and an enduring major league roster can take years, perception does matter. When you talk with rival officials -- including some who've had opportunities to talk to the Mets about employment -- the simple truth is that Cohen's ownership habits are viewed as an unwanted wild card.
|
