Theo Epstein. Billy Beane. David Stearns. Scott Harris. Peter Bendix. Brandon Gomes. Now Matt Arnold.
That’s the list of rumored and/or pursued targets for the open New York Mets President of Baseball Operations search, currently being conducted by tweetin’ Mets owner Steve Cohen, none of whom will actually be joining the Mets. Arnold, the Brewers’ current GM, is the latest to decline, despite the Mets’ reported interest:
Per a source with knowledge of the process, the Brewers’ Matt Arnold has withdrawn his name from consideration to be the Mets’ next president of baseball ops. That means Arnold will remain with the Brewers as GM, a role he was promoted to after the 2020 season.
— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) October 27, 2021
The precise timing and phrasing there could mean a variety of things (maybe the Brewers are refusing permission, and Arnold is doing them a kindness by withdrawing; maybe Arnold really doesn’t want to go, and the Brewers did him a kindness by denying permission). The end result is the same, though: another executive is not coming to the Mets. And it’s another one who’d be getting a promotion to do it! But still doesn’t want to come!
It’s not hard to see some of the reasons a rising exec might not want a gig where you have the “top” baseball job, but serve under Sandy Alderson (whose role going forward is still unclear), and an obviously-very-involved owner in Cohen. There are now reports that the Mets might have to stick internal to fill the position, or just to replace GM Zack Scott (DUI), who was himself an internal replacement for Jared Porter (sexual harassment). And maybe in that case Alderson just … stays the baseball president? What a mess. This was supposed to be a plush gig, running a team in New York, with all the weight of the richest owner in the sport behind you.
The longer this drags on, the more you wonder how it could impact the Mets’ early offseason maneuverings, which in turn will impact the market as a whole, because they have so many key impending free agents (Javy Báez, Marcus Stroman, Michael Conforto, and Noah Syndergaard chief among them).