The Philadelphia Phillies were expected to have plenty of competition within their own division this season. Both the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets were predicted by many to be in the thick of the NL East and Wild Card races alongside Philadelphia.
The Phillies are currently the top Wild Card team in the NL. The Braves have the most wins in baseball and are closing in on their sixth consecutive division championship. As for the Mets, they’ve struggled for most of the season and aren’t likely to end up in the playoffs.
It’s clearly been a tough year for New York, winners of 101 games last year. Things never seemed to click. As a result, they made a handful of trades, which included separate deals where Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander were shipped out for prospects, at this year’s trade deadline.
In the midst of their struggles, Mets majority owner Steve Cohen had somewhat of a formal press conference in late June. While answering questions from the media, Cohen had mentioned his interest in hiring someone with experience to be the head of the club’s front office, “At some point we will fill [the president of baseball operations] position. I’ve been waiting and at some point, we’ll hire somebody.”
At the time of those comments, Billy Eppler was leading the baseball operations staff as general manager.
Cohen went on to add, “I’ve been looking. If you want to [hire] a high-grade talent, they don’t just show up. I’ve been patient because I do not want to make a mistake. I can’t tell you if it’s going to be this year [because] I don’t know. Is it going to be next year? I don’t know. But at some point, it’s going to happen.”
Now, a little more than two months after those remarks, it’s happened.
On Tuesday, Jeff Passan of ESPN reported the Mets were hiring David Stearns as president of baseball operations. Others later reported Stearns’ contract with New York is for five years.
Stearns’ connection to New York has been well documented. He grew up a Mets fan and interned with them after he graduated from Harvard in 2011. In October of 2021, a year after Cohen took over majority control of the franchise, the Mets were interested in the possibility of hiring Stearns to be the head of their front office. At the time, he was president of baseball operations of the Milwaukee Brewers, who denied New York permission to interview Stearns.
New York hired Eppler to the role of general manager one month later. But now, nearly two years after the Brewers blocked him, Cohen got his guy.
Stearns was originally hired by the Brewers to the role of general manager in September of 2015 after front office stints with the then Cleveland Indians and Houston Astros. After a 96-win season came to an end in Game 7 of the NLCS against the Los Angeles Dodgers three years later, Stearns was promoted to president of baseball operations in January of 2019.
Milwaukee enjoyed plenty of success under Stearns. During his seven years in charge, they posted a combined 554-479 record, won two NL Central titles and made the playoffs four consecutive years from 2018 to 2021. The Brew Crew also had two 95-plus win seasons in that time frame (2018 and 2021).
They’re also having success this season with a roster that includes players Stearns acquired. Milwaukee currently leads the NL Central and is likely to be a playoff team next month.
Some of the players Stearns brought to Milwaukee include 2018 NL MVP Christian Yelich, 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes and one of the top prospects in all of baseball at the moment, Jackson Chourio.
After an 86-76 season last year, Stearns stepped down from his role with the Brewers. He stayed on in an advisory role within the organization and will remain there until the end of the regular season.
He’s set to officially begin his new role leading the baseball operations of the Mets in early October. Eppler, who recently fired several key members of the club’s front office, will remain in his role as general manager under Stearns.
Stearns in New York is going to be a fascinating dynamic. The Brewers never spend much when it comes to their roster and he was able to put together strong teams despite that. Under Cohen, the Mets have shown they aren’t afraid to spend.
Pairing Stearns’ roster constructing abilities with a revamped farm system and an owner who is more than comfortable spending money could lead to plenty of future success.
Must-Read (Or Watch) Phillies Content
- The Phillies lost last night after yet another late-inning comeback wasn’t enough. Our own Ty Daubert has the recap.
- Trea Turner says the Phillies “don’t care” about the Braves being World Series favorites.
- Manager Rob Thomson recently provided an update on Rhys Hoskins‘ chances at returning this year.
- On Sunday, Phillies Nation’s Tim Kelly wrote about Jimmy Rollins’ thoughts on a 2024 Phillies lineup that would include Mike Trout.
- From Monday: Weston Wilson sets new IronPigs home run record.
- Wilson could be a fit for the Phillies postseason roster, writes Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer
- Matt Gelb of The Athletic takes a look at the intense Braves-Phillies season series so far and how the two teams could match up in the postseason.
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