The Mets are convinced that Jared Porter, a well-liked and respected baseball executive with no prior connection to the team’s current front office, is perfectly equipped to be their GM.
Why?
Porter, 41, has worked for three different clubs and won championships with two of them. Billionaire Mets owner Steve Cohen prefers a staff that won’t learn on his dime, and Porter has plenty of experience throughout a career that began in 2004. Once Sandy Alderson interviewed Porter, the team president was met with several encouraging recommendations for Porter’s ability to immerse himself in the job. But what stood out most to Alderson was Porter’s outlook for the Mets organization.
“His vision is perfectly consistent with ours,” Alderson said Monday during Porter’s introductory press conference. “I think he would drive the organization to a higher level and bring new ideas, as well as a compatibility. ... I’m very confident that he has the potential to lead this organization over a period of years.”
Cohen’s vision is winning a world championship within 3-5 years. That’s a lot of pressure for a first-time GM like Porter, though his pedigree as a player development assistant and director of professional scouting — three championships with the Red Sox, one with the Cubs — suggests he knows what it takes to win.
Porter was not at all rattled by Cohen’s vision. Though, when asked how long he thinks it will take the Mets to end their 34-year championship drought, Porter said he doesn’t want to put a number or timeline on it.
“I would say that hearing comments like that really motivates me, it really excites me,” Porter said Monday in his first presser with reporters. “It shows a strong commitment from an ownership who wants to win, who wants to put a winner on the field for the fan base in New York — and I completely align with that. It excites me and I want those expectations and I really want to provide that atmosphere for the fans in New York.”
The new Mets GM officially signed a four-year contract with the club on Sunday. Porter is the 14th GM in franchise history and he spent the first few minutes of his press conference Monday thanking several individuals around the league, including Ben Cherington, Jed Hoyer, Allard Baird, Raquel Ferreira and Epstein, for allowing him to learn from them over his 16 years in the industry.
Then, Porter gushed over the Mets organization.
“I think New York is the greatest city in the world,” Porter said. “I think Citi Field is the best ballpark in the major leagues. It’s an incredible, passionate, energized fanbase. … There’s a strong core of players, a good blend of youth and experience, of course anchored by one of the best starting pitchers in the league in Jake deGrom. … I’m pumped to be a Met.”
Though Porter has only been on the job for just over 24 hours, he’s gotten to know the rest of his current front office in John Ricco, Ian Levin, Bryn Alderson and Tom Tanous. He’s not in a rush to fill out the remainder of his staff. But he’s excited to invest in people, new technologies and infrastructure so the Mets can finally start acting like a big-market team.
It all starts this offseason and filling the Mets’ immediate needs, like starting pitching and outfield depth. The Mets are big players now, backed by Cohen’s billions, and are willing to spend on upper-tier free agents like Trevor Bauer and George Springer. But Alderson indicated the “gourmet section” isn’t moving as fast as the Mets would like. The team is happy to wait it out for talent like Bauer and Springer, but only to an extent.
“When you have different parts of the market that are moving at different paces, you have to make some decisions,” Alderson said. “You have to make choices — not only based on the player alternatives, but also the timing.”
Alderson spoke to an agent Monday who has a “very good” free agent client who might not sign until January or February. That may spell bad news for impatient Mets fans, but they should take comfort in knowing the club is still in the mix for the top free agents on the market, which would have seemed like a hilarious fantasy under the Wilpon ownership.
This is a new era in the Mets franchise, one that will be led by a young and enthusiastic GM in Porter, a veteran executive in Alderson and baseball’s richest owner in Cohen. The pieces, and the vision, are coming together. Soon, it will just be a matter of results.
