Cohen's Mets Approval Could Hinge on New York City Mayor Bill DeBaslio

 The future of the New York Mets and their new owner Steve Cohen could very well hinge on the ok from unscrupulous New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio. 

According to several reports, MLB owners are expected to vote in favor of Cohen taking over as majority owner of team, despite a push by White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf is trying everything in his power to stop that from happening. A vote on Cohen is expected to take place Friday by MLB owners, and all Cohen needs is 22 of 29 votes. 

The reason Reinsdorf is so against the Cohen to the Mets transaction is due in part to a friendship he has with Alex Rodriguez, who led a failed bid for the Mets with his partner Jennifer Lopez. Not to mention Reisndorf tried to block Cohen's purchase of the LA Dodgers back in 2012 due to allegations of insider trading by his company SAC Capital. 

While Reisendorf is ruffling feathers, but apparently not enough to disrupt the sale, Cohen and the Mets face a much stiffer opponent in DeBlasio. 

The City of New York plays a roll in ownership change because of a clause in the lease agreement with Citi Field. That clause allows the sitting mayor (in this case DeBlasio) to deny the sale of a team to a "prohibited person" which is defined as a "person convicted in a criminal proceeding for a felony or any crime involving moral turpitude." 

Hence we go back to the SAC Capital insider trader scam, where the company plead guilty to criminal insider-trading charges, and agreed to pay $1.8 billion in fines. Cohen, himself, was never convicted or charged with a crime. 

There is concern that DeBlasio could take his sweet time with a decision, which could directly affect Cohen from moving ahead with business. Cohen has said he plans on making former General Manager Sandy Alderson the new President of Baseball Operations, which almost certainly means current GM Brodie Van Wagenen's days are numbered. 

However if deBlasio drags his feet, it could keep the Mets from making moves to improve the team and hurt them in free agency according to the Daily News. 

A source even told the New York Post that there is a fear that the Mayor is doing this "for the sake of doing so." Adding "It seems like a typical DeBlasio thing, trying to get attention in the wrong places, and stick it to billionaires." 

DeBlasio has a long record of unpopularity in New York City, despite the fact he is a two-term mayor. 

From butting heads with the police, imposing high taxes that have chased residents out of the city, to consistent mismanagement with regards to reopening the cities schools and businesses safely during the COVID pandemic, and so much more, blocking the Mets sale would make New Yorkers hate DeBlasio even more -- especially Mets fans. 

DeBlasio did issue a statement that the evaluation of the Mets sale and the lease agreement is being studied by the Law Department. "The Law Department is doing its due diligence right now. And it will be based on the facts of the research they've done. And then we'll speak to that again quickly," as quoted by the Daily News.