Steve Cohen Is Giving Us Plenty to Be Thankful For

A friend of mine this week bought a season ticket package, and he told the Mets sales agent that if the Wilpons were still the owners, he wouldn't have bought it.

The agent replied, "You're not the first person to tell me that."

Multiply that exchange by the hundreds or even thousands, and you understand that the impact Steve Cohen has had on the Mets franchise goes well beyond how much money he will spend on players. He's selling tickets himself. 

He doesn't play a position in the field and will never swing a bat, but fans are buying in because of the confidence he brings to the club, and the hope that sustained success is right around the corner, along with a World Series title or two (or several).

Cohen was interviewed on SNY tonight and if you weren't sold on Cohen, you sure are now. He may be the richest owner in baseball by several billion dollars, and has been known to drop eight figures on artwork, but when he speaks, you hear the fan in him. 

Maybe the highlight of the interview was when Steve Gelbs asked him if there was any piece of Mets memorabilia he'd like to own, and he casually said, "Oh, you mean like the Buckner ball?" And pulled it out of its case and held it up to his webcam.

"Funny story," he continued, explaining that an associate told him the ball was for sale and that it would cost around $150K. "OK, then buy it," Cohen commanded. When he was told the ball was his, Cohen asked what the final price was and was told it cost him $410,000. "I wasn't happy," he said. "But I'm happy now."

He said he'll put the ball in the Mets museum. Keith Olbermann, who apparently has Buckner's glove, said it would be nice to put the ball in the glove so they finally touch. Someone else has Mookie's cleats and said he'll donate those to the museum as well.

Cohen added that he wants to make the Mets a place where players want to play, "and not just for a check." He talked about taking chances and how it makes life less boring. He talked about making things better for everyone, from the players to the staff to the fans.

Free agents? "We're talking to everybody." He may even bring back the black jerseys, and my son will be thrilled.

The guy is the anti-Wilpon. He's been a fan all his life. Tom Seaver was his favorite player. He said he looks forward to an Old-Timers Day when Darryl Strawberry, David Wright, Keith Hernandez, Ron Darling, Ed Kranepool and others can come back to Flushing.

It was an amazing interview, and provided fans with pure hope.

What's that ticket sales number?