Mets block Yanks from hosting AAA team in Newark next season
ByUpdate (8:30pm): Via Jon Heyman, the Yankees offered the Mets $250k and a matching evergreen proposal for allowing them to use Newark, but apparently that’s not enough. The matching evergreen proposal basically means the Yankees would allow the Mets to move one of their minor league teams into their territory (for one year) sometime in the future, extending the same courtesy they were asking of the Mets. Quarter of a million bucks though? I never thought someone could love Newark that much.
Original Post (3:30pm): Via Jerry Izenberg, the Mets used their territory rights to block the Yankees from housing the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees in Newark next season. Brian Cashman and Essex County exec Joseph DiVincenzo reached an agreement that would have allowed the team to play at Bears & Eagles Riverfront Stadium in 2012 (home of the Newark Bears), but the Mets shot it down because “their organization would only do something like that with mutual and immediate reciprocity.” The Yankees made the Mets several offers, including at least one involving an undisclosed amount of cash, but still no dice.
PNC Field is undergoing major renovations, which will force the team to play at an alternate site next year. The deadline to submit a proposal for such a site was missed earlier this month, but league execs have established a timetable to ensure that this gets resolved in a timely manner. Ottawa, another potential home, appears to be off the table as well.
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Those damn dirty Mets.
The Mets AAA team plays in Buffalo, NY, so you figure they’ll agree to do this IF and WHEN they get to move into Newark after the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees depart. Then again, maybe even that won’t do the trick.
Otawa is clearly out of the question.
Is there no place in Connecticut suitable and acceptable to all?
Bridgeport? MMM Bluefish.
Ah, well. Poor bastards. They must be so bitter.
The Mets are against this since they know this would make them the third best NYC area team.
Pitching wise, certainly.
I’m surprised they turned down the cash offer considering ownership’s current financial situation. Just out of curiosity, what do you think would be an equal placement in the NY area for a Mets team, if the Yankees took Newark?
The Mets must have sand in their vaginas.
Damn Mets, stop C-Blocking.
I would bet a few paychecks that the Yankees would do the same thing.
This was an agreement they both made, the Mets are just upholding that. Still, would be better for the fans if the Yanks were allowed to play in Newark, at least for some.
Sounds like it possibly might be payback for blocking the Mets Long Island deal. Or, that they are scared of losing some of their MLB fans to a AAA club. I mean, it’s just one year.
#fakemetsfans
What Long Island deal?
Google it. Apparently the Yanks recently blocked the Mets from a more permanent minor league deal in Nassau County.
How large an area does a team get MiLB territorial rights for? Would the stadium in Bridgewater be blocked, too?
Any idea what the dimensions of that park are? Never been, myself.
317 to left, 402 to center, 315 to right. The gaps distances aren’t listed on the website. Seats 6,100, which I think is pretty much the same as the Newark Stadium. Has NJ Transit access to the parking lot (though not on the Northeast Corridor line).
U know I felt bad for the mets.. But since I live 5 MINUTES away from bears stadium, I really despise these a**holes now for ruining a chance to see Banuelos and the rest of them play really close to home..
Why would you guys diss the Mets?
They only asked the Steinbrenners to swap financial situations, rosters and ball parks with them, all in exchange for the rights to play minor league baseball in Newark, which is closer to Citi Field than Yankee Stadium, for a year. The arrogant Yankee owners declined!
It’s hard out there on Fred and Jeff Wilpon.
/completelyMadoffed…ImeantMadeUp’d
the revenge of the chris carter incident
The Yankees played this all wrong. What they should have done was pitched this as a can’t lose investment that will net Sterling-Stamos a 10% annual return. In our experience, they’ll knock over their own grandmother running to get in on a deal like that, and the beautiful thing is, no messy due diligence.
-Bernie Madoff/Sam Israel/PSTBNL (Ponzi Schemers To Be Named Later)
What a joke
Kinda surprised there are MiLB territorial rights, I mean really?
Are the Mets really scared of competing with another AAA team?
If I were the Mets I wouldnt be doing the Yankees any favors either. Probably just holding out for more money.
the Muts are afraid that people will realize that the AAA Yankees team is more talented than their “Major” league team.
SYRACUSE! SYRACUSE! SYRACUSE!
I’m sure we could find some space here in Colorado, although you’d need to get the Rockies, with there AAA affiliate here, to agree. But the state is big enough and I’ll guarantee at least 3 season ticket sales.
From the Met perspective, next season they might actually field a minor league caliber team (with a shrinking payroll to match).
This is just a way to protect their market share when it comes to sub-optimal baseball in the metro-area.
Besides, I’d rather go to Citi Field to see a team of mostly never-will-be Yankees than to Jersey. Toll increases and all.
Muck the Fets?
What did the Mets have in mind? Take on Bay’s contract?
And give them enough money to keep the lights on. It’s a fair swap
Any chance the new stadium in Rockland County is a potential option? Brand new this year. Home field of the independent league Rockland Boulders (part owner is john flaherty).
Rockland might be too close, the same could possibly hold up Bridgeport as an option.
I’m wondering if New Haven would be an option.
Betances and Frank Pepe’s Pizza? That’s a productive road trip.
I think Rochester should make a big push for the Yanks. It’s a 45 min plane ride and a 6 hour car ride from the stadium. Not the worst situation for call-ups and travel logistics within their league. Plus, they already play at Frontier Field ~8 times per year.
Not sure if the Red Wings are overly interested, but it seems like a great way to get people excited about coming to the ball park.
Being the Minnesota Twins affiliate is depressing as of late.
I’m doubting the Twins would be okay with sharing the facilities with the Yankees. Do they still play soccer and/or lacrosse at Frontier? If not, at least there will be clubhouse space available.
Its only baseball now. They built a new Soccer and Lax facility. There were talks earlier in the summer about the possibility of the Yanks playing here, but they died down. There are obviously a ton of Yankee fans out here. For one summer, it seem like a win-win for the fans.
I guess the question becomes whether or not they can make money and keep the Wings players happy.
This is a disgrace.
It’s the Mets being a disgrace is apart of their DNA.
Couldn’t agree more, Rich.
I could understand the Mets’ position if it were permanent. But for one year? Just ridiculously petty and shortsighted. Shortsighted because the Mets will surely need a favor like this at SOME point in the future.
This would have been a huge boon to the city of Newark. So much good could have come of this.
Easy for callups, too.
I wonder if this is a little payback for the Yankees putting in a waiver claim last year to scuttle the Mets Redsox trade.
LOL, it probably payback for about a million reasons.
Payback for the Yankees being the big brother and the Mets being the tiny, insignificant brother
Why did I hear that they already have plans to play in the Coca-Cola Park and share the stadium with the Iron Pigs next season?
That would be better for me, at least. Newark is kind of a dump, if you haven’t noticed…
Coming from someone from Allentown, that’s rich.
Take it from my handle, I know shithole MiLB towns, and you have no business dissing Newark.
I live in Bethlehem, but coca-cola park is pretty much right on the border of Allentown/Bethlehem and is easy to get to. No ghettos to drive through. Can’t say that about the stadium in Newark.
And as much as a dump parts of Allentown is, I’d still take it over Newark any day. And this is from a guy who loves NJ, so don’t think this is a state thing dude…
Playing in lehigh valley according to this.
http://www.timesleader.com/pit.....-2011.html
I thought Staten Island was an option…
Not like it matters to me, since I’m certain that the location won’t be here in Texas.
You still have better odds than me = Yankee fan in Boston.
The Met owners are Nuts.offer them some Popnzi money
That could work and we know they would be interested.
Looks like they got some good news in regard to their case. The judge threw out all counts against them except for two. Smh
Wouldn’t want fans to get used to a team with talent.
They should be playing at the Sussex county park that has hosted the Sussex sky hawks and the cardinals short season team years ago. It’s vacant.
what assholes!
So why did the Mets refuse again? Weak
Makes no sense.
Why not take the 250K and have the future option to have one of their teams play in Newark for a year, if needed.
The Wilpons are taking crazy pills or something. I know they gave the Mets blahblah line but I wonder if they’re worried it might affect Brooklyn attendance, which is still silly.
come up to rockland county theres a new park, and its great
This thing, in a nutshell, shows why the Mets are in the current situation that they are in, and it is going to get worse before it gets better.