Steve Cohen Bids $2BN, J-Rod Bids $1.7BN As Battle For Control Of The Mets Enters Final Round

After his $2.6 billion bid for the legendary Queens-based baseball franchise the Mets fell apart last year, hedge fund titan Steve Cohen has returned with a $2 billion bid, leading a pack of bidders that also includes a group led by former Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez and his wife, Jennifer Lopez.

As part of his bid, Cohen has also promised to pay an additional $2 billion to acquire the TV network SNY

Sources say that the J-Rod bid of $1.7 billion should be enough to keep them in the running, allowing their group a chance to work up a counter. Their group also reportedly includes Florida Panthers owner and HFT pioneer Vincent Viola, who reportedly contributed $200 million.

Several others also offered bids before the Thursday deadline, including the bid that came in from Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer, per the New York Post.

The tabloid added that if Cohen wants the team, he will likely need to pay about $250 million more than his nearest rival to lock in his offer after he walked away from the $2.6 billion deal in February. That’s a pretty stiff barrier for most in these hard times, but so long as J-Pow keeps the liquidity taps flowing, we suspect Cohen will manage.

Though, to be sure, it’s widely believed that Mets COO Jeff Wilpon would prefer to sell team to the J-Rod group if their offer is close to the best bid at the end of the process.

Then again, after telling an audience at the end of March that the bottom for stocks might not yet be in – “markets don’t come back in a straight line” – we’ll need to wait for that next 13-F to get a better picture, though since Cohen re-entered the business, his new vehicle, Point72 has also had at least a couple big scores.