Could Theo Epstein replace Brodie Van Wagenen as Mets GM?

With the Mets reportedly expected to clean house once new owner Steven Cohen arrives, could Theo Epstein be the guy Cohen hires to fix the Mets?

Steve Cohen assumes control of the New York Mets once this season has concluded, and while they are still only two and a half games back of a postseason spot, changes should be expected.

The first to go could be general manager Brodie Van Wagenen, who has failed to make the most of his two years with the Mets despite having his hands tied by the former owners. But after swinging and missing on a few trades that cost the Mets some of their top prospects, Cohen’s arrival will likely mean the end of Van Wagenen’s days with the Mets.

According to Joe Pantorno of AMNY, the Mets new owner plans to “clean house” after this season, and Van Wagenen’s job is not safe.

Pantorno adds in his article that the Mets could try to lure Yankees’ general manager Brian Cashman away to Queens, but Joel Sherman of the New York Post threw a different name into the mix: Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein.

Can Theo Epstein save the Mets, too?

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here; Epstein is still under contract with the Cubs through 2021 and is scheduled to make $10 million next season. However, the Cubs ownership group headed by Tom Ricketts had shown interest in cutting costs before the pandemic, so it’s hard to believe the Cubs would give Epstein a hard time should he be interested in the Mets GM job.

He’s obviously had incredible success at breaking championship curses, having done so in Boston and more recently Chicago, making him a great fit for a Mets team that has been only been to the playoffs six times since winning their last title in 1986.

It’s easy to see the Mets attracting free-agent talent, especially with Cohen banking-rolling Epstein to sign the top talent. The billionaire won’t feel the financial toll other ownership groups will after the pandemic.

But the question becomes would Theo Epstein want to leave the Cubs, and would he want to leave the Cubs for another rebuilding project like the Mets after spending 20-plus years doing a similar job? Sherman thinks if Cohen were willing to offer the 46-year-old Epstein an ownership stake, similar to what Billy Beane was given in Oakland, it could sweeten the deal.

Epstein himself has said he can only stay in one executive job for about 10 years and he’s currently in Year 9 with the Cubs. With his contract up after 2021, which is also when the Cubs’ core players like Kris Bryant, Javier Baez, Kyle Schwarber and Anthony Rizzo become free agents, it’s a natural time for both Epstein and the Cubs to go their separate ways.

Steve Cohen’s ownership reign begins soon, and it’ll be interesting to see how the baseball landscape changes once the Mets start to construct a front office in Cohen’s vision. But Theo Epstein bringing the Mets a championship would make him one of the best sports executives in history, and as Sherman points out in his article, executives care about legacy.