After spending big in the offseason and missing the postseason, New York Mets owner Steve Cohen has hired former Milwaukee Brewers President of Baseball Operations Davis Stearns, 38, to fill the same position. It was expected, and only the official announcement remains.

Stearns majored in political science at the prestigious Harvard University before working his way up through the ranks of the New York Mets, Major League Baseball’s Office of the Commissioner, Houston Astros assistant general manager, and Milwaukee Brewers GM. He took over for outgoing GM Doug Melvin in September 2015 and made an impact. He resigned after the 2022 season.

In January 2018, he made a surprise move to acquire Miami Marlins slugging outfielder Christian Elitch, 31, in a four-for-four trade. Ellich was named the Understanding National League MVP after the trade. Following the Elitch trade, the Marlins signed World Series-winning outfielder Lorenzo Cain to a five-year, $80 million contract with the Kansas City Royals in free agency.

Adding two outfielders almost simultaneously and making a huge investment in small-market Milwaukee was unexpected. In March 2020, the team signed Ellich to a nine-year, $215 million contract.

During Stearns’ tenure, Milwaukee makes the postseason for the fourth straight year. They win two district titles. The first time in franchise history. From 2016 through the 2022 season, Milwaukee’s team payroll never finishes higher than 17th. In its first year and in 2017, it was last in all of MLB. It was Stearns who got the most bang for the buck.바카라사이트

But Stearns, a brilliant mind, made a mistake that caught me off guard. On August 1, 2022, at the deadline, he traded closer Josh Hader, 29, to the San Diego Padres for four players. Fans were up in arms, and not just the players, but the front office as well.

Milwaukee was leading the NL Central on Aug. 1. They had a 3.0-game lead over the second-place St. Louis Cardinals – never a seller to trade Hader, the heart of their bullpen. Then Milwaukee began to spiral, losing the lead to St. Louis and falling 7.0 games out of the wild card. At the time, Stearns sent an email to his staff defending the Hayward trade.

After the season, in the aftermath of the postseason exit, Stearns stepped down as president of baseball operations and GM. He emphasized that he was not leaving the Mets for another team. His contract runs through 2023. The fan outcry led to a period of reflection. Almost a season later, he joined the Mets as scheduled.

The question now is whether he can be as effective with the big-market New York Mets as he was with the small-market Milwaukee Brewers. Stearns has some great teachers. Andrew Friedman (46) of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Haim Broom (40) of the Boston Red Sox. Side by side, they rose through the ranks of the small-market Tampa Bay Rays to become president of baseball operations for the big-market Dodgers and Red Sox.

Milwaukee Brewers president Dave Stearns oversaw the team’s fall from grace when he traded closer Josh Hader to the San Diego Padres on Aug. 1 last year. USA TODAY SportsYahoo!

The focus of a big-market organization is to acquire quality players (MLB draft and amateur) and develop a farm team. Friedman has been able to acquire the players he needs in trades while avoiding sacrificing prospects as much as possible. The team’s ability to make the postseason for 11 straight years, despite injuries to established players year after year, is due in large part to the fact that prospects are churned out like fireworks.

Mets owner Steve Cohen is one of the richest owners in MLB. Spending money is no big deal. But in MLB, where you can’t win a championship in free agency, the farm system is everything. Stearns’ success will depend on it.