Mets Fans Venmo Money to GM Brodie Van Wagenen to Get Team to Spend

Following an offseason of minimal activity, some New York Mets fan took matters into their own hands in an attempt to get general manager Brodie Van Wagenen to spend money.  

Per James Wagner of the New York Times, Mets fan Frankie Wilton explained why he used Venmo to wire the team money. 

"So many of the issues with this team throughout my life as a fan have just stemmed from finances, and I guess this was the only tool that I had," Wilton said. "You can write a letter, you can make a phone call or make some sort of public spectacle but none of that has to do directly with finances like Venmo does."

It's worth noting Wilton, a 20-year-old college student, only gave the Mets one penny with a cheeky message attached: "Spare change for the poor."

Even though Wilton's action seems like a desperate attempt to get the Mets to do something, Van Wagenen told Wagner he's actually received around 500 notifications of money sent to him through Venmo since becoming general manager in October 2018. 

Things haven't gone smoothly for the Mets this offseason. Majority owner Fred Wilpon was in talks to sell the team to Steve Cohen for $2.6 billion, but the deal fell through for undisclosed reasons in February. 

Since the Wilpon family took over as majority owners of the Mets in 2002, the franchise has made the postseason three times and has 11 losing seasons.