Alex Rodriguez, Jennifer Lopez Reportedly Plan to Invest $225-300M into Mets Bid

When Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez became attached to a bid to buy the New York Mets, many assumed they were doing so as the public faces of an ownership group while buying a minority share—similar to Derek Jeter with the Miami Marlins.

That is apparently not the case.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported the power couple are investing between $225-300 million of their own  money into the bid, which is more than any other partner. Rodriguez would become the "control person" of the organization.

Rodriguez would be the only MLB player with a controlling interest in a franchise. The 14-time All-Star made $441 million during his career, and Lopez has a reported net worth of $400 million.

The couple reportedly met with New England Patriots owners Robert and Jonathan Kraft this month to discuss potential development opportunities around Citi Field. Their plan would include using Lopez's influence in the entertainment industry to help book concerts in the area, along with adding various bars, restaurants and other forms of entertainment.

Thornton McEnery and Josh Kosman of the New York Post reported the Wilpon family is looking to sell the Mets by the end of 2020 to rid themselves of the debt-riddled franchise. The team could lose upwards of $200 million this year because of lost revenue from the COVID-19 pandemic. In a typical year, the Mets were already losing tens of millions of dollars.

Mike Ozanian of Forbes reported the Mets have $350 million in debt and as much as $450 million in debt from SNY.tv. 

Billionaire Steve Cohen had a deal in place to purchase the franchise for a $2.4 billion valuation but backed out in February after the Wilpon family attempted to change terms of the agreement. The gamble has proved to be a losing one for the Wilpons, who have received "weak" bids, below the $2 billion mark, per Charles Gasparino of Fox Business.