Report: Sandy Alderson’s Contract Extension Runs Through The 2019 Season

In what was one of the greatest kept secrets in New York sports, Sandy Alderson received an extension from the New York Mets last winter, but no one knew how long it was. No one, that is, except for FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman. Heyman is reporting that Alderson’s extension runs through the 2019 season, so he has job security beyond this season. It is also worth noting that despite the Mets’ poor play this season, there appears to be no blowback coming Alderson’s way, with one front office official telling Heyman “Sandy’s good.”

Alderson has begun to come under fire in recent weeks thanks to the Mets’ 16-31 record since April 15th. The roster appears to be old, and Alderson’s choices in free agency have mostly backfired, leaving the Mets with a thin roster that has no margin for error. Alderson has also taken criticism for his poor farm system, which has drawn knocks around the game for its lack of depth and potential impact players. Despite all the heat coming his way, it appears likely that Alderson will get to decide when he steps away from the Mets.

There have been some highs in the Alderson regime, dating back to when the Mets reached the World Series in 2015 and got to the Wild Card game the following year, but things have trended the wrong way since then. Alderson came to the Mets highly recommended by former commissioner Bud Selig, who suggested Alderson to Fred Wilpon while the ownership group was going through the Madoff scandal. The Mets appear to have gotten through that scandal just fine, as Heyman notes that the franchise appears on solid financial footing thanks to strong investments in Citi Field and SNY. Alderson also did his part by reducing salary at the beginning of his tenure, and despite modest increases in recent years the Mets still have a below average payroll for a team playing in the number one media market in the country.

Unless the tide changes quickly, it doesn’t look as if disgruntled Mets’ fans will get to see someone other than Alderson run the front office until at least 2020. The re-hire of Omar Minaya over the winter led to some buzz that he could get his old job back, but Heyman’s report has thrown cold water on that idea. The Mets have been expected to promote long time assistant GM John Ricco to succeed Alderson whenever the former steps away from the job. Ricco has been with the Mets since the mid-2000’s, when he served under Minaya before staying on under Alderson.