The New York Mets have their new general manager. According to multiple reports, the Mets are finalizing a contract with Arizona Diamondbacks assistant general manager Jared Porter to be their new front office head. Joel Sherman of the New York Post says Porter will receive a four-year contract. The team has not yet confirmed the news.
Porter, 40, has extensive front office expensive. He started his front office career as an intern with the Red Sox in 2004, and he gradually climbed the ladder and became the team's director of pro scouting in 2012. Porter spent two years with the Cubs, including their 2016 World Series championship season, before joining the D-Backs during the 2016-17 offseason.
Our R.J. Anderson named Porter one of the top general manager prospects in the game in October. From his write-up:
Porter is one of two Diamondbacks executives named to this list. He's had the good fortune of working for both the Red Sox (where he first became familiar with Arizona GM Mike Hazen) and the Cubs, and he has four World Series rings as a result. Porter has held numerous roles in scouting and development departments. He's also a history major, and while that doesn't mean a whole lot, it's arguably more interesting than the traditional "business major" background.
The Mets originally intended to hire a president of baseball operations and a general manager after new owner Steve Cohen took control of the organization last month, but soon thereafter focused on a general manager only. Sandy Alderson currently oversees baseball operations as team president, and the new general manager will report to him.
Despite not having a general manager, the Mets have been quite active this offseason. They signed reliever Trevor May to a two-year contract a few weeks ago, and agreed to a four-year contract with catcher James McCann on Saturday. The team has also been in the mix for Trevor Bauer, DJ LeMahieu, and George Springer.
The Mets went 26-34 and tied for last place in the NL East in 2020. Despite that, Porter will inherit a strong core led by Jacob deGrom, Michael Conforto, Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, and Dominic Smith, among others.
Cohen and Alderson fired general manager Brodie Van Wagenen and several others soon after taking control of the Mets.
