Reports: 76ers, Devils owners eye bid for Mets

[June 09, 2020]  Billionaires Josh Harris and David Blitzer reportedly are looking to add a another top-level team to their sports empire.

The owners of the Philadelphia 76ers and the New Jersey Devils are hoping to purchase the New York Mets, Variety and the New York Post reported Monday.

Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment also owns Crystal Palace FC of the English Premier League along with the 76ers' G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats, and the Devils' American Hockey League affiliate, the Binghamton Devils.

Harris, founder of equity firm Apollo Global Management, has a net worth of $5 billion, according to Forbes. Blitzer, an executive at equity firm Blackstone Group, has a net worth of approximately $1.3 billion, per the Post.

Last month, the Post reported that former baseball star Alex Rodriguez and entertainer Jennifer Lopez were making a second bid at buying the Mets.

The Wilpon family, who own the Mets, first reportedly began shopping the team in December, and Steve Cohen attempted to acquire 80 percent of the club. The billionaire hedge-fund founder already was a minority owner of the Mets.

Cohen publicly announced in February that his attempt to gain controlling interest failed, prompting the first bid from Rodriguez and Lopez.

The Post reported last month and again Monday that interest in buying the Mets has increased since the Wilpon family recently became willing to include cable network SNY in the deal.

Joshua Harris (L) and David Blitzer speak to each other while they attend a media conference at Prudential center in Newark, New Jersey, August 15, 2013. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

According to Variety, the Mets lose $50 million per year, and that was before the coronavirus seriously damaged baseball's finances in 2020.

In April, Forbes pegged the Mets' value at $2.4 billion, a 4 percent increase from last year. The Mets' rated sixth on Forbes list of values for Major League Baseball teams, trailing just the New York Yankees ($5 billion), Los Angeles Dodgers ($3.4 billion), Boston Red Sox ($3.3 billion), Chicago Cubs ($3.2 billion) and San Francisco Giants ($3.1 billion).

--Field Level Media

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