The Amazin' Mets Foundation Snapshot (finally, some interesting tidbits)

I am sure no Mets fan wants to be reminded of the Wilpon era, and they probably never even thought about what it meant for the New York Mets Foundation. But as we look at the Amazin' Mets Foundation, we can see the impact of a change in ownership on how the charitable arm operates. This can then be used as a baseline to study how upcoming and future ownership changes may affect those clubs' charitable activities (Orioles and Padres, looking at you).

The impact of the Steve Cohen era is clear. They have ramped up their activities, rasied more money, and given more. While I haven't done historical IMPACT+ calculations, it is safe to assume they would fare much worse if/when I do.

Interesting tidbit #1: I have never before thought about how when ownership changes, it also includes the "ownership" of a charitable arm. I am guessing (though if any lawyers out there know specifics, I'd love to hear it), that it's a fairly straightforward negotiation (i.e. when ownership of the team transfers, so does the associated non-profit and all assets). In this case, Cohen's purchase was approved by the owners on October 30, 2020. Interestingly, the 2020 990, which is for the fiscal year ending October 31, 2020, lists Alex Cohen as the principal officer. That foundation continued to operate and file reports through 2023, when all assets were transferred over to the newly established Amazin' Mets Foundation which began operation in 2021. Once again, lawyers can likely provide insight, but I'm guessing this long wind-down process was due to existing contracts, pledges, and other legal issues.

Interesting tidbit #2: While I've only compiled this data for three teams so far, the Mets are the first team I've seen that has such a new 50/50 raffle to benefit their foundation. Unless I am mistaken, it was launched in 2023 though only raised ~$150,000 that year, and then significantly ramped up its operation in 2024, raising nearly $1.9M.

Interesting tid #3: Because they file as a private foundation, we see where their most significant contributions come from. These include gifts from unsurprising sources like Point72, Sterling Mets LP, the formal legal entity that operated the franchise previously and still handles ongoing administrative obligations, legacy business matters, and specific consumer programs, vendors Aramark, and Alliance Building Services, and other companies and individuals who I assume have either business with the Mets or are rabid fans/high-value season ticket holders. Adding these contributions up equals ~$1.8M of the ~$2M raised in contributions in 2024.

While I hear the despondence from my friends who are Mets fans about this season, they can at least hold their heads high with their high IMPACT+ score.