Verlander: Cohen persuaded him Mets are building a winner – Spectrum News

NEW YORK (AP) — Justin Verlander’s phone rang in November. New York Mets owner Steve Cohen was on the line. “It really wasn’t a baseball call. It was just a ‘Hey, this is Steve. You’re Justin. Let me get to know you a little bit,’” the pitcher recalled Tuesday. That conversation led to an $86.7 million, two-year contract on Dec. 5, a deal that was finalized two days later. The three-time Cy Young Award winner was introduced at a news conference Tuesday at Citi Field. Verlander joins former Detroit teammate Max Scherzer atop the rotation, and effectively replaces Jacob deGrom, who left New York and agreed to a $185 million, five-year contract with Texas. “I would expect the pool and ping-pong games to maybe take on another another level,” Mets general manager Billy Eppler said of adding another hypercompetitive player to his clubhouse. New York, seeking its first World Series title since 1986, has boosted its luxury tax payroll to about $360 million next year, on track for a record tax of about $85 million. Entering their third season under Cohen, the Mets have committed $476.7 million to seven free agents. They also added starting pitchers Kodei Senga and José
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