By: Marty Raminoff

Star pitcher Justin Verlander got advice on investing in hedge funds from Mets owner Steve Cohen three years before he signed on with the New York team.

The billionaire founder and owner of Point72 Asset Management told the NY Times that a mutual friend had introduced the two men and they had touched base professionally in 2020.  Cohen, 66, who boasts an estimated net worth of roughly$13.2 billion, has owned about 97% of the Mets team since September 2020.

As reported by the NY Post, in early 202, about the same time that Verlander was coming off a 21-win season with the Houston Astros, Cohen was still months away from finalizing his $2.4 billion purchase of the NY MLB team.  The 40-year-old Major League baseball pitcher had begun his illustrious career with the Detroit Tigers in 2004 and later moved on continuing his winning streak with the Houston Astros.   “He was wondering about hedge fund investments,” Cohen said of Verlander. “I met him through a friend.”  Cohen said he had told Verlander, “Sure, I’ll help you out. I’ll help you think about it. Why not?”  Verlander told the Times that he was touched by the “kindness of [Cohen’s] heart” in agreeing to help advise him.  The pitcher added that Cohen gave him “probably pretty dumbed down” advice.  As per the paper, this was the start of the relationship between the two men kept in touch.

In December 2022, Verlander signed a two-year contract worth $86.7 million, agreeing to pitch for Cohen’s team in Flushing NY.   Per the Post, shortly after the deal was sealed, Cohen and Verlander went on a double date with their wives—Alexandra and supermodel Kate Upton.  Photos of the outing went viral when posted on social media, “Great night getting to know @JustinVerlander and @KateUpton #fastfriends @Mets”.

Cohen also suggested that other Mets players, who also made nice salaries, have asked him for advice on investments.  “There may have been other players that are interested,” Cohen said. “A lot of these guys get paid well, right?”  He added, “And they’re looking for advice. Kind of in my wheelhouse, right?”  After all, Cohen’s hedge fund Point72 managed roughly 27.2 billion worth of assets in January 2023, as per the company’s website.

Cohen himself was ranked the 130th richest person in the world by Bloomberg Billionaires Index, and he is by far the richest owner of a baseball team.   His firm specializes in long-short equity strategy, which means it takes on a long position in undervalued stocks and sells short positions on securities that are overpriced.  The company, founded in 2014, earned roughly $1.9 billion in assets last year — ranking second only to Ken Griffin’s Citadel LLC, a multi-national hedge fund which raked in $4.1 billion, as per Bloomberg News.

Verlander, who has won countless awards throughout his career, was the Mets’ prize acquisition in the past offseason, and it was made possible thanks to Cohen’s deep pockets.  In fact, Cohen has been known to spend so lavishly, that the Mets have been losing money.  Per the Post, the Mets have a whopping $340 million payroll, and the team’s finances may up to $200 million in the red.