Mets narrow general manager search to three candidates

With the Mets set to begin the second round of interviews for the open general manager position tomorrow, three finalists have been reported to still be in the running: Rays vice president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom, front-office executive Doug Melvin of the Brewers, and sports agent Brodie Van Wagenen. Candidates Casey Close and Kim Ng have not made the final cut.

Rumors have also been floating around about an “additional candidate” whose name we haven’t heard previously connected to the Mets, but the three above finalists are all we know about for sure at this time. According to reports, Doug Melvin is currently the favorite of the three. This isn’t a surprise, as he is likely the most appealing candidate to bridge the reported rift between Jeff and Fred Wilpon regarding the attributes each is prioritizing in the GM search. Meanwhile, there are those within the organization that believe Fred Wilpon is also likely to favor Melvin because he feels that Mickey Callaway—the Mets’ most recent “unconventional” hire—backfired. Therefore, the elder Wilpon may favor the conservative route when it comes to who is at the helm of the front office.

The three candidates bring divergent types of expertise to the table. Melvin is 66 years old and has extensive front office experience running the Brewers and Rangers. Van Wagenen has never worked in a front office, but he is well regarded in baseball for his knowledge of the game as co-head of the baseball division at CAA sports. His Mets clients include Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Yoenis Cespedes, and Todd Frazier. Bloom is regarded as the most analytical of the three candidates and is young to boot—just 35 years old. He has never been a general manager but has a prominent role in a front office regarded as one of the more forward-thinking front offices in the sport when it comes to the use of analytics.