MLB official on rivals complaining about Mets owner Steve Cohen’s spending: "Maybe they should just take his (luxury tax) money and say: Thank you"

An unnamed baseball official was quoted by MLB insider Buster Olney addressing the free-spending ways of New York Mets owner Steve Cohen.

"Maybe they should just take his (luxury tax) money and say: Thank you," Olney quoted the anonymous party about the amount that Cohen owes in Competitive Balance Tax for 2023 due to the Mets' league-leading payroll of approximately $375 million, according to The Athletic.

The Competitive Balance Tax, also known as the luxury tax, is a penalty that Major League Baseball imposes on teams whose payroll exceeds a certain threshold. For the 2023 season, the threshold is set at $233 million.

Teams that exceed the threshold must pay a tax that ranges from 20% to 50% on the amount over the limit. For this season, the Mets are set to pay a staggering $98.6 million in luxury tax, smashing their own record from last year, after their payroll exceeded the top tax threshold. The amount New York is due to pay in luxury tax exceeds the total payroll of nine major league teams.

Steve Cohen showed no signs of being deterred by the tax in December, as the Mets looked to sign free agent shortstop Carlos Correa to a 12-year, $315 million contract.

Speaking to ESPN's Jeff Passan, Cohen explained his reasoning towards the amount he has spent in the last two years:

"You're already in a high bracket. What I think about is making income. If I make income, it solves problems. It'd be great to get the payroll to the point where I don't have to pay tax anymore. That's the goal. If we do our job and develop a farm system and get a nice, sustainable pipeline going, we should be able to accomplish that."

Where does Steve Cohen go from here?

MLB is forming a new Economic Reform Committee in the wake of Steve Cohen's runaway spending, however, the Mets owner told The Athletic that some owners have been supportive of him:

"At the owners’ meeting, I had owners coming up and they go, 'You’re 100 percent right. You are following the rules. Which I am. … They lay down the rules and I’m following them."

According to the New York Post, Steve Cohen is expected to fully pursue Los Angeles Angels pitcher/hitter Shohei Ohtani as a free agent next offseason.

One Mets executive told the Post that “The Mets will make Ohtani the best-paid player in the history of sports — whether he plays for the Mets or not — because the offer will be insane. And if someone else wants to beat it go ahead.”