David Einhorn Won’t Be Buying Any of the Mets

NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 06: New York Mets General Manager Sandy Alderson (tie) and prospective owner David Einhorn (green shirt) talk as they watch batting practice before a Major League Baseball game against the Atlanta Braves at Citi Field on August 6, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Paul Bereswill/Getty Images)

Breaking news at this hour: Hedge fund manager David Einhorn, previously on the hook for a $200 million minority stake in the New York Mets, is now off the hook. Negotiations for Einhorn’s purchase, barring a renaissance by Fred Wilpon et al., would have granted him the possibility of majority ownership in three years. After months of negotiation, Einhorn says some late-changing terms in the deal caused him to balk (which, of course, the Mets deny). From the ESPN report:

“I am disappointed to announce that I will not be purchasing an ownership interest in the New York Mets baseball team at this time,” he said. “It is clear that it will not be possible for me to consummate the transaction on the terms that the Sterling-Mets organization and I originally agreed to several months ago. The extensive nature of changes that were proposed to me at the last minute has made a successful transaction impossible.” 

The word now is that the Mets will attempt to slice the minority stake into smaller, more chewable morsels, which will of course require more negotiation with more stakeholders. Whatever works. On that note, if any of y’all out there have 200 million bucks to dispense … [ESPN]