Buck Showalter’s existing Mets contract led to stalled talks with YES

Earlier this month, it was announced that Buck Showalter would return to MLB Network as an analyst. However, that wasn’t the only network vying for his services, as according to The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand, YES had discussions with the former New York Mets manager about joining the Yankees’ regional network.

Any addition would have been on top of former Yankees manager Joe Girardi, Aaron Boone’s predecessor, who had already joined the network in the offseason. But talks fell through once YES learned that Showalter was still under contract with the Mets — New York is paying him $4 million in 2024 not to manage the team.

“We had very preliminary discussions with Buck,” a YES spokesman told The Athletic. “Once we learned that he was still under contract, we did not pursue it any further.”

But the Mets say they never would’ve prevented their former manager, who went 75-87 in his second season with the Mets, from taking a gig with a crosstown rival’s network. According to Marchand, while Showalter’s original managerial contract with the Mets gave them the initial power to block him from discussing a job with the Yankees’ network, the Mets have clarified they would have ultimately permitted those talks to move forward.

As Marchand mentions, it’s unclear whether Showalter would have actually taken the YES job, especially considering the dynamic with two former club managers. That’s not even touching the larger point about Boone being on the hot seat and his job security being called into question.

As for Showalter, he previously worked for MLB Network during the 2020 and 2021 seasons before leaving to take the Mets job. In addition to his previous work with MLB Network, Showalter had two stints at ESPN as an analyst on Baseball Tonight and was the focus of an edition of MLB Network Presents in 2015.

[The Athletic]