Cause It's 1, 2, 3, Strikes You're Out!!!

According to New York Times sports reporter Richard Sandomir, the much maligned deal between hedge fund titan David Einhorn and the New York Mets is over. Here is a statement from the team, courtesy of

ESPNNewYork.

"The New York Mets' Owners announced today that their period of exclusive negotiations with David Einhorn regarding a minority, non-operating interest in the Mets has expired and Ownership has decided not to extend the exclusive negotiating period any further. After months of negotiation, the parties were unable to reach agreement, and Mets Ownership has decided to explore other options. Ownership has provided additional capital to cover all 2011 losses and is moving forward with the necessary resources to continue to operate the franchise. Ownership will explore other strategic transactions and is under no financial pressure to do a deal on any particular schedule. “We are very confident in the team's plans – both off and on the field,” said Mets Chairman and CEO Fred Wilpon. “We will engage with other individuals, some who have been previously vetted by Major League Baseball, along with other interested parties, regarding a potential minority investment into the franchise. My partners and I thank David for his interest in considering this opportunity and wish him well in the future.” Einhorn runs Greenlight Capital, based out of Connecticut. Back in

May at the Ira Sohn conference,

made a comment at the end of his speech saying, "Let's Go Mets!" that ultimately proved to be prescient. Just a few days later, it was announced that Einhorn was in deep negotiations to buy a part of the team. Sandomir said in a

that he is still waiting to hear what killed the deal. The initial deal was said to have Einhorn pay $200 million for a 33% stake in the team. The talks have been

delayed

over the past few months, as the deal was supposed to close back in June. At the time, a source told ESPNNewYork's Adam Rubin, "Things are proceeding smoothly. It's just taking longer than expected." There were also reports that the original deal included an option for Einhorn to ultimately have the potential to own 60% of the Mets in a few years, but that can be denied by Fred and Jeff Wilpon, the team's principal owners, should they pay Einhorn back. If that happened, Einhorn would own 1/6 of the team at no cost. This all stems from the fact that the Wilpons are named in a lawsuit for having profited off Bernie Madoff, the much maligned Ponzi scheme artist to the tune of approximately $300 million. Reports first surfaced about a potential sale back in

January.

Now it looks as if the Mets and the Wilpons are on their own. Maybe they can still find someone to take Jason Bay, though.

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