Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner believes it's 'great' that the Mets are continuing to improve after topping 100 wins last season, but acknowledged their spending is 'something to be looked at' after they agreed to a megadeal with Carlos Correa.
The Mets' offseason spending spree hit a crescendo on Tuesday as they reportedly inked a 12-year, $315million contract with the infielder, and the team's payroll under owner Steve Cohen will be massive next season. 
According to ESPN, the Mets' payroll is expected to be $384 million for 2023, though with $111 million in MLB luxury taxes, Cohen's bill will actually be a whopping $495 million.




'This is some type of fraudulent corruption': Furious New... Carlos Correa agrees to a $315m, 12-year deal with the Mets...
Carlos Correa hit .291 with 22 home runs last season for the Minnesota Twins

However, Steinbrenner suggested the Mets' spending was verging on the excessive.
'I was joking with somebody previously that 10 years ago, you'd always hear me say that you shouldn't have a $200-million payroll to win a championship,' he said.
'Well, I've modified that slightly.

So, you shouldn't have to have a $300-million payroll to win a championship. As most teams don't. The Astros didn't.'
The Mets' reported signing of Correa - who hit .291 with 22 home runs and 64 RBIs in Minnesota last season - follows the lucrative contracts they gave Brandon Nimmo and Justin Verlander.




[img][/img]
Steve Cohen has been a massive spender since taking control of the Mets in 2020

Nimmo was handed an eight-year, $162million deal to remain with the team, while Verlander was tempted with a two-year, $86.6million pact to leave the Astros.
For their part, the Yankees signed Aaron Judge to a nine-year, $360million contract, which trails only Verlander and Mets pitcher Max Scherzer in annual value.