According to the New York Post, Mets ownership is close to refinancing a $250 million dollar loan. The re-fi is expected to give the team more financial flexibility:

Until recently, it wasn’t certain investors weren’t going to insist the team owners pay down some of the loan to get the refinancing done.

Wilpon and Katz will not be asked for any cash paydown, sources said.

Plus, interest payments are expected to stay about the same, a source with direct knowledge of the situation said.

The Mets spent about $87 million on free agents this offseason – a marked jump in spending from the past few years, in particular last offseason, when they spent only $5 million. Perhaps optimism about this re-fi was part of the reason the Wilpons felt comfortable loosening their wallets this winter.

They’re still not spending with the big boys – and no one is going to outspend the Yankees, whether you play in New York or not – but the point is to have the financial flexibility to make the moves you have to make, rather than settling on a team full of minor league contracts with invites to Spring Training.

I doubt this news will inspire any more huge transactions this offseason – Stephen Drew is still in play, but the Mets seem to be treating him as a nice-to-have, not a must-have.

As much as I’ve been critical of the Wilpons, they are at least making an active effort to get out from under the debt left to them by Bernie Madoff.

I hope the next time Fred Wilpon says his financial troubles are over, like he did last year, that it’s really the truth.

The heavyweight court bout between Wilpon, Katz, and company vs. Irving Picard ended in a…well, sort of split decision.  All in all, it was good news for the owners of the Mets, as Fred, Jeff, and Uncle Saul only had to payout a paltry $162 million.  After the ruling, the Mets were able to sell 12 minority ownership shares of the team at $20 million apiece, infusing $240 million into the organization.  This allowed them to immediately pay back their debts to the Bank of America and Major League Baseball.  That’s the good news.  The bad news is, the Wilpons won’t be forced to sell the team.

The Blogs check their accounts:

• Ian O’Connor of ESPN thinks Fred is still a loser.
• Hardball Talk says the Wilpons are happy, and praise Mario Cuomo (this is not a blog post from the mid-80s).
• Amazin’ Avenue explores the ramifications of today’s ruling.
• MMO wonders if this means better days ahead.
• Metstradamus examines what this does to the culture of negativity among Mets faithful.
• Tedquarters, meanwhile, is always thinking about his stomach (apologies to Han Solo).  How would you define a sandwich?

We here at Mets Today work for free, so we don’t have to worry about million dollar settlements.  Stay tuned for more Mets news.

With hours to go until the New Year, 2011 is taking its final bows, and 2012 is ready for its debut.  Most people look upon the New Year as chance for a fresh start, a chance to evaluate their lives and set new goals – maybe look for a new job, find a new hobby, or reconnect with family and friends.

For the Mets, it’s definitely time for a change.  This is a baseball team in a shambles.  They are millions of dollars in debt, and have taken loans from Major League Baseball in order to stay afloat.  They lost their star shortstop in free agency to a division rival, and traded two key players during the season.  They’ve done little to build the team during the offseason, except adding a mediocre outfielder and three pretty good relief pitchers.  And if the 2012 season goes as poorly as most predict,