Jared

Porter

And he’ll remain there through at least the end of the 2022 season. Porter was fired from his role as the Mets’ general manager over the winter after it came to light that he had sent lewd messages to a female reporter in 2016. A public statement Wednesday from MLB commissioner Rob Manfred: “I have concluded that Mr. Porter violated MLB’s policies, and that placement on the ineligible list is warranted. We are committed to providing an appropriate work environment consistent with our values for all those involved in our game.”

Jared Porter was let go on Tuesday, a little over a month into the job, after an ESPN story revealed that he had sent explicit texts and images to a female reporter back in 2016, when he was a member of the Cubs’ front office. Alderson figures to fill most of the GM duties for the Mets in 2021, with assistant GM Zack Scott likely taking on a bit more responsibility as well. “I’m very confident in the group that we have that we can move forward and move forward effectively,” Alderson told reporters via Zoom on Tuesday afternoon.

Porter was fired by the Mets on Tuesday morning after his involvement in sending lewd and explicit text messages to a female reporter in 2016, per a report by ESPN. According to Nightengale, the investigation could lead to a suspension from MLB which would require Porter to apply for reinstatement in order to work in baseball again. Porter’s former employers (Cubs and Diamondbacks) have issued statements saying they had no knowledge of the text messages, but MLB will surely look deep into his background to get to the bottom of it.

This comes after an ESPN report on Monday which detailed that Porter sent “explicit, unsolicited texts and images to a female reporter in 2016.” Porter acknowledged sending the messages when contacted by ESPN on Monday, but denied that the explicit images were of him, saying that they were “kinda like joke-stock images.” Mets president Sandy Alderson released a statement late Monday saying that the team was gathering the facts, but Porter’s dismissal was a foregone conclusion. Cohen acted swiftly Tuesday morning, saying that there should be “zero tolerance for this type of behavior.” Assistant general manager Zack Scott, who was the runner-up for the GM job earlier this offseason, will presumably take on an increased role following Porter’s exit.

“I have spoken directly with Jared Porter regarding events that took place in 2016 of which were were made aware [Monday] for the first time,” Mets president Sandy Alderson said in a statement. “Jared has acknowledged to me his serious error in judgement, has taken responsibility for his conduct, has expressed remorse, and has previously apologized for his actions.” Porter began sending the messages when he was serving as the Cubs’ director of professional scouting. The exchange “started casually,” per Passan and Kimes, before Porter started complimenting the female reporter’s appearance and invited her to meet him in various cities. In total, there were 62 unanswered texts -- including seven photos -- sent from Porter to the woman. One of them was an image of an erect, naked penis. Reached by ESPN on Monday, Porter stated, “The more explicit ones are not of me. Those are like, kinda like joke-stock images.” He asked whether ESPN was planning to run a story about it, then requested more time before eventually declining further comment. Yikes.

Scott was runner-up to Jared Porter to get the GM job with the Mets but will now work under Porter in New York. He had been with the Red Sox as their senior VP and assistant GM.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post first reported on Saturday that Porter would be the Mets’ choice, and now the hiring is official. Porter -- who has spent the last four seasons as the Diamondbacks’ assistant general manager and senior vice president -- will report to team president Sandy Alderson.