Wilpons negotiating sale of Mets to billionaire Steve Cohen

The New York Mets are potentially heading toward a regime change at the ownership level.

The Wilpon family - which assumed control of the club in 2002 - reached an agreement with investor Steve Cohen to increase his stake in the team, the two sides announced in a joint statement Wednesday.

Cohen could obtain up to an 80% share in the Mets, a source told Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg.com. The deal would value the team at $2.6 billion.

Under the agreement, Fred Wilpon will remain Mets CEO and Jeff Wilpon will keep his role as COO for the next five years. While they will retain an ownership stake in the franchise, their involvement with the club as of 2025 is uncertain. At that point, Cohen would have a path toward control of the team.

Cohen is the CEO of hedge fund Point72 Asset Management. His net worth is $9.2 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.