Over Which Investment Was David Einhorn "Kicking Himself" In 2004?

David Einhorn is a Mets man, but only partially.

His heart belongs mostly to the Milwaukee Brewers -- he spent most of his childhood there, after leaving New Jersey (where he was a Mets fan) when he was 7 years old.

Before the Mets went on the market, the Brewers were on the chopping block in 2004, and apparently Einhorn was keen.

However, in a fashion not typical of the investor, he "was too timid or too late to make a formal offer," and instead the team was snapped up by an alliance led by financier Mark Attanasio, says the New York Times, via Dealbreaker.

And fellow hedge fund king, Bill Ackman, has the details:

"He looked seriously at the Brewers," said Bill Ackman... He said that Einhorn did not view his interest as a lark. Indeed, Ackman said Einhorn "kicked himself" when he heard what Attanasio’s group paid for his share of the team: $223 million.

Apparently the Greenlight CEO had "wanted to join the group and buy a small piece of the Brewers. But his timing was off."

So the Mets buy was not some random decision made when Einhorn discovered that the Wilpons needed a buyer: Einhorn had, at least since 2004, wanted a baseball team under his cap.

In 2009 he even rendezvous'd with Bob DuPuy, baseball’s then-president, and Jonathan Mariner, CFO of Major League Baseball, "to discuss the path to buying a team, to find out what teams were on the market and to explore and understand various ownership structures," the NYT reports.

The Mets play the Brewers today, as part of a three-game series; Einhorn won't be at the game. But he's obviously well-hedged.

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