Mr Mets Daily

Mets press conference observations

(Note: In my previous post, I made an error stating that new mets manager Jerry Manuel coached five seasons for the White Sox, it was actually six....we try to limit errors, but are only human....almost)

I caught part of the Mets press conference, unfortunately, not all, but I have a few observations:

• Jerry Manuel is far more loose and comfortable in front of a camera then Willie Randolph, he joked several times with the media, something I did not see Willie do often
• he also talked about players having fun, and creating a climate where players could have career years
• he also discussed  keeping  players  fresh, and to that  end, David Wright will  DH  tonight
• one I am VERY  happy to  hear (especially  with  the  Mets  pen)  is  that  he  is  not  a  big  pitch  count  proponent
• he  also indicated that he will be flexible with the line up, as he stated, "your cleanup hitter is not always your cleanup hitter"
• I just caught a bit of Omar Minaya, but it was enough, my lasting impression is Omar trying to convince Mets fans he did not decide to fire Willie until yesterday....yet he flew across country I guess by coincidence...give me a break   

Check back later for more Mets news.

Mets new manager, Jerry Manuel

The New York Mets newest manager (God help him....) is 54 year old former bench coach Jerry Manuel.

Manuel will take over tonight as Mets manager against the Angels at 10:05pm. He had a fourteen year career, (mostly undistinguished) as a player.He was the manager of the Chicago White Sox for five seasons with a record of 500-471. The highlight of his coaching career came in 2000 when he led the Sox to a record of 95-67 and won AL manager of the year honors.

He is a very solid baseball man, and ironically, is very similiar  to Willie Randolph in terms of personality. In fact, Willie may the more fiery of the two. Manuel is a student of Ghandi which tells you a bit about his calm demeanor, nothing wrong with that, but I do question whether a Willie clone makes sense. Much like Willie, he is a good guy, very intelligent, has a lot of baseball experience, but, again, I really have to wonder if this team is not in need of a more stern manager. But, I will reserve judgement, and wish him well....with this Mets team and front office, Jerry will need all the luck he can get!

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Mets management bungles Willie situation!

As a long time fan of the New York Mets, I am embarressed today. This post has nothing at all to do with whether or not the Mets should have fired Willie Randolph, but rather about how and when they did it.

After last seasons nightmare collapse, we all knew Willie would be on the hot seat if the Mets didn't perform. Thus far in 2008, they have not. Willie has been on the brink for much of the season with fans and media calling for his release and the Mets not really supporting him. There have many many times this season where the Mets tanked and I figured this would be it for Willie. Certainly after the four game sweep in San Diego, I thought if ever he was a goner, this would be the time.

Instead, what the Mets did was to basically let it be known that Willie's job was on the line and they left him, and the players, dangling with uncertainty.That is no way to run a ball club! You either decide he is your guy and publicly support him, or fire him and move on. For too long, mets management (or perhaps, mismanagement) did neither.

So when was the decision made to fire Willie Randolph? Was it after winning two of three over the weekend? If so, then what the mets did was to let the man fly 3,000 miles, win a game, hold a press conference to discuss the Mets win, then get fired at 3:00am New York time. Disgraceful!

If the decision was made after the San Diego series, they should have pulled the trigger right then and there. To give the Mets the benefit of the doubt, perhaps they didn't yet know what the "post Willlie" plan was. However, even that doesn't make sense.They had to see this coming.There had to be some thought that Willie might not be the man to lead the team, and must have been some discussion about what to do if he gets fired.The worst part of all, to me, is the fact they did it on the west coast. Looks like a cowardly move to me.

So here we are, the Mets have the highest payroll in the National League, they are below .500, they have virtually no farm system and an aging team to go along with management that looks clueless!Not great times to be a Mets fan.

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Mets fire Willie Randolph!

Despite beating the Angels 9-6,the  New  York Mets  fired  manager  Willie  Randolph  along with pitching coach Rick Peterson and first  base  coach  Tom Nieto.

Mets GM Omar Minaya made the trip out West with the club and we were led to believe Willie was safe but Peterson and Nieto were in trouble. (Cynics might think, rightfully so, that they wanted this to happen in LA rather then New York).

Mets bench manager Jerry Manuel will take over, it is unclear if he will be the "interim" manager. Joining  the Mets staff will be  Dan  Warthen,  Ken  Oberkfell  and  Luis  Aguayo.

Randolph leaves with the second best winning percentage in Mets history behind Davey Johnson. Critics, myself included often times, attacked Randolph for his laid back style when frequently it seemed his players needed a  solid kick in the  rear.

Replacing Randolph with Manuel will have, as it generally does, a short term impact. It is common for new managers to get off to a fast start. However, I feel the Mets will quickly revert to form. While Randolph didn't do a great job, the real issue here is we have an old, injury prone team with too many players well past their prime.

Mets GM Omar Minaya will hold a 5:00pm press conference from LA to discuss the details. With Willie gone, the heat now shifts to Minaya. If a management change doesn't work, it becomes time to question the man who put the talent together.

Check back throughout the day as we will provide any Mets news as it occurs.

Randolph, The Time is Now!

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The New York Mets are under .500 for the season. In mid- April, generally that is no big deal. However, for the 2008 Mets, it should be. After last season's epic collapse fans had the right to expect them to come out with fire, passion and a "refuse to lose" attitude.
   
We haven't seen any of that. What we have seen from Willie Randolph's crew has been a continuation of what we saw last September; uninspired play, lack of focus, no attention to detail, no timely hitting, poor defense and sub-par pitching.
   
These are not ingredients for Baseball sucess. While it is still early, I am concerned. Willie and the boys need to crank it up and fast!