Category: Latest News

Mets Focus Squarely On Minaya Now

Now that Willie Randolph is gone and Jerry Manuel is all but guaranteed to be the Mets manager for the rest of the 2008 season, the Mets success or failure will fall squarely on Omar Minaya.  The Mets GM has had his share of up’s and down’s since he got here in 2005.  There are some differing schools of thought on this topic.  Some think that the Wilpons won’t get rid of him no matter how the 2008 version of the Mets performs. And others differ.

Jim Molony of MLB.com wrote a column today and completely agrees with me that 2008 may be Minaya’s final stand with the Mets.  The Wilpons have allowed Minaya to assemble a team prepared to win now with a nine-figure payroll.  The onus is on them to do what their charge is: to win now.

Molony runs through the litany of bad trades and free agent signings that Minaya has made and there have been quite a few. But what’s more telling is the industry opinion of Minaya’s team:

"They’ve relied too much on old players and it’s cost them," a veteran NL scout said. "They’ve had a lot of injuries, sure, but that’s what happens when you have a lot of older players."

As we’re writing Willie Randolph’s Mets eulogy this week, maybe we should start working on Minaya’s as well.

Mets Trade Deadline News

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Xavier Nady during a Pirates/Minnesota Twins spring training game at McKechnie Field in Bradenton, Florida.

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Steve Hensen of Yahoo Sports wrote a column today predicting which teams will be buyers and which will be sellers.  He lists the Mets as buyers with this quote:

Every new manager should get a new toy, and Jerry Manuel would like a relief pitcher, a corner outfielder and a player who actually cares.

Ouch, but hard to argue with.  It couldn’t take that much to get Xavier Nady back from the Pirates.  Having a right handed hitting 1B/OF would be too perfect for this team.

Tim Brown, also at Yahoo Sports, says that the Mets are prepared to make a run at the Colorado Rockies Matt Holliday:

The Mets, for another, have run their horrendous September into 2½ more lethargic months, thus bearing the look of an organization on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Their offense is slightly more average than their pitching. And Moises Alou will hit for as long as his body will carry him, which, so far this season, has amounted to 49 at-bats. They spent a good amount of their farm system on Johan Santana, but team officials believe they could still make a play for Holliday, the 2007 MVP runner-up whose career splits skew so dramatically to Coors Field.

That’s too aggressive a move for my liking.  Holliday is a nice player with a big bat from the right side, but he’s a one and a half year rental.  The Rockies will want multiple top prospects for him.  I’m sure they’ll want Fernando Martinez, John Maine, plus another players that’s under their control for several years. The price will be way too high for Holliday.

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Mariners Fire John McLaren

Seattle Mariners

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Not to be outdone by the Mets, the Mariners fired manager John McLaren today.  This follows GM Bill Bavasi’s firing on Monday. Bench coach Jim Riggleman will take over the major’s worst team with a record of 25-47. Their putrid performance mixed with their $117 million opening day payroll proved to be a bad combination for McLaren.

The amazing thing about this story is that McLaren was the SECOND manager fired this season.  How could he keep his job for longer than Willie Randolph?

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Manuel’s New Strategy Pays Early Dividends For Mets

New York Mets shortstop José Reyes during a Mets/Devil Rays spring training game at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

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For three and a half years we’ve been watching Willie Randolph bring in his closer, Billy Wagner, to pitch the ninth inning of tied or close games.  Jerry Manuel’s second game as manager of the Mets showed us a much needed strategic shift.  Manuel’s intestinal fortitude was tested by his star shortstop in his first game as well, and he passed with flying colors.

Willie Randolph followed the modern “book” for closers as Mets manager. Billy Wagner nearly always pitched the ninth inning of games that the Mets led or were tied. I always disagreed with pitching Wagner in the ninth inning of a tied game. I wondered: Why not hold onto that weapon until you really need it? Apparently, Jerry Manuel agrees with me. Duaner Sanchez pitched the ninth inning, and when the Mets took the lead Billy Wagner shut the door in the tenth inning. That’s the way to play that situation! Wagner is the pitcher to close out a win, not hold over a tie.

Continue reading “Manuel’s New Strategy Pays Early Dividends For Mets”

Video: Mets Players On Willie Randolph

The Mets “core” players talk about the decision to fire Willie. Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes, and David Wright do the talking. Beltran is particularly insightful about the players causing Willie to lose his job.

NY Times: Jerry Manuel Profile

I’ve read many profiles of new Mets manager Jerry Manuel over the last 24 hours. Most have been too brief with Zen-like references of his reading preferences. For a more in-depth description of who Jerry Manuel is take a look at Ben Shipgel’s profile of Jerry Manuel in the New York Times.

Some quotes from the column:

Manuel’s other preferences include more fluidity within the lineup, which includes a partiality for moving Beltrán, the regular cleanup hitter, or Wright, the No. 3 hitter, if he sees fit, and the hopes of establishing more definite roles among his relievers.

I like that quote because I’ve thought all along that Carlos Beltran was miscast as a cleanup hitter. It would be nice to see David Wright there once in a while too. I’m looking forward to a fresh perspective on the Mets lineup.