Tag: Sandy Alderson

Mets Should Make An Offer For Derek Jeter

NEW YORK - APRIL 03: David Wright of the New York Mets and Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees attend Delta's Jeter/Wright batting challenge at the Stone Rose Lounge on April 3, 2009 in New York City. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)

There! I said it. Something no one else would dare say. “Go get Derek Jeter”.

The Mets have a leadership problem and a hole at second base. Both holes can be filled immediately and at the same time some bragging rights can be taken for the City of NY.

WE JUST STOLE YOUR CAPTAIN! Take that Yankee fans! Welcome to NY Sandy Alderson. You’re the Man!

Yes, my crazy, zany, wacky, ridiculous idea for the Mets to sign Jeter is not exactly “Saberliscous” but who cares. Think about what would happen if the Mets stole the future Hall of Famer from the Yankees. Think of the ticket sales! Think of all the crying Yankee fans. Think of all the Met #2 Jerseys that would be floating around the Tri-state area with Jeter’s name on it. Oh the pain!

Jeter can obviously handle the NY media, give hands on training to David Wright on how to be a captain and bring some professionalism to that clubhouse.

Of course, the Yankees would never allow themselves to lose a bidding war for Jeter to the Mets. At the very least drive up Jeter’s offer. Force the Yankee’s to overpay him considerably, thereby ensuring the Yankees will have less payroll flexibility in the future. Knock out the Yankees this year from next years free agent market.

It’s a win – win! Just sayin…

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Mets Introduce Terry Collins

New York Mets manager Terry Collins shakes hands with Mets owner Fred Wilpon (L) after being introduced as the Mets' new manager at a news conference at Citi Field in New York, November 23, 2010. Looking on is Mets' co-owner Jeff Wilpon (R) and Mets' general manager Sandy Alderson (2nd L). REUTERS/Mike Segar (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

http://view.picapp.com//JavaScripts/OTIjs.jsThe Mets had their press conference for Terry Collins this morning. Dave Howard and Sandy Alderson had very brief introductions followed by some comments by Collins and questions from the media.

You can hear the full press conference here.

The overriding theme of Collins’ comments was that he wants his players to have attention to detail and “play the game the right way”. To me, that’s code for playing disciplined, old school baseball. We’ll see how well that flies with a high-priced, veteran team. It may work for teenagers and guys trying to make the leap from double or triple-A to the big’s, but I have a feeling he’s going to get a different reaction from guys that joined the Mets as high-priced free agents.

It’s also interesting to note that Collins is working on a two year contract with a club option for a third year. Clearly, the Mets learned from their mistakes with Art Howe and Willie Randolph not to get locked into long term deals for managers.

After the press conference Alderson and Collins made the rounds to all the local media outlets. Here are some audio samples for you.

ESPN- Collins with Michael Kay

ESPN- Alderson with Michael Kay

WFAN- Collins with Francesa

WFAN- Alderson with Francesa

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Mets To Name Terry Collins Manager

TOKYO - MARCH 08: China Team Manager Terry Collins attends a practice session before the World Baseball Tokyo Round match between China and South Korea at Tokyo Dome on March 8, 2009 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Koji Watanabe/Getty Images)

http://view.picapp.com//JavaScripts/OTIjs.jsPretty much every media outlet is reporting this afternoon that the Mets have hired Terry Collins to manage the Mets. It’s disappointing to me and, I’m sure, to many Mets fans that wanted to see Wally Backman get the job. But I’ll keep an open mind about Collins going forward. I certainly won’t be as fired up and ready to run out and buy tickets as I would have been if Backman was in the dugout.

Collins has already failed twice as a manager in Houston and with the Angels, finishing 10 games over .500 overall. His Angels team was a mutiny in ’99 and Collins resigned before the end of the season crying at the press conference at how he lost the team. Sure, it’s been 11 years since that happened but he sure wouldn’t be the guy that I would want running my team.

Collins also has deep connections with Paul DePodesta when they both worked for the Dodgers. DePodesta wanted to hire Collins in 2005 to manage the Dodgers but Frank McCourt was unhappy with the managerial candidates and fired DePodesta.

This is one of those critical decisions that better be right for Sandy Alderson and company. If not, there could be a mutiny at a much larger scale this time by the fans.

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Mets Managerial Search Foreshadows Decision Making

New York Mets new general manager Sandy Alderson responds to a reporter's question as the MLB National League Mets introduce him at a news conference in New York, October 29, 2010. Long-time baseball executive Alderson, 62, succeeds Omar Minaya, who was fired earlier this month along with manager Jerry Manuel after the team's second consecutive losing season. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

http://view.picapp.com//JavaScripts/OTIjs.jsDecisions made by upper management are their decisions to make with good reason. The opinions of sports talk gurus are only slightly more knowledgeable than the “Average Joe” getting bagels at the deli. The media covering the Mets poke blindly at who is the “obvious” or “necessary” pick for manager. The finalists for the Mets managerial job should tell the media and fans one thing “back off”. The new front office has an idea of what they want to do and they’re not going to be bullied by the masses who have little to no expertise on the subject matter.

Bobby Valentine has been left off the list and Wally Backman is looking destined for Single A. In the past I have lobbied for Backman, but I have to admit I just like my managers to be more Earl Weaver than Joe Torre. I like the Lou Pinella types who throw a tirade. I even like when players pull a Paul LoDuca and get in A-Rod’s face after a second too long pose down following a homer. In these situations, it’s best to see Alderson conducting his interviews without input from fans and the media know-it-alls.

Truth be told, the outcry from New Yorkers over unpopular decisions needs to be ignored continuously. Don’t pretend you weren’t looking for a tall building to scale after R.A. Dickey was signed. Continue reading “Mets Managerial Search Foreshadows Decision Making”

Video: Sandy Alderson on Mets Manager, Front Office

Sandy Alderson appeared on Mets Hot Stove Weekly last night. He was interviewed by Kevin Burkhardt about the Mets process of interviewing managers and the recent front office hires.

I really think that Alderson is going to be a great change of pace from the last six years with Omar Minaya. Alderson seems to have a well thought out plan and the people around him to make sure the plan is executed properly.

Check out the video below:

[Source: Amazin’ Avenue]

Mets Big Market Moneyball – Feed the Beast

NEW YORK - OCTOBER 29: Sandy Alderson poses f...
Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Moneyball has infiltrated the Metropolitans. Although the club had long ago hired a sabermetrics analyst, many of the original innovators are now behind a desk at Citi Field. For those living under a rock, Michael Lewis’ book “Moneyball” was to baseball traditionalists what “TheDavinci Code” was to fundamental Christians. The figures in the book including Sandy Alderson, Paul DePodesta, and J.P. Ricciardi along with Billy Beane and others devalued purist stats such as RBIs and stolen bases. They found through analysis that scouts, execs, and so on favored an old flawed relic of a system. They instead chose to use on base percentage and slugging as their ways to identify their coveted players. This also allowed small market Oakland to acquire lower priced players and continue to compete. The front office in Queens will now seem more like a mensa meeting than a baseball one. Trade in your ball and glove for and abacus and graphing calculator. The honeymoon with Alderson is currently in progress but I’d like to play devil’s advocate a moment. Here is an intrigue to ponder.

How will it go over when Alderson doesn’t feed “The Beast”?

This beast I’m referring to is the angry mob of disappointed Mets fans. Mets fans, who after a losing effort, will be hanging out of windows screaming for the highest paid free agent available. The fans who wore Manny Ramirez wigs and paraded outside of SNY a few years back. What if the front office logic leads them to less known, less heralded free agents/trades? How will Alderson explain his desire to sign a player with less of the “sexy stats” and more of his coveted ones? Will impatient fans grow tired of DePodesta’s number crunching and whine excruciatingly about not signing the latest big money stud. Winning will solve all, but how much and how quick will it need to be for the mob to stop crowding Mike Francesa’s phone lines with their red eyed banter. I can’t see this being a problem on draft boards. The MLB draft gets no where near the coverage of the NFL draft. Alderson can skip over a raw talent machine from high school for a polished college kid without much feedback from the masses. Continue reading “Mets Big Market Moneyball – Feed the Beast”

Mets Hire J.P. Ricciardi

Ricciardi
Image by phillenium1979 via Flickr

Sandy Alderson is getting the band back together again. I like it! Hopefully, he’ll be able to pry Paul DePodesta away from the Padres too. I think it’s a great hire bringing in Ricciardi with eight years of experience as the Blue Jays GM. It’s a great move and I’m really starting to get excited about the wealth of experience the Mets are assembling in the front office.

Here’s the press release from the Mets:

FLUSHING, N.Y., November 2, 2010 – The New York Mets today announced that J.P. (John Paul) Ricciardi has been named Special Assistant to General Manager Sandy Alderson. From November 14, 2001 through 2009, he was the Senior Vice President, Baseball Operations and General Manager for the Toronto Blue Jays. Ricciardi spent last season as a baseball analyst for ESPN.

“J.P. brings a wealth of knowledge and a breadth of experience to the organization,” said Alderson. “I worked with him for over a decade in Oakland and I know first hand he’s a superb talent evaluator. He’ll be a tremendous resource in a variety of areas.”

In his new role, Ricciardi will assist Alderson in all aspects of the baseball department.

The 51-year-old worked for the Oakland Athletics for 16 years (1986-2001), including 12 years (1986-1997) when Alderson was the team’s General Manager.

“I couldn’t be more excited about being reunited with Sandy,” said Ricciardi. “We enjoyed tremendous success together in Oakland and it’s my goal to help duplicate that here with the Mets. As a former Met farm hand, it’s a double homecoming for me.”

Ricciardi played two seasons in the Mets minor league system after signing as a non-drafted free agent. In 1980, he was a teammate of current Oakland GM Billy Beane in the New York-Penn League with Little Falls and in 1981 he played for Shelby (A) of the South Atlantic League.

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