Vaccaro at the Post summed up my feelings pertty well:
What a crowd, these bums are, all of them, from the Wilpons at the top to Omar Minaya down below, all of them who conspired to botch this firing worse than any firing has ever been botched. Ever. You wouldn't trust these guys to run a 7-11, let alone a National League baseball team. What a joke. What a cowardly, dastardly joke.
That said, I've got beef with all the people who've been clamoring for Willie's firing but now want to complain over the manner it was handled. Enough already. You don't get the satisfaction of getting the new manager you wanted, and also get the self-righteous indignation over Willie being disrespected, all at the same time.
And the chief culprit: Joe Benigno. Could there be a less intelligent individual for WFAN to subject millions of listners to each and every day?
Replacing Willie with Manuel was ridiculous. The players whose effort seems to wax and wane are the ones who control whether the Mets will finally play to their potential or not. Beltran, Delgado, Jose, Pedro. That, and whether the Mets can get Alou and Church healthy.
If those guys get focused and the team gets healthy, they'll win, regardless of the manager. If not, then the Mets will keep losing.
Even if the Mets rip off a .650 win % the rest of the way, there is zero chance you'll be able to convince me it's because of Jerry Manuel.
If Earl Weaver, Tommy Lasorda, Whitey Herzog or John McGraw were available, fine. But there is no one--no one--out there who is going to make the difference.
To axe a good man and a good organization guy midseason, coming off 3 wins in 4 games no less, makes about as much sense as being a Mets/Jets fan.
2 comments:
A problem is that by all accounts Manuel is the same personality as Willie. As we've discussed here before, it is possible that Willie might be a good coach with the right team. I don't think this Mets team is that team though. They need someone who can show some fire on the field and in the dugout; who can train younger players; and IMO who manages the bullpen better. If Willie is not that guy it sounds like Manuel is not either.
Bottom line is that Mets fans are paying the penalty for Omar not taking the steps he needed to after '07. He went into '08 banking way too heavily on smoke and mirrors. I give him a break on freak concussions happening to Church, but that's it. All other injuries (Alou, Pedro, Duque, Valentin, and Castro) as well as performances by Castillo and Delgado are exactly as expected based on their trend lines. I still think Willie should've gone, but I would've done it after '07 ended.
I have, do, and will continue to say that the players are responsible for the substandard performance. In so far as the chemistry is screwed up on this club, Omar takes a hit.
Willie could've tried more things to motivate these guys. Sure. In hindsight, regardless of the endeavor, when things don't work out well, everyone could've done something different. But that was not the proximate cause of this team's mediocrity.
At the end of the day, Delgado's swing has gotten too slow, Reyes is too moody, Castillo's too gimpy, Beltran's too enigmatic, and Alou is too broken down. And no person--whether Willie, Jerry Manuel, Lou Pinella, or George Patton--are going to change that.
That said, I agree with you in so far as changing mgrs at the end of '07 would've made infinitely more sense than now. Then you could've conducted a full manager search. Made player moves in light of the type of club you were trying to establish. Now this is just change for change sake.
I would not be at all surprised if this turns into Joe Torre, part deux. Where the Mets break in a manager to let him have his greatest success somewhere else.
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