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Willie Randolph, on yesterday’s loss, and sweep, against the Phillies, talking to reporters after the game…
“It was a bad time to play bad baseball, especially with the Phillies behind us. We were there about two weeks ago and we responded, so now we’ll have to respond again – bottom line. Everyone thinks it’s easy to win divisions, and stuff, but we know it’s not. You know, last time we went through this we responded well, so this is just another challenge for us to respond again. And, we will.”
Asked if he talked with his team after the loss, Randolph told reporters that he did not, adding, “There’s no reason to.”
…i guess, but, even if he did talk to them, he isn’t going to tell you…willie would see that type of honestly as a sign of weakness…so, don’t assume anything from his quotes, at least that’s becoming my motto…
…the thing is, from what i can gather, there was little emotion in the clubhouse after yesterday’s loss…this will bother some fans…but, not me…because i understand that this team is what it is…willie’s stamp is on them…like it or not…he projects a level-headed, even-keel, focused, one-game-at-a-time attitude, and the team reflects it back…stop wishing for the Mets to be a football team, because a) they don’t wear pads or play just 16 games, and b) that’s not their style…
…the problem is that their style, which is also their biggest strength, may actually be their biggest weakness…
…as i see it, willie’s lack of urgency, lack of aggression, lack of signaling any one game out over another has two net effects…the first, which is a good thing, is that the team rebounds well, and outside of one bad stretch in july, it never really goes on a long prolonged losing streak, which will help them weather a lot of storms and always be in great position at the end of a season…the second effect, though, which is bad, is that no one game becomes more important than another, and on a day like yesterday, or in October, that is not the case…yesterday was important…every game in October will be important…and i fear that when the bell rings, and every pitch is the most meaningful pitch of the season, the Mets overall team will still be even-keel, level-headed, sensible and not very urgent, which will not go well…
…so, i’d love for willie to push these guys harder, assuming he isn’t already…i mean, i’m not by his side all day, so i don’t know what really happens…but, i can only assume he isn’t…however, if he did, if he did go crazy and fire them up, maybe today they’d feel like they just blew the season and they might respond negatively and go in the tank because of the pressure…who knows…what i do know is that what he does has put this team four losses up with 14 games left…what i fear is that this same strategy will get them swept in October…
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If you are assuming they will win the division, how is this different from last year? Everyone was worried they couldn’t flip the switch come the post season and what happened? They swept a good Dodgers club. Of course this only holds if you assume they will hold onto a 3.5 game lead until then. These guys know how to flip the playoff switch.
All that said, I was at yesterday’s game and was disgusted. The worst part is I caught a foul ball and it will always be a reminder of a 6 error choke job!!
I’m confident we’ll hang on to the division. We have 13 games with the Nats and Fish. Not that they’ll roll over… It should get us there.
I am now nervous if we must face Phily in the post season. I won’t say they own us, but there is definitely some bad karma happening.
How many times can yo get lucky? When does your luck run out? I dont want to depend on other teams to help us win. We should have done the job ourselves. All we had to do was win 1 game and we couldnt do it. Now we need to win against lesser teams and hope the phillies loose a few times. THAT STINKS. I hope they dont take the WC.
Well, for what it’s worth, I was not worried about switch-flipping last season. It never crossed my mind.
This season it does. A lot.
We went from worse series of the year, to our best stretch of the year to our worst series of the year. How? Obviously a switch was turned on, but who turned it off? Good thing we hit the road! We need a break
Here’s the problem though…
There are 14 games left… It’s time to treat it like the sense of urgency NFL-season… The NY Giants have 14 games left and their season is essentially over…
It’s time for the Mets to get going… If they can’t beat Philly, they are surely not going to beat San Diego/LA/Arizona 3 weeks from now…
That’s not true. Just because they can’t beat Philly doesn’t mean a thing. Just look at it the other way. The Phillies have beaten the team with the best record in the NL 8 straight times, but can’t beat the team with the worst record consistently (Marlins). Sometimes, baseball is just unexplainable.
why would the mets treat the rest of the season with a sense of urgency? they have the best record and will cruise into the playoffs. the four teams you named may or may not make it into the post-season. they have urgency.
the mets have the 2nd best record against the current playoff teams according to jayson stark of espn. they beat the good teams. they also finish the season with 7 against the nationals, 6 against the marlins, 1 against the cardinals. sorry…i’m not worried.
let’s not forget that entering the season the mets had the toughest schedule in baseball playing all of last year’s playoff teams. now, they end with the lower-level teams with the biggest lead in the nl. they did their job.
stop crying and try to enjoy being in 1st place. this run may not happen again for awhile.
What worries me is that the next 3 games will feature mediocre pitchers (Matt Chico, Tim Redding, Mike Bascik). You know how that usually goes…
We make them look like Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson and Cy Young….
..and we have the likes of Brian Lawrence starting again. And then what, Pelfrey ??? who in my mind, has not truly proven he is a changed man with his 2-7 record and awful bull pen outings.
I am still going to say we will clinch but we lost the opportunity this weekend to breeze through to it.
As for Willie, I actually like his style. I like what probably frustrates most others here – his cool calm style. Yeah, behind closed doors I hope he is really giving a “schooling” to some of the players who made dumb decisions this weekend , but in public, I like his “never let ‘em see you sweat” demeanor. I think that would get under opposing teams skin more than a raving screaming lunatic on the field. Why show your hand or that you think your team is unraveling ? But I do understand otheres here being frustrated with Willie’s non-aggresive nature.
Forget about “stop wishing for the Mets to be a football team”.
How about wishing that the Mets start acting like professionals who take pride in what they do and hate being embarrassed repeatedly???
I’ve said it before, this team celebrated way too hard last year after only clinching the division. Running around the field with cigars and champaign? Are you kidding me?
They didn’t accomplish anything at that point and fell short of the WS. Not making the WS should have been all the motivation they needed this season. But apparently they have gotten quite full of themselves.
As for Willie, I completely agree with Matt. All games ARE important. But some are more important than others.
I think anyone with a shred with honesty in their brain would agree that Willie is not exactly the sharpest manager in baseball. Why the F did he bring Mota into the game yesterday in that situation? Yes, the Mets slopped their way to 6 errors. But there was no reason at all for Mota to be in that game at that moment. Baffling and inexcusable move #237 for the season by Willie Randolph.
So if Willie cannot and will not motivate his team in key situations (like this series), why is he the manager? Willie is of little value to this franchise as I see it.
“the second effect, though, which is bad, is that no one game becomes more important than another, and on a day like yesterday, or in October, that is not the case…yesterday was important…every game in October will be important…and i fear that when the bell rings, and every pitch is the most meaningful pitch of the season, the Mets overall team will still be even-keel, level-headed, sensible and not very urgent, which will not go well…”
Matt, amen. This is what has bothered me for months. I know the Mets will be in the play-offs, but that won’t satisfy me – I want them to win the World Series. I can’t bear to sit at Shea this October and watch another team celebrate on our field.
At what point is there are reason to talk to them? If they lose tonight (and we have Brian Lawrence going), then this is going to get ugly. I think then they will start to get tight. I don’t care what the Phillies do, I think this division is ours, but I want to “win” it, not back into it because the Phillies just love to tease their fans.
Ya know what? Last year they didnt have to flip the switch until they got into the playoffs and when the time came, they didnt. The dodgers rolled over last year and bumbled that entire series.
The philly series made me sick and I was down in philly for the series finale where they blew the 8-5 lead.
This was a crucial series but not MUST win. The nats series…this first game…is a MUST WIN. The Mets proved they can flip the switch after the last philly debacle. I think they can do it again. Yes…we al think the phils will lose 2 out of 3 this next series. I’m not so sure. I think we need to turn it up this series. And say what you want about who we are playing . The nats will play hard and Handley and the fish want their respect too. It aint so easy. But…it could be a blessing in disguise. If they get into the playoffs, they will get to the WS. Put that in ink.
You can also put in ink that Brian Lawrence will go 4 innings giving up 5 runs on 7 hits tonight.
I think this is what worries me – we should be coming out of the box tonite throwing attitude against the next teams we face after the bruising we took, but with Lawrence??? I am not a huge Pelfrey fan at all but would have prefered he start the series tonite and where the Hell is Humber? Surely any of these two are better than Lawrence, no?
I agree that tonight is probably a must win. If they lose, and the Phils win, a 2.5 game lead with 13 to go is way too close for comfort.
that, and it will give them the opportunity to start getting nervous, and maybe panicking a bit (IOW, the old collar could get a bit tight, and they start pressing).
I’m actually not worried about them turning the intensity up in the playoffs. I am more worried about them hanging on to get there!
The whole even keep business is more about the regular season. If you want to blame the Yankee influence on Willie, I always thought the “Yankee way” during their good years (late 90’s) was more about the post season being the real season. The regular season was just something to go through to get there!
Still, I am confused by the lawrence start. Humber is here, and plenty rested. He is also the future, and pitched better at AAA overall. Lawrence has proven to not be a ML pitcher.
So, does Willie consider this a throw away game? Does he honestly think Lawrence has a better chance to win, or keep them in the game? Will he at least have a quick hook? Who the hell knows, but I am almost afraid to watch!
FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH FIRE WILLIE RANDOLPH
And hire who?
Joe Girrardi!
LMAO…
you mean the joe girardi who was fired after winning manager of the year for a losing team loaded with young talent. yeah the wilpons want a manager who doesn’t know enough to respect his owner.
not to mention the marlins folded in september under girardi. he is the worst fit for a veteran team. he treats the players like kids with a bunch of rules.
i’ll take the only manager in mlb who has kept his team in first in 06 and 07.
not leyland, not torre, not pinella, not scioscia. only willie!
Yeah, lets hire someone with competitive fire! Someone who wants to win bad and pulls out all the stops to do so! Someone who tips off opposing pitchers how to beat their team!
In case you forgot:
In a recent interview with the Philadelphia Daily News, Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jon Lieber revealed that Girardi contacted him during the season to tell the pitcher that some of the Marlins players had observed that Lieber’s pitches were “flat.” The conversation occurred shortly after a July 31 Marlins win in which their batters pummeled Lieber. Lieber, old pro that he is, knew what Girardi’s revelation meant.
The news of Girardi’s friendly tip apparently caused some consternation among the Marlins, and with good reason. At the time the Marlins field leader decided to give his help to an opposition pitcher, the two teams were neck-and-neck in a battle for the Wild Card. Why was Joe Girardi assisting “the enemy?”
Link:
http://www.ethicsscoreboard.com/list/girardi.html
If the Mets hire Girardi maybe he’ll tip off some Yankees on how to beat the Mets. I guess that’s what you want?
Someone who understands what a squeeze play is, at a minimum. Anytime, Willie. Really. Anytime now.
10-4 finish. That’s should be their target. Forget about what Philly does. Mets need to take control of their destiny here. I’ll be at RFK today and I hope they come out playing sharp, crisp ball.
As for me, maybe I’m just an old time fan who remembers 1975-1983 all too well, but you give me two years straight of playoff baseball, the very best experience in all of sports when your team is in it, and I’ll be more than happy. Once you get in, it’s a crapshoot. I think that holds especially true this year as I don’t see any team so significantly better than the other that they can be seen as a favorite.
If we can take 5-6 in this stretch against the Nats and Marlins, we’ll have put ourselves in good position. Unfortunately, I think this head-to-head with the Phils has cost DWright his shot at MVP, as those kinds of matchups are often what sportswiters look for as an excuse to vote one way or the other.
Then Jimmy Rollins should be a unanimous choice.
Unfortuantely, I think that’s what you’re going to see. But in the end, I’ll take the Division, and I know DWright feels the same.
Let’s just hope the Mets play the next 14 games like they are “meaningful.” Frankly, I’ve had enough excitment in the Division race. Time to save the cardiac moments for October.
Aren’t we getting a bit ahead of ourselves in presuming the Phils will win the WC???
Why? Howard won it last year without the Phils making it in. Same thing could happen here. Indeed, the Phils bad pitching will rightly get called out for keeping them down. The leader of the Phils offense that kept this team in contention despite the horrible pitching will likely get even more consideration, playoffs or no.
I disagree on Brian Lawrence’s performance tonite – he” go 4 and a third, give up 4 runs on 8 hits.
There is one simple reason why there is no emotion in this clubhouse: It is becoming apparent that Willie’s handling of his bullpen takes away any chance this team has to beat good teams.
The choice of Mota yesterday following Beltran’s dramatic homer was beyond disengenuous. And trying to sneak a second inning out of Felicano Saturday killed that game too.
You don’t think every man on that roster is sick and fed up of seeing rat-faced Mota come in with no clue what to do with himself? You think its an accident that sure-handed Castillo booted a ball after being lulled to sleep during a predictable leadoff walk by Mota? Enough Mota already. Seriously…wtf is wrong with these people? How much more do you need to see. He has been as consistently awful as any Mets pitcher in franchise history. I’m speechless on this topic – I really am.
“It is becoming apparent that Willie’s handling of his bullpen takes away any chance this team has to beat good teams.”
the mets have the 2nd best record in baseball against the current playoff teams according to jayson stark of espn. those are the good teams.
here is the article link. let me know if i have to explain it to you:
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=stark_jayson&id=3016985
If the phillies make the playoffs instead of SD do the Mets still have the second best record agaisnt playoff teams?
What has your nice guy attitude towards Umpires given us? What has your phony attitude toward the media and us fans done to our opinion of you? Your a fake and a phony and we are tired of it. Be real Willie Randolph. Stop marching out to your little throne after the games and giving us line of bull. You sit there and downplay every single situation and you act like you have no cares in the world. Everyone knows your angry, we know your tired of watching your bullpen crumble in every tight spot. We are with you man…. We are mad as hell too and we might understand you a bit more if you stopped pretending like everything is alright. You don’t have to keep up this false composure on this side of town. In fact that is the worst thing you could ever do. BE REAL dude. We have no patience with someone who acts like this. I just hope to god that you don’t act like such a puss in that clubhouse.
why do some comments post right away and others there is a delay?
I’m sorry but I don’t buy the “no emotion…this isn’t football” argument. Emotion in ALL sports is extremely important esp. in how it is channeled. If you feel it and try to suppress it you get nervousness and typically fail to act. If you let it control your actions you tend to act rashly. If you feel it, understand the circumstances, and channel it into focus you typically get great performances. This is the “zone” often talked about by great players like Jordan.
In a sport like football, emotion is typically easier to deal with because you can channel it into physical action like running, hitting, etc. In baseball, I would argue, it is even more important to feel and channel emotion into focus on performance. The beauty of the sport is that you cannot strong arm your performance or else you tighten up. I believe this is why there are great post season players/performances and why there are poor ones and with pretty stunning consistency.
That said, I do not think Willie should be ripping apart the clubhouse. However, if he’s not talking to the team at this point to focus them and inspiring them that is a deficiency. Yes, the players know how they screwed up yesterday and these are important games. However, some players (esp. young ones) might not know how to re-focus to get the job done.
And I have to agree with some others here. I’m tired of this BS with the media saying the same crap. No, he doesn’t have an obligation to wear his emotions on his sleeves for the fans but he can indicate he’s feeling something and doing something. If he’s not or not expressing it he’s doing the players a disservice as some might just be struggling due to the pressure.
Some of these comments are right on about willie. He needs to be fired after the season and then the mets can do an appropriate, lengthy search for the next manager. They need to get someone totally opposite of willie. His lack of intensity and piss poor in game management are embarrassing. I think most mets fans have seen enough of willie and he has pissed off most fans at one time or another. His phony in control post games are bs….never shows any emotion when his team gets embaraassed by the phils a second time. His even keel approach enables the players to dog it when they feel like it sine no game is important….this will be their downfall in the playoffs. Hopefully we will see the last of willie and I hope the wilpons are prepared to eat his contract…
This has been a very odd season, no doubt Matt. I am all about vindication this year, too. I have been HOPING the Cardinals made the playoffs, so we could take them out. Now, I hope the Phillies win the Wild Card so we can match-up one more time in the NLCS to take our pride back.
We’ve been in 1st almost ALL season, does not feelt hat way though. Ups…downs….Ups….Good thing Wllie Randolph has the common sense to send our Ace to the mound tonight….Brian Lawrence.
Just like he was smart enough to put Mota in the 6th after a dramatic comeback to make it 5-5. Stupid Willie, I loathe him.
Willie Randolph and Art Howe are virtually the same manager, except Willie was given the talent, Howe was given the shaft.
Also, I am sick of Willie with the media “I know my guys”…NEWS FLASH TO WILLIE…3 Million Mets fans KNOW Mota is going to blow big games….you don’t know this yet. Oh, oh, but your manager, and can not be second guessed, sorry SIR.