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In the New York Post, Mike Vaccaro calls last night, ‘A midnight massacre,’ which he describes as, ‘Disgraceful,’ and ‘Unspeakable,’ while asking, “Is this the best the Mets can do? Is this really what they are about? Can they really consider themselves a professional operation when they do the simplest task in sports, firing the manager, this wretchedly?”
According to WFAN’s morning hosts, who are broadcasting from Anaheim today, claim that their host station’s producers were pointing to Vaccaro’s article and mocking New York City when they arrived at the studio.
In Newsday, Jim Baumbach categorizes the way the Mets handled the situation as being, ‘cowardly.’
To relive the entire experience, from last year’s collapse, to last night’s ‘massacre,’ read Bill Rhoden in the New York Times.
According to Joel Sherman in the New York Post, “The Mets have their own network and a new stadium is being built beyond center field in the parking lot. The ownership of this team is aghast at what a losing season might mean to revenues in these two ventures. So the management of this team decided to sacrifice Willie Randolph and two coaches as much to higher Nielsen ratings and luxury suites as to the poor record they feared would jeopardize the gravy train.”
now all the comments I see here are: “oh what a terrible move, this wont help, this is a joke”. you were the same guys who wanted willie fired, I dont understand some people here.
it’s the silent majority that wanted him gone. We have nothing to complain about now. The 30% that wanted him to stay are upset now and posting.
I wanted Willie gone as much as anyone, and am not upset that they fired him. I am upset at the way they fired him… totally classless and makes the entire organization look like idiots. I think a lot of other fans feel the same way.
I don’t care what they do -they own the team but you can always treat people with respect and dignity and the greedy, classless Wilpons didn’t. It speaks volumes!!
It would have been quite simple to say: “We appreciate everything Willie has done for this organization but we’re looking to move in another direction and we’d like to start that process now.” What’s wrong with that. If you’re a CEO and you can’t figure that out you have to be an idiot.
I think it makes them look brilliant. See my post below as to why they intentionally did this last night to fight back with the media, who is today fighting back by making the Mets out to be so classless. The Mets win this one, don’t believe the hype.
(Fred + Jeff) x Omar = Idiots
Pretty simple Algebra.
(Fred + Jeff) x Omar = Idiots^n
where n = infinity
Totally classless performance. I love the Mets, but man I hope the WIlpons lose a ton of money on Citi Field and I hope Omar is fired — after the Wilpons string him out for a few weeks.
I couldn’t agree more with the opinion that the Wilpons did this more for money and ratings, etc, than they did for the wins. This is what baseball as a business is doing to the sport…making the bottom line more important than what most of us would consider the real bottom line to be – winning.
Clearly as long as people fill up that “stadium” and tune into SNY, the Wilpons will be happy with a .500 team, maybe even worse.
And quite frankly, it seems pretty obvious to me, that some of the players on this team feel like with their big salaries and contacts, they have already won in the game of life, why should they care about winning the game of baseball?
I have wanted him fired since well before the end of last season. I’ve never warmed up to him. However, he did not deserve to be fired this way. This made no sense and was classless. Why did they wait until he was in California? Why not do it before the road trip? It reflects very poorly on the Met organization and has absolutely nothing to do with Randolph.
he said black In May
HE RACED TO THE FINISH LINE.
So Willie, Rick what are you going to do now here in Anaheim?
“WE”RE GOING TO DISNEYLAND!”
did they say that?
This stuff is so overblown and dramatic I can’t take it. These are grown men who were not getting the job done and they got fired. They got paid a lot of money and they knew the pressure of working in New York for this team.
This was not a disgrace or an embarrassment! Everyone needs to get over it. I cannot come on this site for a few days until this stuff blows over.
bye.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from coming to this site, it’s that the ultimate thrill for a lot of people seems to be clamoring for the moral high ground as a perch from which to hail insults. That’s all these guys are doing. MAssacre, my arse. Underachieving team, step one is firing the manager. Then you see what lies beneath. My guess is that the Omar regime is exposed.
I absolutely agree with you. I am sick of the Willy pity party already. How many of you have been fired before Christmas or on a Friday…and without anything to show for it! I see much worse everyday. Maybe this could have been handled different, but the over reaction to the Mets organization is mind blowing. we’re a joke, we’re a disgrace, we are classless – geez. I refuse to rip apart my team like this – I’m turning the page and hoping for a turn around.
And the worst part about this are the people who are complaining that Willy was fired after 2 wins. We have won 2 in a row before and tanked. Should we wait for another collapse? We did this enough this season. I did like Willie and I probably blame Omar more, but this is my team and I’m not embarrased today. I’m just a fan who has no input in these things. Get over it!
Anyway…..Let go Mets!!
So Willie, Rick what are you going to do here in Anaheim now that you have no jobs to go to?
“WE’RE GOING TO DISNEYLAND!”
Wah wah wah. The media didn’t get to make a huge “breaking news” hooplah.
Willie got to go out after winning a few games. He should be thanking the Mets for that, ’cause if he was gone after The Collapse, nobody would have been so concerned for him having to, oh gosh, travel alllll the way out West.
This will be old news fast. And yet people are worried about raising their kids as Mets fans. Ha.
“This will be old news fast.”
Unfortunately it won’t, becuase as long as the Wilpons and their Merry Band of Idiots are in charge of the team they will keep making these kind of PR debacles. The ownership and front office of this team are a disgrace.
Quite possibly true. But then we having something new to whine about. :)
I COMPLETELY AGREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This will blow over, eventually, but it’s going to leave a dark mark on the franchise for some time to come, which is exactly what the Wilpons didn’t want with Citi Field on the horizon. Other teams pull crap like this all the time, but not in New York. Right now, it feels like the Mets are one bad Manager hire away from turning into the Knicks.
this will go away in a week
Does anyone really remember that the Yankees offered Torre less money than he was already making after 12 straight playoff appearances and made him fly all the way down to Florida to hear their lowball offer? That’s over.
not even remotely the same thing, Torre’s contract was up and he could not play high and mighty with the Yankee ownership no matter his successes, beyond that, the Yankees made a whole sale change, entirely new staff.
I didn’t say it was the same thing, but it was a classless act in NY which has since been forgotten.
no it’s not. now that wang is down as the season draws closer to the end and the yankees are out of it, you’ll hear it from the yankee fans then.
———Other teams pull crap like this all the time, but not in New York.——-
Billy Martin, you’re fired!
No wait, you’re rehired!
Fired!
The Yankees are owned by Steinbrenners, and you should never forget it.
What are you talking about. I heard that Isiah is going to be the next Mets manager.
It’s weird. For the last few weeks, all we’ve been hearing is “Just do it and get it over with!” So Omar just does it and gets it over with (admittedly, in a not-so-graceful manner), and now all we hear is how “cowardly” and “wretchedly” the whole thing was handled. I’m in no way defending how it was handled, but the reaction feels at least a little melodramatic to me. Everyone seems to want to have their cake and eat it, too.
I totally agree with you, some people are weird here. we just have to move on…
move on from what? The guy you wanted out, his right hand man and clone is taking over, the DoDo and Alomar are still there.
This aint a real change, it is half attempt at putting up new curtains.
Uh, Hello?? Maybe because they didn’t do it quickly to get it over with. Maybe b/c we’ve been hearing this since end of May and here it is 17 June and they FINALLY did it?
Now the media does seem to be taking it to far. I can understand mocking the mets for how befuddled they seem, but a midnight massacre? unspeakable? That’s to much.
Agree completely, Gina. They’re acting like Omar came out and said that they were firing Willie because he’s a child-molester.
They are upset that the Mets outsmarted them. The media screwed them over by exploiting a leak, and made everyone uncomfortable by questioning a man’s job status for weeks because they knew what was likely to happen.
So the Mets wait until they get to the West Coast, announce it right after the game, knowing it was too late on the East Coast for the newspaper deadline, and now they can’t print any articles until after tonight’s game is played, 30 hours later.
That Randolph was used as a pansy in the Mets little game with the media is of no matter to them, considering a major part of why they fired him was his SNY comments. He is getting paid a handsome sum of money to deal with this. That everyone feels so much empathy for him is great, but the media started the fight and the Mets waited an extra day to punch back. I’m sure they are giving Willie a free, chartered flight with his choice of movie.
Gotta disagree- no sports team will ever win a fight with the media. Not in todays world. Sorry.
Bottom line, this was the right move, but it’s only an opening act. I don’t think the team is going to get a whole lot better. The seeds of mediocrity have been sown, and Omar should ultimately be accountable, if only for keeping Willie past 2007.
I agree, unfortunately, just from what I’ve read on here about the Tony B & Jeff Wilpon situation, it seems like this is going to get much worse before it gets better. It seems like Omar and Willie might be the least of our worries as far the team is concerned.
Tony B and Omar, from what I’ve heard, are very close. I don’t think you can separate the two. But Bernazard should have been the first one out the door, yes.
According to Bill Madden on Mike and Mike this morning Tony B has become Jeff Wilpons go to guy behind Omar’s back and him and Omar are in somewhat of a power struggle now. It basically sounded like our front office had turned into something straight out of a soap opera. Although it makes sense when you consider all the reports coming out the last week about Tony B & Willie having major issues and Omar being Willie’s last line of defense. It makes it seem like Omar is now being used as a scapegoat by Tony B and Jeff Wilpon.
Of course considering the reaction the media is having today it could all be sensationalized but if it’s not then this franchise has serious problems.
Don’t know how much stock I put in that kind of info, but if true, wow — we are really in for it. People like Bernazard live to whisper in the ear of power and feast on scraps thrown down in return. Oh well. . . .
Anyway, you’re right. The media is in a frenzy, and they’ll seize on any rumor as evidence of “controversy” or “crisis.” Pathetic.
Now we can get on a nice lil’ roll!
Let’s go Mets!!!!!
Perhaps for those so surprised at the outrage being shown is that beyond all fathomable belief the press knew this is how the Mets intended to handle this, win or lose they knew it was happening last night away from New York where magically the Wilpons will not have to answer to a single thing, if there is true fate the Mets will nose dive and lose a dozen in a row because it will be fun to see Fred and Jeff hide from the cameras during the next homestand.
I don’t care that they fired Randolph nearly as much as they are the owners, and one of which clearly wanted Randolph out against the General Managers recommendation, he should at least face the music too, but he won’t. Dolt.
dominicanboy08 – I don’t think the posters on this board are upset with the firing of Randolph, they’re upset in the manner from which it was done. Why not fire Randolph and Co. after “the collapse”? Why not fire Randolph and Co. when they returned from the previous West Coast trip, when it would have been completely justified? Or, why not fire him prior to the Texas series? How about, why not just fire him BEFORE he and his team hopped on a plane for the West Coast? What is the point of flying Randolph and Co. out for one game, only to fire them in the middle of the night? THAT is what everyone is taking issue with.
We’ve just won 4 out of the last 6 games and our Organization chooses now do fire him? Where’s the logic in that? Either do it when it’s warranted or stand by the man in the dugout so he’s not dangling like a marionette puppet. And, I’m one of the people who wanted Randolph gone. Everyone I know, including Braves/Phillies fans all say it was an embarrassing move for our Organization.
I live in Atlanta now and just got personalized plates for my car “NY Metz”. I’m embarrassed to put them on my car today. Like the writer from DC said, I feel like a battered husband. I want to leave but I just can’t…
BUT…I do believe there’s still plenty of chance for us to make the playoffs. We really do have the team (on paper) to get us there. I just hate seeing this team, talented as it is, play below such expectations. We’re so much better than we currently are…THAT is where the frustration comes from.
on paper means jack. as of right now, the mets have done nothing to show that they are ready to compete with the phillies. they couldn’t even beat the padres.
unless alou comes back for the rest of the season, church comes back and hits the way he was prior to the second concussion and heilman/feliciano get a clue, there’s not much more to expect from this team.
I am just saying that some people here that I know wanted willie gone, now they are feeling sorry for him
According to SNY sources, the timing was planned specifically to take the emphasis away from doing it in NY, in the middle of the night, to lesson the impact and/or criticism.
Well that smells cowardly to me. If they wanted to do this, thought it was the right move, have every right to do it, why would they be so damn worried what any of us think?
And hey guys, don’t think this move is lessoning any impact whatsoever.
Whether you all agree firing Willie was the right move, I think most of us agree this circus act leading up to it was just completely ridiculous…….
lets go mets…we have to be positive now…I wonder if manuel will chance the lineup tonight
umm.. change it to what? manuel being the man doesn’t suddenly bring alou and church back and turn endy chavez and marlon anderson into all-stars.
I mean they order of the lineup, like batting beltran in the 2 hole
we have to be positive now? and you wonder if Manuel will change the lineup tonight? You do realize that Manuel sat next to Randolph advising him for the last three years?
I wonder if my dog will be an arabian stallion when I get home too….
Manuel, 54, is considered to have a Zen-like approach to the game, and finds inspiration from the teachings of Martin Luther King, Jr., Mahatma Gandi and Leo Tolstoy.
“A lot of what Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi talked about was truth, and in a roundabout way, that’s all the players want — truth,” Manuel told the New York Times in 2007.”
Seems to me they should have hired someone that could put a fire under their butts. Hiring Jerry is like hiring McCain when there are Obamas out there.
“…‘A midnight massacre,’ which he describes as, ‘Disgraceful,’ and ‘Unspeakable,’ while asking, “Is this the best the Mets can do? Is this really what they are about?…”
I didn’t know Tom Terrific was back with the Mets
Midnight Massacre: No
Tactless: Yes
It is what it is
I think they could have bought him a gilded private jet as a going-away present and the NY press still would have seized the opportunity to hear the loud and lofty sounds of their own voices, condemning the Mets organization.
They have no PR acumen. Every move is bush league. The Curch situation, not putting guys on the DL, bouncing guys up and down from the minors. Does anyone know what they are doing?
Throwing darts at a piece of paper on the wall.
Exactly. I could care less that they fired Willie, but how can any fan have faith in this front office, and the direction of the mets, if they can’t even handle such simple and common things properly.
I guess I am in the minority in that I don’t find the siuation “classless”.
No manager firing is ever pretty or pleasant. And so what that it was done on the road? Would everyone be fawing over the Wilpons as men of honor if they had canned him at Shea?
Flying to the West coast with the team is not a big deal. And if anything, it was nicer to WIllie (that, by definition, being “classy”)
Looks at it this way. He gets fired in private at 11:30 – 12:00 local time (NOTE: He was fired ~2 hours after the end of the game, not at 3 AM! California is still on pacific time, you know!)
Then, he can disappear if he wants to, and reppear when he feels like talking. In other words, he gets some privacy.
Or maybe Classy is canning him during the pregame press conference at Shea, when the media hoards are all there to pounce on him?
People need to get some perspective, especially the fans and press that have been screaming for his head. Well, you got your wish, but sorry they didn’t handle it the way you would have liked them to!
And frankly, the press is just ticked that they weren’t able to pounce on the carcass immediately. You don’t honestly think they care about how the team acted on this? They just want pictures, quotes and deadlines met!
Now WIllie, if he is smart, is probably already in the Caymans with his wife, relaxing and enjoying his 3.5million in severance pay!
I agree with a lot of what you said stickguy. Except for the last part.
He is probably in Dodgertown taking a job on Joe Torre’s bench.
Ditto. I personally felt Willie got off too easy for the last year plus. I’d have fired him after the first game of the DH on Father’s Day.
100% agree with you.
I guess I am in the minority in that I don’t find the siuation “classless”.
No manager firing is ever pretty or pleasant. And so what that it was done on the road? Would everyone be fawing over the Wilpns as men of honor if they had canned him at Shea?
Flying to the West coast with the team is not a big deal. And if anything, it was nicer to WIllie (that, by definition, being “classy”)
Looks at it this way. He gets fired in private at 11:30 – 12:00 local time (NOTE: He was fired ~2 hours after the end of the game, not at 3 AM! California is still on pacific time, you know!)
Then, he can disappear if he wants to, and reppear when he feels like talking. In other words, he gets some privacy.
Or maybe Classy is canning him during the pregame press conference at Shea, when the media hoards are all there to pounce on him?
People need to get some perspective, especially the fans and press that have been screaming for his head. Well, you got your wish, but sorry they didn’t handle it the way you would have liked them to!
And frankly, the press is just ticked that they weren’t able to pounce on the carcass immediately. You don’t honestly think they care about how the team acted on this? They just want pictures, quotes and deadlines met!
Now WIllie, if he is smart, is probably already in the Caymans with his wife, relaxing and enjoying his 3.5million in severance pay!
I agree. The bungling was in the build-up, not the final execution (no pun.)
I agree, we needed a change and this is a start
wouldn’t the off day on thursday have worked just as well, then?
Can you imagine the negative press for firing a manager who just won 4 straight? How classy is that?
well said Stick.. this had to happen sooner rather than later.. the press is playing their line because they had to stay up late and miss their deadlines..
this arrangement was much more humane for Willie.. he gets a few days in Cali to visit Disney Land and talk to the press on his terms..
The bungling was in the fact that the Wilpons forced Minaya to do it in a way in which they could sit on the sidelines scott free of any microphone.
It is not hard to sit and just say, we waited as long as we possibly could, this team has to make the playoffs in our estimation, and we no longer could believe that possible with Willie at the helm.
It is not that hard, but the fact is if you remember the after math of the Valentine firing, the aftermath of the Kazmir trade, the aftermath of the Howe firing, you realize these guys can’t keep to point when grilled, they go all over the place.
They did not fire the entire staff which was necessary, absolutely necessary, nor are they going to face the music, which is just spineless.
The music is now playing, loud and clear, and will play until they face it. There’s no escape from the media blast. Fred’s already spoken.
Now, as for the half-assed housecleaning, keeping Hojo and Manuel, I’m not so sure. Love to find out what the Marlins did in ‘03 on that score. Don’t think McKeon was in the organization.
Thank You Omar, Jeff and Fred for once again making this franchise the joke of the league. This is pathetic. They needed to fire Willie but they handled this very very very badly.
I really do agree with the sentiment that it was the will of ownership. Frankly, they have the right to do so, after giving Omar the keys to the Mets, and an open checkbook. I’m fairly certain that WIllie knew of this before leaving for LA, and stayed quiet to avoid the media rush. My reasoning for this is that the EXACT scenario was detailed in the press over the last few days, and the outcome discussed in terms of replacements is exactly what happened. I think they did him a favor by making the move in LA.
Did anyone hear Bill Madden on Mike & Mike this morning? He seemed to lay a lot of this at the feet of Tony Bernazard, who he referred to as “…the Godfather of the Latino players.” Madden wondered how Bernazard had so much power, as an assistant to the GM.
Sigh.
GET BERNAZARD AWAY FROM THIS TEAM!
It could all be BS, and he’d still deserve to be ousted, if only because of the hideous performance of the farm system.
I think the wilpons force minaya to do this, because omar just recently said he support randoplh and he will be his manager
Willie has about 3.5 million coming to him to lick his wounds with.
Are we horrified by him being fired in a manner that does not seem
courteous or that the Mets have been a BAD SHOW?
I think it’s the show not the sacrificial millionaire.
If the Mets looked like an inspired team ( or a healthy one)
we would not be playing soap opera here.
we know guys like Jeff Wilpon and Hammerin Hank Steinbrenner
are not cut from the same cloth as we are.
Hahah I don’t think anybody can compare to Hank….
Meanwhile, does anyone doubt that Manny Acta will be the Mets manager in 2009?
He has two years left on his Nationals contract. So they would have to get around that.
I dont think rick peterson should have been fired, he is a unique pitching coach
I agree, at least not in the middle of the season, I don’t see how it could possibly have a positive effect on our pitching staff. And right now our pitching staff is the best bet we have to compete this year & next.
All he needed was 10 minutes with Zambrano. He should be in those Just for Men commercials with Keith and Clyde. Peterson needs 10 minutes, but JFM needs 5.
On the flip side, what’s the possible negative effect?
Regression from Pelfrey and Maine. Mostly Pelfrey since he was just starting to come around and hasn’t established himself as a pitcher yet, and the new coach may have a completely new philosophy.
Peterson was – ultimately – not an Omar guy.. he was a holdover from the Art Howe days
Nieto was a Willie hire all the way. Omar wants his guys in there because its his job on the line next.. Although I dont think Fred and Jeff will fire Omar without and iron clad replacement lined up.. Fred and Jeff trust Omar.
Oh Lord, I just had a horrible thought:
“The New York Mets today dismissed embattled General Manager Omar Minaya, and replaced him with his long time assistant, Tony Bernazard.”
Gosh, those Nationals caps sure are nice. . . .
This team generally played hard for Willie. Besides maybe Feliciano who griped about bullpen roles last year, I have to think most of this team liked playing for him. Do you think they are actually going to be motivated to play now after seeing their manager get totally crapped on? I would not be motivated.
I’d love to play for him too. Unless my last name is Reyes or Milledge, if I screw up or not hustle, no big deal.
What makes you think they have been motivated all along? They slept walked through the last year of baseball while Willie was at the helm, he lost them totally. I’ll bet most players are glad he is gone truth be told.
Come on now. All the hoopla leading up to the firing, and now all the hoopla about the timing is all media driven. The media has been clamoring for Willie to get fired for weeks (or more), now taht he’s gone they need something else to get worked up about.
Lets all just be happy that Willie is gone, and now there is no excuse for these players. Its either perform or your out too.
In hindsight they should have cleaned house after the collapse . . .
this team needed a new voice and a new manager to rid the stench of September 07.
Too bad Wally Backman cant be brought in in some capacity .. maybe NOLA?
Willie had to be fired. They couldn’t keep it up much longer and a few wins didn’t and shouldn’t have saved his job. They probably should have fired him weeks ago but with everything going on, early this AM was the only option. What’s less classy: firing him on the west coast after a game or firing 3 men with families on Father’s Day?
neither. If I am as bad doing my job, it shouldn’t matter when I get fired as long as I get fired.
So those in the media that consider this an embarrassment are just pissed off that they did not get the scoop. What scoop is that? We all agree that this was not a surprise. Is it possible that the writers really believe what they are writing although many of you disagree with it? People on this site that find this embarrassing are whining?!!! Your definition of whining seems to be those that complain who I don’t agree with. You have a right to be ignorant and not quite understand what many are saying as much as we have a right to be embarrassed by the mishandling of this situation.
If the Wilpons really care about winning and making a splash in their new stadium, than they need to start hiring competent executives. Omar is just one in a long line of failed GMs that includes Phillips and Duquette.
If they keep Omar at the end of the season, then they are more clueless than any of the Mets managers who have been fired in recent years.
Omar is an average lackluster GM who will never bring the Mets a WS title. Never.
Well, I guess there’s only one thing left to do, win the whole damn thing!
The same sports writers who built and fueled the “Fire Willie” mantra are now outraged that he was fired? Come on. These guys need to get over themselves.
The Mets handled it poorly, but spare me the outrage from journalists who hastened Willie’s exit.
UGH!!!! What a bunch of two faced hypocrites!!!!! Every sports writer, TV commentor, radio personality and others should just shut up already. I’m sorry, but these people continued the whole “Willie is gonna get fired” even after Omar came out said that Willie was not gonna be fired (Memorial Day Weekend).
But they continued to push the issue. I even have doubts about these alleged “leaks” from these insiders. I think its all BS, made up to create a story. Did the Mets and Omar handle this poorly? Yeah sure, but firing a guy who is liked by many, if not by all, is never gonna be easy… there is no “right” way about. Being fired in L.A. gives Willie a chance to escape the media hoard and disappear for a bit. I would love to see either Omar or better yet Fred go up to the media and tell them off for once and for all.
i’m totally confused here so maybe someone can help me out… or maybe i can help myself. let me try! the media and other members of the “get willie” lynch mob have been demanding willie’s head on a stick since last fall. now that they all got what they wanted we get this phony indignation over “the way he was fired.” sounds like a clever way of wiping the blood off your hands. i think mr. vaccaro is more upset that it occurred in the dark of night because he couldn’t be the first to break the story more than he cares about how willie was treated. once again with the media, it’s all about them. what a joke! another reason why i don’t read papers or watch sportcenter or all day coverage on SNY.
OH THE HUMANITY…. WHAT INJUSTICE… let’s get Al Sharpton on the phone and get some protests going. This will not stand! ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Poor Williy had to fly out to Anaheim first class and then gets to take the rest of the year off enjoying roughly 3.5 million dollars. All the while, steering this team into the dumpster and the annals of history as the biggest choke in MLB history. I may need another handkercheif to get through the press conference. I just hope that he is still able to put food on his table for his starving children. F Willie. He should never have been given this season PERIOD. I have no hard feelings toward the team In fact, I’d rather they fired him between games on Sunday, Father’s Day, while his kids were being featured on the jumbotron. Good riddence. All of this “disgrace, classless” BS is ridiculous. Get off of the soapbox already and grow the F up!
The only disturbing fact here is that Willie was fired after a win. It makes the firing seem tacky. I believe this decision was made on Saturday, but the rain out messed up those plans. The Mets were not going to fire him on Father’s Day. Firing him on Father’s Day would be more of a PR disaster. It is not like Willie changed his plans to fly out to Anaheim, so firing him there is not like he changed plans to go out there. More importantly, Willie is being made out to be a sympathetic figure, which is to his benefit. Many of us can point out the failures and flaws in his managerial style both on and off the field. However, by becoming this tragic figure, some team will give him a shot under the guise that “he never got a fair shake.” Willie has won nothing. The media is upset because he was fired after their deadlines and they cannot create the splashy tabloid covers in a timely fashion. Additionally, only the beat reporters are with the team so the media is not getting the coverage they would have if this was done in New York.
Bottom line is that Willie won nothing in New York. He was given the tools and the opportunities. We have seen other managers win with less (2000 Mets, 2006 Cardinals, 2007 Rockies). The real issue today is not the way that Willie was fired; rather the issue is that Sandy Alomar is still the 3rd base coach today. Forget just the Schneider play from the doubleheader, but too many times this year has a runner been held at third. He should have been fired also, but if the wanted to keep him to appease Alou, Delgado, etc, then he should be reassigned to bench coach where his only responsibility is to bring the lineup card to the umpire.