Daily Archives: June 17, 2008
In a column for the Bergen Record, Bob Klapisch weighs in on the firing of Willie Randolph, writing that, despite the ‘classless’ way it was executed, the move was justified, and that Randolph’s days at Shea will be remembered as one, long, frustrating tease.’
For all of Randolph’s boasting about unity in his clubhouse, about bonding with his players and bestowing upon them his competitive nature, the Mets were still less than the sum of their
parts. They seemed lethargic, at times even indifferent as they kept blowing leads in a steady, maddening stream… Randolph never connected with any key player other than David Wright.
Klapisch also gives some insight into Randolph’s troubles with the Wilpons, from his comments a few weeks ago about race, to his recent comments about their lack of involvement in the clubhouse.
…look, most of the discussion today will be about how this firing went down, with the ax dangling for weeks and the 3 am mass emailing, and it’s definitely something that needs to be discussed, because it was done in an unprofessional manner…i still don’t know how they could have taken something that they hoped would breathe new life into this team, something that everyone was prepared for, and turned it from a potential positive to a giant vortex of even more negativity…
…but that’s the thing, regardless of how horribly this was handled, at the end of the day, i don’t think this was the wrong decision…
Tagged Willie Randolph |
Speaking to reporters a few moments ago outside the team hotel in Anaheim, while wearing a black hat and a black shirt, 
Willie Randolph told reporters that he is very disappointed that he will not be able to fulfill his dream of winning a championship for the Mets and for their fans, adding, “That’s what I’ve always been about.”
He said he’ll miss his players, and then he walked off leaving the hotel with no other words.
Rick Peterson then talked to reporters and, in standard fashion, used a ‘Mets are a House’ metaphor, equating himself to a hardwood floor that is being ripped out of a house in need of work, while Dan Warthen, his replacement, will be the Tuscan Tile of this new home.
…seriously…that’s what he said, and, still, six years later, i have no idea what he’s talking about…what a fascinating guy…i wish him well, and regret that i never had a chance to sit down and talk with him about cognitive linguistics…
For additional coverage, including guests ranging from Dan Graziano to David Lennon to Bill Madden to Jim Duquette, and others, tune in to 
who will run live coverage up through the team’s press conference at 5 pm EDT
…from what i understand, Jeff Wilpon, and other members of the front office, did not want Willie Randolph to return as the team’s manager following last season’s collapse…
…i believe he and others felt that randolph didn’t deserve to return, and that the entire organization would never turn the page while under the same leadership…also, while randolph is always given given credit for his work ethic and old school style, the sense i get – from people in and connected to the the organization – is that he did not work well with the media, was not aware of how important fan relations can be, he was stubborn with regards to how he could better relate to and motivate players, and he bristled with how upper-management involved itself in on-field decisions…in short, while people inside the organization may have valued his past success as a player and a coach, they have long questioned his ability to be a leader…
…at the end of last season, though, the team’s ownership accepted Omar Minaya’s recommendation to retain randolph, but made it quite clear that this was his decision…which may explain why this took so long to play out over the last week or so…my hunch is that there was a lot of talk in the last week between the front office and minaya on what to do, and how to handle this, all while omar tried to make his case to keep willie on…in the end, though, things got so out of hand, be it on purpose or accidental, that a move had to be made…
…all along, Fred Wilpon continued to believe in willie, mostly because omar did…plus, i sense fred is an honorable, loyal man, who wanted to see willie pull through this…
…however, i believe the final straw came when willie made his comments about race to the Bergen Record…from what i can gather, Fred Wilpon was far more upset with the racial remarks than he ever was with willie’s comments about SNY…in fact, some would argue that his comments about SNY make the network appear more impartial…nevertheless, fred prides himself on the work he has done to help bridge the racial divide in this country, and he speaks quite passionately about it…look no further than the Jackie Robinson Rotunda, which will be the cornerstone to the team’s new ball park, Citi Field…from what i understand, fred was very upset by willie’s comments, regardless of their intent…
…and so, without fred’s support, and omar’s back against the wall, and the team having gone 40–47 since September 1 of last season, the curtain closed on the Willie Randolph Era…
Tagged Willie Randolph |
In a recent appearance on this morning, Kevin Burkhardt had the following to say about the time line of last night’s events:
“After the game, everything was normal, Willie did his post-game presser like normal, the clubhouse was normal, and every one walked out like it was a normal day. So, we all kind of figured another day went and the Mets are playing well, they’ve played some spirited games, and maybe Willie is buying some time here.
“Turns out, two hours later, around 12:15 am PDT, Omar Minaya was in town, he did not go to the game, he was the hotel, and it turns out he was simply waiting back at the hotel like the Grim Reaper to give Willie the news. And when the guys got back he summoned them to a meeting in his room and told Willie Randolph, Rick Peterson and Tom Nieto that they were no longer employed by the New York Mets.”
According to Burkhardt, citing ‘some one who knew the details,’ the organization knew that this was going to happen on Monday morning, ‘but Willie and the coaching staff had no idea.’
By the way, will go live at 1 pm EDT today with coverage labeled, “The Mets in Transition,” featuring all sorts of guests, which will air up until the team’s press conference at 5 pm EDT.
To watch Burkhardt’s entire segment on SNY, click play below:
Mets C Brian Schneider will appear in his weekly spot with WFAN today at 12:45 pm EDT.
…Update…12:40 pm…
According to WFAN, Schnieder will not appear as a guest today.
Instead, he’ll be on air tomorrow.
…this makes sense…i mean, the Mets cannot have any one commenting in public before the actual press conference…that said, i was really hoping to hear what he had to say…
The Willie Randolph Era, in four minutes worth of video:
In a post to SNY.tv, Ted Berg looks beyond Willie Randolph to profile the team’s newest manager, Jerry Manuel, writing, among other things:
“Manuel emphasizes the leadoff walk, is willing to break from ‘the book,’ and has shown the ability to handle the peculiarities of the big-league ego. Other aspects sound painfully familiar: Manuel remains calm and collected in the dugout, prefers not to consider the percentages when running his ballclub and is compared to a Yogi for his patient approach to managing…But one word comes up over and over again to describe Manuel: fearless. Given the way the Willie Randolph era ended, Manuel’s lauded courage will be welcome in Queens.”
Earlier today on MetsBlog, I put up an e-mail from a White Sox fan describing Manuel’s time with the Chicago White Sox, which you can read here.
In his blog for ESPN.com, Buster Olney writes that the Mets needed someone to stand up scream, “NO,” prior to their decision to fire Willie Randolph following last night’s game.
According to Olney:
“In the past month, and especially in the past 96 hours, they needed GM Omar Minaya to bluntly say to everyone in the room that what they proposed to do was embarrassing for the organization, beneath the dignity of any professional business. They needed Minaya to insist they come up with something else. But instead, the circus played out fully, without the elephants or the tigers but with plenty of clowns lurking in the shadows. Minaya and his assistant, Tony Bernazard, walked around the lobby of the team hotel Monday “like grim reapers,” in the eyes of a staff member. And after weeks of leak-fed speculation and boardroom backstabbing and indecision, they did their bidding, fired manager Willie Randolph, pitching coach Rick Peterson and first-base coach Tom Nieto. Even the writers of “The Sopranos” could not have invented a more recklessly handled hit.”
…from the writers to the fans, i share the same sentiments…how can business have been done in such a manner…why do the Mets constantly act like a second -ate, clueless organization…look, i have never taken a liking to willie, but i respected him…i thought if he was ever going to be fired it should have been after last season…however, when my alarm went off this morning and i heard the news, i wanted to the throw up…we, as fans do not deserve to be humiliated like this…again and again…
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will go live at 1 pm EDT today with coverage labeled, “The Mets in Transition,” featuring all sorts of guests, which will air up until the team’s press conference at 5 pm EDT.
…i’m heading to the studio now, as i anticipate being on air a bit today…hopefully, i keep it together…i’m quite emotional…
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