In a post here, on Friday, MetsBlog’s Matthew Cerrone wrote, “Bring me Bobby Valentine… I want him to manage the Mets.”
Today, I am joining the campaign to bring Bobby Valentine back to Flushing.
In my mind, it is easy for management to say that injuries are the cause of the disappointment, but injuries are not the cause of the poor performances and the inexcusable mental and physical mistakes that the remaining Major League players have made over the course of the season.
I think it was easy to anticipate that wins were going to be scarcer when their key players went down early, but there is absolutely no excuse for the general lack of execution offensively and defensively, the poor base running, and the poor decision making and to me, that is a failure on management’s part to mentally and physically prepare players for the game. Even this group of Mets should have been better in the end and I feel that is a general failure at the heart of the organization from a philosophical level, and that is why I feel that a leadership change is necessary.
I do believe Valentine brings the right mix of baseball intellect and attitude to the table to begin to right the ship.
However, the Mets cannot make that one change and expect that a World Championship is coming.
I don’t feel that the changes that the Mets need to make start and stop with a new manager and a new general manager. The difference between today’s 90+ loss team and the 90+ loss team in 2004 to me is that there was still some sort of road map to success in place with David Wright and Jose Reyes developing as their future core with one major miscalculation in the trade of Scott Kazmir.
The team was really close to winning in 2006 and that playoff series against the Cardinals was brutally disappointing, but instead of continuing on the trail that was set by Omar after the 2004 season with “the new Mets”, he deviated and started to plug holes with the wrong players rather than continue to develop and refine the core and today, the Mets lack a road map or a vision in my mind which is evident with the problems with player development, team success in the minor leagues, and the clear lack of depth at the Major League level or coming to the Major League level.
I don’t believe that changing the dimensions at Citi Field or signing Matt Holliday or bringing in Carlos Zambrano or Roy Halladay will bring this team overall success. Look back to 2002 when the Mets brought in aging superstars like Tom Glavine, Jeromy Burnitz, and Mo Vaughn. At that time, there was no plan other than to “fix what they didn’t have the year before” and the team failed. I think that the organization in general, with the players they have acquired in the last couple of winters, have become their own Monday Morning Quarterback’s again and they only seem to address needs that were weak the prior season, losing sight of everything else.
I am not saying that bringing in Johan Santana and Francisco Rodriguez were bad moves – in fact I think they were the best moves Minaya could have made to address the needs they fulfill. But he failed to recognize other problems year over year and did not look at his team as a whole and try to improve every aspect of it, all the way down to Single-A Brooklyn.
I believe that ownership needs to acknowledge the failure and remember past failures at the organizational level and begin a complete rebuild as a result. They must begin to examine their tactics in talent evaluation, and more specifically looking at talent and developing talent in a way for their players to be successful at Citi Field. From a free agent standpoint, they should bring in talent from the outside that would benefit from the dimensions at Citi Field, rather than just players with good statistics. The fix is not one year away, but a proper plan will bring success back at all levels sooner rather than later.
If not now with Towers, Riccardi, and Valentine available then when?
That said, Valentine is a quick fix type and will wear out his welcome even faster the second time around. But if he can motivate this slightly above mediocre group to overachieve for a couple years it will be well worth it.
RICCIARDI IS TERRIBLE
i like towers and valentine
Ricco would likely accept giving Valentine a little control over organizational decisions, which is all it would take to bring him back. No ownership, because we need to be able to fire him in five years or so.
Wilpons could promote Ricco to President of Operations, which puts him above Minaya but keeps Minaya in place, so he can scout and do what he does best. Ricco is the figure head who conducts press conferences and makes final decisions. It’s a slap in the face to Minaya, but his other option is the door, or co-co manager at Scranton’s Dundler Mifflin.
Anyway, this is what I wanted months ago, but decided with everyone else that Manuel deserved another year. The way the team has played the last month or so changed my mind again, and I want Bobby V in — and Minaya should not be allowed to oversee a third manager in three years, so either Ricco promoted over him or goodbye Omar.
In the scenario you paint for the front office, nothing changes except perhaps a competent press conference which is a who cares game to me.
Not surprisingly I am witnessing the Met fans who were coming of age when Bobby Valentine was last around pine for a return to this mythical age of glory in which the Mets collapsed twice in September, never managed to over take the Braves, and an a semi twist of irony lost a World Series to the Yankees highlighted by “inexcusable mental and physical mistakes”
Why do I find this funny. Because I already lived through this once and was part of a poorly thought out and unimaginative collective of folks who thought as the mid-1990s approached, just brink back Davey Johnson and all will be well.
Recycling is for bottles and cans, not managers and GMs.
The Mets need to be more creative then to pick up their past and others discarded memories.
It is high time that Ken Oberkfell, a player who worked under the likes of Whitey Herzong and Bobby Cox who has had managerial experience and success in the Mets system be given the opportunity.
As far as GM. I say find someone who has a future, not a past.
This canonization of Bobby V puzzles me as well. If he was such a great manager, how come he could only find another managerial job in Japan? Even Grady Little got a job with the Dodgers after blowing the 2003 ALCS.
I think you hit the nail on the head with your observation that it is the younger generation of Mets fans who are clamoring the loudest for Bobby V.
Hey, Davey’s sittin’ by the phone down in Winter Park!
Now that would be an butt kickin’ good time!
I am in the generation coming of age during Valentine’s “glory days” but I am against him coming back. Nostalgia has a funny effect on people. We had just as many disappointing teams under Bobby V as we did successful ones. If the Mets are going to pay to bring in a name manager get Tony La Russa a proven winner who’s team is always prepared, and fundamentally sound and let Bobby V go somewhere else to wear out his welcome (again).
You are all wasting your time. There will be no major changes to the front office at the end of the year nor the manager position. The following year might be different though. Your lord and saviour Bobby V might not even last that long at ESPN because he is talking to the Marlins right now.
What dose a manager do? His effects are not seen on the field, but, rather behind the scenes and in the club house. That being said, I feel that Jerry has NOT been the man for this job. I think that of the people out there Bobby V, is the best fit for the job right now, He had one superstar, Mike Piazza, ad a bunch of supporting players, That is what we need no, a real superstar HOF’r that can change the game with one swing of the bat, A guy that pitchers dint want to pitch to. We have all the supporting players we need, we dont have a Keith or Mike on this team. Find that guy and we will win.
Again, Bobby had more than Mike Piazza to work with.
John Olerud, Robin Ventura and Edgardo Alfonzo were all at the peak of their careers.
Rey Ordonez provided some outstanding defense at SS
Al Leiter and Mike Hampton were true #1 and #2 starters
It wasn’t just Benny Agbayani, Jay Payton and Timo Perez (who really only started after game 1 of the 2000 NLDS).
I’m baffled as to how you think the outlook coming off of 2004 was BETTER than now. Huh???
Wright and Reyes were just prospects then, now they are established major leaguers, Reyes physical condition nonwithstanding.
But most importantly the biggest difference between a 90-loss team in 2004 and a 90-loss team in 2009 is that 2003 was also a 90+ loss team, while 2008 was an 89-win team. Oh, and their finish in 2004 had nothing to do with 22 players on the DL and adjusting to a new stadium.
Not saying our outlook at this point is exactly rosy, but making a negative parallel to 2004 is a little ridiculous…there was no road map in 2004, just 2 prospects with a potential and an otherwise horrible roster.
hiring bobby again would be like remarrying your ex…a triumph of nostalgia over good judgment.
I love Bobby V, but mental mistakes and poor base running decisions were a hallmark of his Mets teams. This was very apparent in the world series, when the Yankees seemed to execute all of the little things properly, while the Mets could not get out of their own way. I would like to see Valentine back with the Mets, but let’s not fool ourselves into thinking that he will be the answer to all of our problems. All of the coaching in the world isnt going to make Angel Pagan any smarter, or Murphy’s defensive instincts any better. We need players who already do all of the little things. We also need to develop these types of players better in the minors.