Count Gibbons Out, And Backman’s Far From A Sure Thing

Good morning Mets fans!

Here are some quick updates for you on the search for a new manager.

According to Bob Klapisch of the Bergen Record via Twitter, John Gibbons sent a message through a third party to Sandy Alderson saying he is not a candidate for the Mets managerial position.

“They need someone more high-profile than me,” Gibbons said, according to Klapisch.

The former Blue Jays manager will stay put as the hitting coach for the Kansas City Royals for time being, but give Gibbons credit for being upfront and honest about it.

The way things look now, I think Clint Hurdle could be the favorite followed closely by Chip Hale. They will likely sit down with Don Wakamatsu too, but I can’t envision him getting the nod.

Wally Backman is already scheduled to be interviewed this week, but Jon Heyman says it would be a surprise if Alderson hires anyone without big league experience.

I totally agree, there’s too much at stake. Despite what Alderson said during his press conference on Friday, the one thing that resonated most that day was the word “probabilities”.

For someone who truly believes in increasing his probability to succeed, I just don’t see him going against a known quantity like Hurdle or Hale, or maybe another former big league manager who has yet to emerge as a candidate.

Incidentally, you could definitely count out Bobby Valentine who is definitely the front-runner for the Brewers managerial job. If they can agree on money, the job should be his.

On the coaching front, Rusty from The Real Dirty Mets asked Ken Davidoff of Newsday if Sandy Alderson or the next Mets manager would pick the team’s pitching coach. Davidoff replied that Dan Warthen is very likely to return.

I don’t think that would be such a terrible idea now despite my desire to see a clean sweep. After taking a longer and closer look at last season, I can’t really complain about the job he did with the pitching staff. Plus, Pelfrey and Dickey swear by him and are very much pulling for him to stay on.

Hope you all had a Happy Halloween!