However, fairness is irrelevant in sports. A manager’s job security always becomes an issue when he has lame duck contractual status and his team has lost six straight games.Losing streaks get everybody edgy, with questions directed to management, in this case, GM Sandy Alderson, who was asked the inevitable by The New York Post.

“That’s not something that has entered my mind or any mind within the organization,’’ Alderson said. “Has it entered the minds of others in the media or what have you? Yes.’’

Well, of course it has. It’s been on the back burner since pitchers-and-catchers in February. And, I don’t think for a second it hasn’t crossed Alderson’s mind, either.

Walter Alston used to work on one-year contracts, but he was Walter Alston and his Dodgers teams were perennial winners. They were an organization that believed in consistency. They were the exception to the rule.

By contrast, Collins manages the Mets, a franchise that last went to the World Series in 2000. Thirteen years later, and they are on their fifth manager. That’s not even three years each, and that’s no stability. While this trend doesn’t suggest good things for Collins, it might work in his favor for at least this summer. If the Mets aren’t going anywhere, there’s no reason to make a change and have owner Fred Wilpon pay two managers.

Bobby Valentine managed that World Series team, but frequently clashed with then GM Steve Phillips – one of four since 2000 – and with his personality wore out his welcome. Art Howe was the polar opposite of Valentine, and that didn’t work, either. I thought Willie Randolph had a chance, but he was hamstrung from the beginning when he wasn’t given full reign to hire his coaches and had to deal with clubhouse spyTony Bernazard, who usurped his authority. Jerry Manuel was overmatched, but that’s what you get when you sack a manager after midnight.

Now there’s Collins, who was brought in by Alderson to clean up the mess. However, Alderson doesn’t have free economic authority to spend, and consequently Collins doesn’t have the pieces. He’s basically a custodian; here to keep things clean.

The pieces he’s been given don’t fit, but here’s the rub, Collins is judged on what he does with those pieces, much like on those cooking shows where the contestants have to make something out of a basket of random ingredients.

“He came into the season without a contract for next year and may not have one for next year through this season,’’ said Alderson, meaning don’t expect an in-season extension. “But as I’ve told him and said before: This isn’t just about wins and losses. It’s about how we approach the game and fully taking into account what he has to work with.

“We talk from time to time and the [job status] subject comes up. I’m not trying to avoid the topic. It’s status quo. You go through a tough week and people like to immediately jump to conclusions and start discussing a doomsday scenario. A good first week isn’t necessarily any more of an indication than a bad fourth week.’’

So, there you have it: Collins is the care taker for 2013.

Alderson wants to know more if his roster can work and play nice with each other rather than if it has any talent. He’s telling us – again – that it doesn’t matter if you win or lose, but how you play the game.

Unfortunately, they keep score and results do matter. Major League Baseball isn’t new wave, liberal physical education where everybody gets a prize for showing up.

Winning does matter on this level. Teams pay big money to get players capable of winning and fans pay big money to watch those players.

If the losing continues, attendance will eventually drop as it has every year since Citi Field opened. But, the players will get their money. And, Collins could be out of a job. Not fair, but that’s how they play the game. It is also something Alderson needs to think about concerning his own job status.

Thoughts from Joe D.

While I don’t think any manager can get more out of this team than Terry Collins is — and that is mostly because he’s been dealt a rotten hand by GM Sandy Alderson — I see too many flaws in Collins for me to defend him.

As an in-game strategist I disagree with more than half of the decisions he makes. No manager is perfect, but Collins makes too many bad decisions, many of which have negatively impacted the results of a game.

I thought it was a bad idea to let Collins play this season out as a lame-duck manager. Any of my regular readers know that. I wasn’t worried as much about his status becoming a distraction as much as I was concerned over the impact it would have on Collins as the manager and his decision-making process.

He’s making far too many bad decisions now than at any other time since taking over for Jerry Manuel. I think it’s a result of managing with a monkey on your back or your boss constantly hovering over your shoulder.

I don’t believe Sandy Alderson wants Terry back and that’s fine by me. But it should have been delineated that way before the season began. They could have handled it differently and just announce that this would be Terry’s last season as manager before assuming a new role in the front office. That would have made more sense, avoided all the constant questions, and let Tery and the players breathe a little easier throughout the season.

I got the sense from something David Wright said last week, that he and the team need to perform well because they like Terry and don’t want to let him down. ERRRRRRGGGHHHH. Wrong answer.

Collins has had to manage a team that is unworthy of being called a big market team and attendance has never been worse than this recent three-year run. As bad as the results have been, I doubt Gil Hodges or Davey Johnson could have done better with the same bad outfield, bullpen and backend of the rotation. This isn’t Terry’s mess, it’s Sandy’s mess – and he should be the one responsible for any of the bad results as well as cleaning it up.

Most everything about the Mets these days is about the future. From Matt Harvey, to extending David Wright, to the trade of R.A. Dickey and protecting Zack Wheeler, we’re talking about 2014 and beyond.

Sure, it would be great to compete now, but 2013 is mostly for establishing the foundation. It is the development of Harvey and Jon Niese; giving Wheeler major league experience – while avoiding free agency for a year – and hope Ike Davis and Lucas Duda improve their offensive efficiency while still producing power.

This trend should extend to the bullpen, where Bobby Parnell, despite limited save opportunities, has performed in the role that should hopefully define his career.Manager Terry Collins told Parnell at the beginning of spring training he would be the closer if Frank Francisco were not ready. Collins should pull Parnell aside tomorrow at Citi Field – today is an off-day – and tell him he’ll have the job when Francisco returns.

Parnell spit the bit on previous chances, but is grasping the brass ring now. And, tightly. Parnell struck out two Washington Nationals in a perfect ninth Sunday to earn his second save of the season. Parnell is following up last year’s strong second half with a blistering start.

He has a strong traditional statistic in a 1.35 ERA – mostly overrated for relievers – with an even stronger new wave stat of a 0.45 WHIP.  He’s given up three hits and a run in 6.2 innings. He’s been virtually untouchable.

More to the point, he’s pitching the way the way the Mets always hoped.

Collins and GM Sandy Alderson saw that coming at the end of 2012, when with Francisco on the disabled list, Parnell went 3-1 with a 0.96 ERA and paltry .196 opponent’s batting average in 17 appearances.

The Mets might feel obligated to return Francisco to the closer role based on his $6.5-million salary, but they need to resist that temptation. It is not an obligation to return Francisco to the closer role, especially because it is anticipated he will not be re-signed this winter.

If Francisco were in the Mets’ future plans, I might think differently. Parnell, however, is expected to be here next season and beyond. The Mets – namely Jerry Manuel – have jerked around Parnell to the point of messing with his confidence. They must not do it again by changing his role.

Perhaps this is nothing more than a hot stretch for Parnell; perhaps it is the beginning of something special. We need the time to see.

We don’t know to what degree Parnell will develop. What we do know is Francisco will not be here next year and Parnell will. Parnell must stay in the closer role, and remain there in good times and in bad.

That’s the way to build for the future, which is now for Parnell.

Thoughts from Joe D.

I don’t think this will be an issue when the Mets activate Frank Francisco. Having the highest paid pitcher on your active roster doing mopup duty isn’t exactly an ideal situation. But that’s exactly the way the Mets should handle Francisco until he can work his way back into a more significant role.

I thought that Francisco two-year deal was an awful signing to begin with, but now that’s past and his $6.5 million is just something we’ll need to deal with and if it means ultimately eating it – so be it.

That said, I don’t think the money situation will keep Terry Collins or Sandy Alderson from doing what is best for the team.

I would be absolutely shocked if Parnell were to go back to a setup role when Francisco returns. I just don’t see that happening.

The impression is the tail is wagging the dog when it comes to Mets’ starters, and this isn’t new. Pitchers tend to be divas by nature, but it has gone to another level with the Mets.

Clearly, free-agent Shaun Marcum did not report to spring training ready to go by telling Collins and GM Sandy Alderson he only needed four starts to get ready. He was allowed to set his own pace, but obviously didn’t have the track record to deserve it.

Marcum received cortisone injections in each of the last three years, and last spring was down for nearly three weeks. Without question, this is a guy who should not be setting his own program.

Marcum vows 200 innings, a level he’s only reached once since 2005. His lifetime 57-36 record was why Alderson gave him the benefit of doubt, but his 124 innings last year should have accounted for something.

Wasn’t Marcum’s history and workout program discussed? If it was, then why agree to this?

Santana does have the resume to set his own program, but abused it when he threw off the mound without Collins’ knowledge the first week of March.

The Mets said they monitored Santana in the off-season, and told him to go easy since he rehabbed the previous two winters. Something was lost in the communication as Santana wasn’t ready when spring training began and will open the season on the disabled list.

Collins said Santana knows his own body, but here’s a guy who hasn’t worked an inning all spring and at the beginning wanted to pitch in the World Baseball Classic. Had he done so, the results could have been career threatening.

Early in camp, after Alderson questioned Santana’s conditioning, the lefthander, angry with the Mets and media, threw off the mound without his manager’s knowledge. Collins wasn’t happy then and now must be fuming because Santana has done little since and has no set timetable. One must wonder how much that stunt set him back.

There are other examples of how the Mets let their starting pitches get away with setting their own routine that ended badly.

In 2009, Mike Pelfrey refused to go on the disabled list and miss a start and insisted on the start being pushed back. To placate him, the Mets brought up a starter from the minors, but to make room released reliever Darren O’Day, who only proved to be a key in the Rangers getting to the World Series twice.

O’Day has worked 247.2 innings in his five-year career with 217 strikeouts, 63 walks, a 2.73 ERA and 1.058 WHIP. The Mets don’t have anybody with that production in their current bullpen.

The Mets also let Pedro Martinez march to his own tune with mixed results for several years. Is Pedro pitching today? What’s going on with Pedro? It was like that every spring.

The Mets did everything they could, including alienating a future Hall of Famer, Tom Glavine, to placate Martinez and his whims.Of course, don’t forget Oliver Perez, whom former GM Omar Minaya signed to a disastrous three-year contract. The height of the absurdity is when Perez refused a minor league assignment – as was his contractual right – to work on his mechanics.

Consequently, the Mets carried him the rest of the season rather than release him and eat his contract, which they eventually did the following spring.

Funny, the Mets once had the stones – but no brains – and traded Tom Seaver, who wasn’t happy with his contract. Now it seems they don’t have either, as the trend is obvious, from Alderson to Minaya, and with each of the managers, to let some starters dictate to them how things would be and it turned out for the worse.

Will it be that way in 2013 with Marcum and Santana?

As GM, Alderson’s job description entails building for the future, and while Collins has nothing guaranteed to him beyond this season, it doesn’t mean the two perspectives can’t co-exist.Collins’ extension will be assured if the Mets have a winning season, but even if they don’t – very possible considering their holes – he could be back in the dugout in 2014, when the spending is supposed to begin.

“Well I think there are two things upon which a manager is evaluated,’’ Alderson said. “One is wins and losses, and the other is the improvement of the players on the team. And regardless of whether you have a veteran-dominated team or a younger team, players have to improve.

“And more importantly, they have to be motivated to improve, and that’s really partly where the manager comes in. I think that Terry will be evaluated on both of those bases, with the understanding that the wins and losses are not an absolute – to some extent they are relative to the talent that we have.’’

And, that talent level is thin, with a patchwork bullpen, questions at all three outfield spots, a new catcher and questions throughout the rotation, including a heavy dependence on Matt Harvey, who has but ten starts in his career.

A lot has to happen for the Mets to surpass last year’s 74 victories. Several times Alderson has spoken on changing the Mets’ culture and it has evolved since the dark days of the Jerry Manuel-Omar Minaya era.

At one point last season the Mets were eight games over .500, but Alderson did nothing to upgrade the franchise at the trade deadline and the summer spiraled out of control as the offense collapsed in the second half.

Collins deserved some responsibility, but in fairness he had little to work with to turn the team around. Alderson takes some of the blame for that, and admits he waited too long.

Even so, Collins can’t afford to lose things this year. He has to maintain the teaching along with motivation.

“So part of this whole analysis is having a good feel for the talent level that we have and the success that we have and how those two correlate, as well as some of the other less tangible aspects of leading a team over 162 games,’’ Alderson said.

Those tangible aspects include keeping the Mets focused and motivated, regardless of how much they skid. If he does that, we’ll see Collins again next year.

On a side note, not too many GM’s are as open and forthcoming with the media as this one is. After our conference call, Joe D. said something to some of us who participated that nobody disagreed with.

“Say what you want about, Sandy,” Joe said. “But one thing I respect him for is that he always gives us a thoughtful, well-detailed and analytic response to our questions.”

Thinking back to the last three general managers the Mets have had before Alderson, Joe is right.

Willie Randolph and Jerry Manuel, the last 2 managers of the Mets ran their teams much like this. They would let the player decide things instead of managing the player and doing what was best for the team. I’m surprised that he would let a player decide where he would play. Everything we’ve heard about Collins is that he’s a take charge manager, the opposite of Willie and Jerry. In a perfect world it would be nice if Beltran would go to Collins and admit his days in center are done but we don’t live in a perfect world. Collins needs to do the job he was hired to do and manage the team. We’ve seen what happens when the manager does not have the control to do this.

What doesn’t surprise me is that Oliver Perez might have been given a guarantee that he’ll make the team regardless of his performance this Spring.  I knew Alderson would never allow a player making that much money to be released, regardless if his performance is not going to help the team. I understand wanting to get some value from Perez who is making 12 million dollars this season but this makes no sense. Sometimes you have to go against your “moneyball” philosophies and realize a player is just a lost cause.  I don’t understand the logic of having Perez occupy a roster spot again this year.  It’s not like the Mets are a team that can win with a 24 man roster, they need all the able players they can get to be productive.  I would much rather see a young pitcher like Gee who is hungry and wants to help this team win, make the team instead of Perez who twice refused to accept a minor league deal so he can rack up service time.

I understand Alderson and Collins inherited an aging Beltran and an awful Perez but they could do things differently than the past regimes.  The whole reason the Mets got rid of Omar and Jerry was because the way they were running the team was not working.  I don’t understand why Collins and Alderson are doing the same thing.  Hopefully they’ll learn from history otherwise we’re doomed to repeat it.

1) The Ballpark: Citi Field is just too big! I know we’ve been saying that for the last 2 seasons but the Wilpons refuse to bring in the fences.  All you look at what happened to David Wright in his the first season at Citi Field.  His power numbers were down and the last 2 seasons his strikeouts have been on the rise.  Wright’s power at Shea was to the right center.  Citi Field’s right center is about 45-50 feet deeper than Shea’s and it has affected Wright negatively.  Some called it a fluke but then look at Jason Bay’s horrific first season.  The park took away his power. Citi Field without a doubt robbed Bay realistically of 5 homeruns and probably more.  The great fence of Flushing needs to go down too while we’re at it.  It’s time to admit the size of this park was a mistake and change it.

2) Coaching Staff: The entire coaching staff needs to go.  Howard Johnson has been a horrible hitting coach.  The situational hitting since Hojo took over has been non-existent.  It seems like Hojo would rather be their friends than a coach.  I get it he’s an 86 Met and the Wilpons are reluctant to fire him.  The Mets should just give Hojo a job with a nice title and a good payday and let him go away.  Dan Warthen also needs to go.  I know the pitching was better than expected this season but I don’t like all the injuries to our pitchers under his reign as pitching coach.  I didn’t like that in 2009 he didn’t know about Johan’s latest injury and he didn’t know that Santana was skipping side sessions.  I also didn’t like him calling Maine a habitual liar to the press. That’s just something you don’t say.  Razor Shines just needs to go.  Chip Hale seems to be a decent to good coach but at the same time Ron Darling mentioned many times throughout the season that Hale had been working with Wright and changing his defense.  Wright’s defense this year was pretty bad. He committed 20 errors and at times was slow in turning a double play.

3) The 3 Poisons (Carlos Beltran, Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo): Once the Mets finally do hire a general manager that GM (Alderson) must find a way to get these three off this team! Castillo is done, he can’t hit and he has absolutely no range at 2nd base.  Castillo brings nothing to the New York Mets, time to cut ties with him. Oliver Perez should not be on this team, he has done nothing for the Mets since signing that contract.  Perez cares more about himself than the team as he repeatedly refused to go to the minor leagues.  He didn’t win 1 game in 2010!  If you look at the way the Mets played before the all-star break and after the break there’s a huge difference.  Carlos Beltran decided to finally grace the team with his presence and was supposed to be the spark for this team but unfortunately did nothing other than make outs at the plate and miss balls hit to center on defense. Beltran refused to move over to right field to allow the better player Angle Pagan to play center and help the team.  Let’s not forget that these guys also refused to go visit wounded soldiers with the rest of their team.  These guys are not team players, they’re hurting this team and it’s time to get rid of them.

The new GM when he/she is finally hired has a lot of work to do and a lot changes to make.  Without these changes we can expect another losing season.

Of course, this wasn’t even breaking news before it became official.  It was a foregone conclusion that the man famous for inserting the words “that being said” into every other sentence and the man known as Dead Manuel Walking were not going to retain their positions after the completion of the 2010 season.

The team had underachieved since the end of the 2006 season.  The players were performing below expectations and if there was camaraderie between the players, it wasn’t as evident as it should be with winning teams.

It is the general manager’s job to put the team together and the manager’s job to get them to perform between the white lines.

Omar did his best to put Los Mets together.  That being said, that also included offering contracts that were far too long to the ostracized Oliver “El Perez-idente” Perez and Luis “Squeam Queen” Castillo.  Other players that were signed for more years than they should have been were Orlando “The Dookie” Hernandez, Pedro “I Left My Fastball In Beantown” Martinez and Carlos Beltran (sorry, I like Don Carlos, so I won’t give him a demeaning nickname).  He also traded for fan-favorite, but now increasingly fragile Johan Santana.

Jerry Manuel was forced to manage an oft-injured group of ragtag players, a job that most managers would have difficulty doing, although a fellow Manuel (Charlie) had no problem doing that when his star players were dropping faster than Citi Field’s paid attendance figures.

Part of Charlie Manuel’s success with being able to survive his club’s injuries was that his GM, Ruben Amaro Jr., was able to provide him with the right players to fill in the holes left by the disabled players.

When Rip Van Winkle (Jamie Moyer) went down with an injury, Amaro swung a deal with the Astros for Roy Oswalt.  All four infielders for the Phillies (Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Placido Polanco) were also hurt at some point of the season.  Amaro made sure each player had better than adequate replacements in Ross Gload, Ben Francisco and Wilson Valdez.  Those three players combined to hit .266 (170-for-640), which was higher than the team’s collective batting average (.260).

In those 640 at-bats, which are about the same amount an everyday player would collect over a full season, the trio collected 37 doubles, three triples, 16 HR and 85 RBI, while scoring 77 runs and going a perfect 16-for-16 in stolen bases.  They also excelled defensively, combining to make a total of four errors in 569 total chances.

While the Phillies didn’t miss a beat when one of their star players got hurt, what did Omar Minaya give us?  Either not yet ready for prime time players (Ruben Tejada, Jesus Feliciano, Lucas Duda) or players who fall into the “who dat” category, like Joaquin Arias.

A general manager is the head talent evaluator.  His job is to put together the best team possible so that his manager can put the best possible lineup on the field.  Unfortunately for Jerry Manuel, the best team possible was never THE BEST TEAM.  There were 25 guys, or 23½ as suggested by my colleague (The Coop) in her earlier post, but these guys were never a team.  Ruben Amaro has put together a team of guys in Philadelphia, not guys who were part of a team, like Omar Minaya put together in New York.

The new general manager has to realize that teams win games.  He has to give the manager not just the best individual players, but the guys who stand the best chance to become a cohesive unit that can all contribute to winning ballgames.  Twenty-five individuals don’t lead teams to championships, but one team of players can do that.

Omar Minaya and Jerry Manuel had early success with the Mets because they had a team of guys.  Over the past few years, that team dissolved into a group of guys whose only common trait was the shirts on their backs.  The formula is simple:  Have team, will win.  If the new general manager can’t get the new manager a team of guys to work with, then they stand a good chance of being shown the same door that Omar and Jerry were last seen walking through.

I watched the press conference and it all sounded nice but we’ve heard this all before. This organization talks a great game but when it’s time to deliver they’ve failed over and over again.  I know a lot of fans are happy that Omar and Jerry are done and they liked this press conference and are encouraged by it but I just don’t share their optimism. I wish I could but this team and the way it has been run in the past doesn’t deserve the benefit of the doubt.

One of the things I hated was when the Wilpons said that they wanted to improve the team and win baseball games. Of course we all want them to win baseball games but we also want them to win a championship. To me that quote is very similar to meaningful baseball game sin September.

I didn’t like that Omar Minaya is still working with this organization and that the Wilpons said it’s up to the new General Manager whether Omar has a job or not.  I get it Omar has a contract and the Mets have to honor that contract.  Having said that Omar didn’t do his job.  I actually I should say he didn’t do a good job.  He has embarrassed this organization in the past, he should no longer in any fashion have a job with the New York Mets.  Much like Bobby Bonilla starting next year let Omar sit home and collect his paycheck.

I felt that the Wilpons insulted our intelligence once again by saying that they never once told Omar “NO.”  Maybe before 2008 that is true but for the last 2 seasons you cannot tell me that Omar was allowed to make moves and spend money.  I know they downplayed the Madoff scandal again but it had something to do with spending.

I did like that the Wilpons said that the General Manager will hire the manager. That is a step in the right direction.  I don’t know what that exactly does for Wally Backman, I guess we’ll have to wait until a new GM is hired.  I do hope that the new GM allows the next manager to pick his own staff. I also appreciated the way Fred Wilpon spoke about his love of this franchise.  I honestly believe he was being sincere in his statement.  I was a little confused though by him saying that he was still in charge.  The media and Fred himself have made it clear over the last couple of years that Jeff is in charge of the team.  Perhaps he worded his statement wrong but it comes off as unorganized in my opinion.

I hope the Wilpons prove me wrong, I really do. I hope that this press conference wasn’t all talk and that their actions will speak louder. We’ll see in 2011.

No, I’m not talking about Jerry Manuel. I heard these same comments leading up the heavily anticipated firing of Willie Randolph. I thought once we got rid of Willie we would be champions. So we did. And son of a gun–not a thing changed. At first, we were ready to throw Jerry Manuel his own ticker tape parade. But the more things change, the more they stay the same. The Mets folded in September 08 under Manuel, just like they did in September 07 under Randolph. Then we followed that up with 2 consecutive 4^th place finishes, a combined 41 games out of 1^st.

I’ve never been a big fan of Manuel and I will not be sorry to see him go. But on the other hand, this team has many deep seeded issues and replacing the manager will not solve all of them. Granted, it may be a step in the right direction but I don’t see things improving. It will take years and I don’t see our fan base willing to wait.

Taking baby steps helps, but not when you’re climbing Mount Everest.

Omar Minaya came to NY as one of the most respected men in baseball. He leaves with his reputation tarnished–tarnished by the fans, by the media and by a megalomaniacal boss. Omar made some bad decisions during his time in NY. The signing of Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo will be his legacy that fans crucify him for. But he also put the pieces in place to give us a damn good chance to win. He locked up the future, Wright and Reyes, to long term contracts. He brought in 5 tool superstar Carlos Beltran for 7 seasons in the prime years of his career. He brought in veterans like Carlos Delgado who wanted to win. And Pedro Martinez and Tom Glavine who knew how to win. He shocked us all by snagging Johan when no one thought it was possible. And when we needed a closer, he gave us K-Rod after his record setting season.

Hindsight can always be 20/20. But Omar did exactly what a GM was supposed to do: He loaded the gun. The Mets just fired blanks.

Overspending on Castillo and Perez were mistakes. But keep in mind it’s still the Wilpon’s decision to pull the trigger or not. It’s the Wilpons who sign the paychecks, not Minaya.

I hope I’m wrong but I just cant “believe” that once we get rid of Minaya and Manuel things will improve. Johan will miss a good chunk of time next year, we have no closer, Beltran and Reyes may be on borrowed time. And as of right now, our ace next year may very well be a 36 year old knuckle-baller.

At this moment, I’m sure Omar and Jerry are staring at the clock more then Jack Bauer. I’m sure once we get rid of them, things will improve tenfold, hundredfold maybe. Just like they did when we got rid of Willie Randolph…or Aaron Heilman…or Braden Looper…or Rick Peterson…or Armando Benitez.

Although the 2010 Mets increased their win total by 9, 5^th most in the majors this season, Jerry Manuel will be gone. The man who replaces him will be our 20^th manager. 20 managers in 49 seasons.

And Omar will be gone, too. He will leave NY beaten and defeated and his reputation in question. But he will most likely be hired quickly by another organization. And while the Mets continue to wander aimlessly in the forest of mediocrity, Omar will be building a winner. A few years from now I predict he will be standing in a clubhouse, champagne spraying on his $2500 suit. He will be standing on a dais alongside a manager, an owner and the commissioner. And what will we be doing? Probably pointing the finger at someone else, finding the next poster boy for everything that is wrong with this team.

We seem to be quite adept at pointing fingers and making excuses. But while we use our fingers to point–or voice our disgust at the Wilpons–other players are putting World Series rings on theirs.

Much of the self-evaluation had been written by posters at the time, but it must be remembered Manuel is working off different information and conditions that we were.

Quite simply, Manuel knew there was pressure on him to win this year, and that only made it easier to be tempted, especially when the player says he’s ready.

Manuel didn’t get into it, but there was inconsistency in how he made out his lineup, set up his bullpen and bench. Lest we not forget, it was Manuel’s insistence to stay with Jenrry Mejia, who has been shut down with a shoulder injury.

I also didn’t like how Manuel handled Jeff Francoeur and John Maine, but there will always be dust ups in the player-manager relationship.

Tuesday night Manuel was candid, forthright and honest. There was very little excuse making, other than to say the collapse of the offense played a major factor into the season’s outcome. And. I don’t look at that as an excuse as much as a statement of fact.

If this had been Manuel’s first season with the Mets, you could make an argument for another chance, but he presided over the September collapse in 2008 and last year’s disaster. There were extenuating circumstances after both that warranted a second chance, the bottom line is that through a myriad of reasons, the Mets have taken a step back since 2006, and in this market, with this stadium and the expectations, somebody will have to pay the price for failure.

Keeping Manuel with roughly the same payroll as this season is to tell the fanbase “our hope is that we stay healthy and improve,’’ which is something they’ve been saying since Carlos Beltran took that third strike from Adam Wainwright.

Keeping Manuel would be saying this year was acceptable.

***
John Delcos has covered Major League Baseball for over 20, including the last dozen in New York. You can read his blog, http://www.newyorkmetsreport.com

From ESPN NY, more comments from Joe Torre.

“I apologize. He is right that I shouldn’t have said that, and I don’t think I did. Somebody asked me if I would take a call from Fred Wilpon. I have known Fred Wilpon forever. I won’t be managing the Mets, and I thought I made that clear yesterday. It was about taking a call as opposed to looking for a job. I went to New York to pay tribute to George Steinbrenner. If I was looking for a job, I probably wouldn’t have gone to New York.” 

After that, he was asked “Then why did you say you were keeping your options open? Are you officially closing the door on the Mets?”

“I guess you can call me a liar in that regard. I am closing the door on managing the Mets and probably everybody else. The only thing I’m trying to do is that I don’t want to mislead anybody. My intention is that when I finish here as a manager a week from Sunday, I am anticipating that will be my last game as a manager.”

In closing… 

“I apologize to Jerry Manuel and all the other managers. I don’t blame them. I know they don’t want to get stepped on I know in answering questions Monday and having a press conference, I know what my intention was. Unfortunately, I can’t get on the other side of it and see how it’s received. I would doubt very seriously if there would be anything that would entice me to manage again.”

Original Post 8:30 PM

Before tonight’s game, Jerry Manuel had harsh words for Joe Torre who has been openly lobbying for the Mets manager job in the last 24 hours.

“I don’t know [Joe Torre] on a personal basis. But when things like that come out or are said, you question integrity. That’s what comes to my mind…I don’t know him on a personal level to say whether he’s that or that, and I did not see, or I have not read, exactly what has been said. All I know is what I hear, and I don’t go to look for it.”

Now according to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times (via MetsBlog), Joe Torre has issued a public apology to Jerry Manuel.

“I had no intention of making people believe I wanted to manage the Mets. I would doubt very seriously if there would be anything that would entice me to manage again. I’m closing the door on managing the Mets and probably everybody else.”

Well, I’m glad Manuel got an apology. I’m not a big fan of him as a manager, but Manuel didn’t deserve to have someone dancing on his grave before he was buried.

Hopefully, whatever the Mets do decide about replacing Omar or Manuel or both, will not drag on for weeks and weeks. Otherwise expect more chapters to this never-ending soap opera that is the 2010 season.

“They have a problem they don’t understand: This is not a desirable location. New York is desirable, but this is the wrong borough. I don’t think it has sunk in with Jeff yet that he is running a team that the best people might not want to work for.”  ~  An NL Executive

I think Joel Sherman’s article in Sunday’s New York Post pretty much sums up why the next few months for the Mets will make the past few months seem like a walk in the park. It’s no shocker that both Jerry Manuel and Omar Minaya will be gone very soon.

Whether Omar is reassigned or not is pointless since he’s essentially already been emasculated since the end of last season’s debacle. At this point, you might as well say that Jeff Wilpon is running the day to day operations, including GM duties.

It has to be annoying as all hell for Omar Minaya to have junior Wilpon shadowing his every move. Imagine going to work everyday and having your boss pretty much over your shoulder, second and third guessing your every decision. It’s enough to make anyone want to pull an emergency chute grab two beers and call it a day.

Perhaps it would be slightly more palatable if Jeff Wilpon actually had a background in professional baseball other than the blind luck of having his dad own the team. Think of it this way; it’s not as if Minaya has the gaul to advise the Wilpons on what prime real estate ventures they should be embarking on. However it is what it is and like Sherman said in his post, there are 30 GM jobs out there and they all come with their own baggage.

Jeff Wilpon seems to be the baggage that just won’t find it’s way lost on an international flight to Zimbabwe. Unfortunately, he very well may be the stumbling block in the way of hiring any General Manager this offseason.

Can you really see John Hart or Josh Byrnes having the patience to listen to Jeff Wilpon wax poetic on his views of why he signed Kaz Matsui after seeing him play a few times in Japan, dubbing him the future shortstop of the Mets just a few years ago?

Yes, junior Wilpon has had his finger on the pulse of many a decision going back now. You would think that the elder Wilpon would at some point put an end to his son’s embarrassing meddling.

Most of us remember how disjointed the Yankee’s were for many years under Steinbrenner. Now whether he really abdicated authority to the likes of Gene Michaels and later to Brian Cashman – or just toned down his rhetoric- either way, when George Steinbrenner was less vocal – his team finally was able to win and later dominate.

It’s a lesson that Fred Wilpon should really take to heart – that is unless he’s more interested in pleasing his son’s vanity versus putting a winning team on the field.

It’s actually not rocket science for us to assume what people like Fred Wilpon must be thinking. Just because he happens to be a billionaire doesn’t preclude him from being a father who wants to see his son excel. I totally can understand that. However I think it’s safe to say enough is enough.

With all the talk about reassigning Omar Minaya perhaps it’s due time for the elder Wilpon to reassign junior to a lesser role. Give him his fancy title with all the trappings but reign him in for the love of God.

Whoever the Mets hire to run this team, both on the field and in the front office, should be given a fair chance to win (or lose) on their own merits. Any assistance from Jeff Wilpon should be left at Mr. Mets dressing room door.

First, Jeff Wilpon and John Ricco make an unexpected stop in Atlanta on Monday to watch the Mets lose to the Bravos. It prompts Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, to suggest a potential shakeup was in the works.

“With just over a month remaining in the season, the Mets remain far from playoff contention, spawning the notion that a personnel shakeup is on the horizon.”

While in Atlanta, Wilpon seemed edgy and didn’t want to discuss anything with reporters, but did manage to take a swipe at his star player when he was asked if he would trade David Wright and break up the team’s core. “Is he part of the core?” Wilpon said. Ouch.

Then on Thursday, Jeff Wilpon shoots back to Brooklyn to meet up with Wally Backman to take in a Cyclones game.

I’m guessing that after watching his Mets stink it up for a few days at Turner Field, he just wanted to remember what it was like to play meaningful games in September. Right? Fugheddaboudit!

Hey, do you think the subject of Mets manager came up while Wally and Jeff were chumming it up in the garden spot of New York?

That’s exactly what the Brooklyn Paper was wondering, so they caught up with Wally and flat out asked him. His reply?

“No. No. He came in for some, uh (pause), um, they had to look at some structural stuff, I guess, for the stadium.”

Oh my… Hey Wally… If you’re gonna crumble under pressure like that from talking to some local yokel from Park Slope, how in the world are you gonna handle the pressure cooker that is the Mets media room after each game?

So how many of you believe that Jeff Wilpon really met with Backman to discuss stadium renovations?

Finally, there goes Omar Minaya yesterday, boarding a super cheap Jet Blue flight to Chicago and mixing it up with the muckety-mucks in coach. Omar has enough problems these days, but getting roasted on a plane loaded with disgruntled Mets fans had to be one helluva harrowing experience for him. It feels like the Wilpons might be showing him the door if you ask me… Coach? Really? 

All of this could mean nothing, but I don’t think so. Something tells me that we might be close to a massive shakeup that will include Jerry Manuel and most of his coaches, and even the big guy Omar Minaya will be ousted as well.

It’s been reported by many that no changes will happen before the end of the season, but I don’t think so… I’m feeling a sense of urgency in the air.

No,  I haven’t lost my mind. I don’t think Oliver Perez is a good player at all.  Ollie is not a team player, he plays for the name on the back of the jersey.  Perez has shown that he has no inclination to work on improving his game and giving something back to the team that is for some reason paying him to be on the team. Ollie would rather sit on his you know what in the bullpen and collect his paycheck than help this team or himself improve.

On the other side you have the New York Mets who refuse to eat the remainder of his contract and cut ties with Ollie. For some unknown reason the Mets would rather let Perez sit in the bullpen and occupy a roster spot instead of sending him packing. Some people have said that the Mets fear if they cut their ties with Ollie they are fearful that he will go to another team and will suddenly be a better pitcher.  I know it’s happened in baseball, but I doubt that would happen with Perez.

Oliver Perez is making 12 million dollars this season.  He has not won a game this season!  Perez has an ERA of 6.70.  Perez last appeared in a game on August 1 in which he allowed 4 runs on 5 hits.  Clearly sitting in the bullpen has done nothing for him.

With Perez occupying a roster spot Jerry Manuel should take a stand against Ollie and the Mets and put this useless, sad excuse of a baseball player in some games! It’s not Jerry’s fault that Perez is taking a roster spot, it’s Ollie’s and the Mets.  Jerry should let Ollie go out every 5 days and embarrass himself and the Mets.  I wouldn’t be saying this if the Mets were 5 games out or less but let’s face it, 2010 is over for the Mets.  Put Perez out there and let him get knocked around so everyone can see how bad he is.  Maybe Ollie will actually realize he needs to take a minor league assignment.  Maybe the team will realize that it’s best just to cut ties with this guy.  Jerry could send a message to the team that if they are going to keep Perez then he’s going to play the guy.

Obviously this will not happen.  Jerry isn’t the type of manager to send this message and this is the Mets, they won’t do anything bold.

“We have to do what we’ve been talking about all of the time, we have to do more offensively.  We’ve got to find a way to get that done.  I mean, that’s poor.  That’s a very poor effort on our part offensively… We have to do better.  Period.  It’s pathetic.  We have to do better.”

Only 24 hours before last night’s loss, Manuel was still hanging onto the possibility that his team was still in the playoff hunt.

I see Manuel as a sympathetic figure as I alluded to in one of my posts yesterday.

He was promised a frontline starter which he never got in the offseason. He has been crying for a setup man all season long and even going back to spring training, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. With the team only 4 games behind at the break, he had hoped for a big bat to help revitalize the offense and instead got Ruben Tejada (.216) and Fernando Martinez (.176).

Now he is faced with an endless stream of blogs, articles, and headlines that are all considering his inevitable replacement.

I’m not saying I love the job Manuel is doing, everyone who reads this site knows the way I feel about him.

But, think for a moment what it must be like to go out without any support from the fans, his general manager or the ones that sign his paycheck.

Manuel will be fired either before or at the end of this season, of that I am sure. But lets agree that basically he was handed an ill conceived team that was poorly constructed from the word go, and that he was expected to take this team to the World Series. Lets call a spade a spade.

In my opinion, Manuel was setup for failure, and believe you me, he knows it.

Truth be told, Omar Minaya who is the biggest reason for the failure of the 2010 season, should be escorted out of Citi Field along with Manuel at the end of the season.

It must really suck being Jerry Manuel right now.

Or Knicks owner James Dolan for his quizzical attempt to re-hire former head coach Isaiah Thomas as a consultant to the team, considering his first run with the Knicks went so swimmingly.

Photo courtesy of Metstradamus

Arrogance and stupidity be damned, this tag team of New York business power brokers seem to have cornered the industry market on head scratching moves.

If the Latin term, “Fortes fortuna adiuvat – Fortune favors the bold – describes New York life, then these men are living the dream; too bad it’s giving it’s resident’s and fans all the subsequent nightmares.

The soap opera that is the New York Mets- seem to be making the days of our lives- ahem- drag on like a never ending bad cliffhanger. With each loss the Mets are falling further and further out of competing. I don’t even dare to say contention at this point since contention implies the potential to overcome and succeed.

No, these gears my friends, are grinding ever so slowly to a disheartening halt, that no injection of a fresh face from a trade or even the cut of player such as Oliver Perez or Luis Castillo could possibly remedy. In fact, the team overall is finally healthy, notwithstanding the usual aches and pains here and there. Yet still they’re sinking and in serious danger of becoming the most expensive irrelevant professional sports franchise outside of Madison Square Garden.

I’ve said all year long that the Mets are the most consistently inconsistent team in Baseball. Take David Wright who I applauded for having a potential MVP quality season no less than a few weeks ago. Since the All Star break Wright has returned to his early season inconsistent self, striking out at alarming rate. His second half .198 batting average is coupled with another power outage- only 3 round trippers and a pathetic 12 RBI and 28 strikeouts in just 96 at bats.

The Mets technically went into this spiral just before the All Star game losing 6 of 10 leading up to the midway classic. Skeptics figured for some time that the team was in need of more than a trade here or there but hindsight is always 20-20. We’ll never know what effect a trade would have had on this team at least psychologically. Having support from management on up does play a role in how a team performs no matter how players want to stoically play it off.

Unfortunately when you couple the inability or desire to make a trade for ANY help along with the gradual decline the team has undergone- and sprinkle in some of the most idiotic managerial moves from Jerry Manuel- it shouldn’t be a huge surprise where the Metropolitans are right now.

To add insult to injury, Francisco Rodriguez decided to go all Fight Club on his father-in-law, getting himself arrested at CitiField for punching him with an order of protection placed on him as a chaser. I guess Darryl Strawberry should finally be happy now that someone on the team is showing a nasty streak, aren’t you? Disgraceful.

All the while we have Mets ownership tight lipped as ever except for the praise Fred Wilpon expressed for both his son and COO Jeff Wilpon and Omar Minaya for the job’s they’ve done. I’m not sure a pat on the back is what this dynamic duo needs or better yet deserves. Perhaps what irks me most is the flippant way Fred Wilpon responded to a question from a reporter of the New York Post when asked if Omar Minaya will continue in his position. His response-

“Will the sun come out tomorrow?”

Later as Wilpon tried to make his escape from the Post, he was asked about how his son Jeff is doing- leading to this gem of a response.

(As to how Jeff Wilpon is doing) “Excellent…everybody knows that.”

Why do I feel like Danny De Vito in the movie Twins when he meets Schwarzenegger for the first time and is told that he’s his twin brother- and De Vito says wryly,

“Well obviously. The moment I saw you I thought I was looking in the mirror.”

This is the type of self delusional mentality the Mets have come to, a similar fate that has been prescribed to the New York Knicks and it’s Chairman, James Dolan who recently saw fit to make an attempt to re-hire former head coach Isaiah Thomas as an adviser.

Yes the same Isaiah Thomas who was embroiled and found liable along with MSG of a sexual harassment lawsuit filed against him by a former New York Knicks executive- costing the team $11.6 million in damages. The same Isaiah Thomas who’s vast knowledge of basketball- did little to pull his team out of the depths of irrelevance and failure.

If one can make a true comparison to both the Knicks and the Mets it’s that both teams have made questionable long term commitments to players- turning contracts into franchise paralyzing albatrosses.

Luckily for the Knicks they’ve finally come out of the dark with those contracts. As for the Mets, the gifts will keep on giving for a few more years to come.

It goes to show you that money doesn’t buy you common sense. I’m a believer in loyalty and there’s no question that both the Fred Wilpon and James Dolan have that in spades, but there comes a time that all soap operas get canceled.

Here’s to hoping for cloudy Seattle days in Salem…I mean Queens.

Earlier today, Joe D took a song by Black Sheep and wrote a humorous piece about the approaching trade deadline and which pitcher we’d rather have.  (Just say “no” to Ollie.)  Paying homage to that piece, now I’m questioning whether Mets fans should boo or cheer the team when they take the field against the Cardinals on Tuesday night in their first home game following their awful West Coast road trip.

What better song to choose than the classic hit by The Clash (duh, like you didn’t know where this was going) called “Should I Stay or Should I Go?”.  The song was released as a single in 1982 (and performed by The Clash in concert at Shea Stadium that October.  Betcha didn’t know that.), right before the Mets became a good team again.  Will this song parody I’ve written help the current Mets get better?

No, that would be silly.  Scoring more runs will make them better.  Even Dead Manuel Walking can figure that out while he’s pointing out the next relief pitcher he’s going to use not named Frankie Rodriguez.

I’ve said enough. It’s time to tap your cleats to the song parody.  Here is the song set to the Clash’s hit single from 1982.  This one is called “Should I Cheer or Should I Boo?”

Mets fans, you’ve gotta let me know.
Should I cheer or should I boo?
If you say “make up your mind!”
I’ll ask you ’till we’re at inning nine.
So before you hear “play ball!”
Should I cheer or should I boo?

The Mets just tease tease tease.
And Jerry still trots out Ollie.
Like a bad fish, he’ll throw him back.
To give us fans a heart attack.
So before to Citi I go.
Should I cheer or should I boo?

Should I cheer or should I boo now?
Should I cheer or should I boo now?
If I cheer at Reyes’ double.
Then I’ll miss Castillo stumble.
Don’t know which way I will go…

To cheer? To boo? It’s bugging me.
And so’s the last month by Pelfrey.
Will K-Rod pitch the tenth inning?
No way, says Dead Manuel Walking.
Maybe it’s time for him to go..
I’m not cheering him anymo’.

Should I cheer or should I boo now?
Should I cheer or should I boo now?
Can Beltran run down a fly ball?
Will the coaching staff take the fall?
Can’t these guys win on the road?
I should cool it or I’m gonna blow.

Should I cheer or should I boo now?
Should I cheer or should I boo now?
Jerry Manuel’s in trouble.
His team’s been reduced to rubble.
Cheering will get a big fat NO!
That’s right, I’m going to BEE-OH-OH!

I think it’s ironic that these same two guys have a lot of nerve calling the team out now.  Certainly, there are issues, but for a guy who slammed his pitching hand in a door after drinking too much one night and used a sorry “hedge clipper” cover up story, and a dude who sadly battled many demons only to leave his best years in New York behind him, well, let’s just say I won’t take what they say to heart easily.

Lately, with the Mets lackluster second-half coupled with a less-than-impressive West Coast road trip, everyone is talking “leadership.”  Who is the leader of the team?  Is Jerry Manuel the right guy to lead this team?  Who is the go-to person in the clubhouse when a player is having problems at the plate? Can the pitchers talk to a fellow pitcher to ask about their game approach?

Let’s start with Jerry Manuel.  Let me state for the record that I don’t necessarily have a problem with Manuel’s type of managing.  He’s the quintessential “player’s manager.”  He puts out the lineup and let’s the guys play.  Unfortunately, his style of managing does not translate well into the team he has today.  A good manager makes adjustments, and it’s clear to me that Manuel does not have a clue how to make those adjustments.

We may never see a team like the 1986 team play again, ever.  Not just the Mets but in baseball in general.  Players today have been coddled since they’ve been in Little League.  They’ve played on teams where they get trophies simply for “showing up” as opposed to being the “best” at something.  While that has worked wonders in building up the self-esteem of some youngsters, the fact is, there is no attitude, there is no hustle because they know at the end of the day, they get paid and that’s that.

I’m certain some players care about winning.  However, they are not TAUGHT how to win.  Manuel puts out a lineup and expects everyone to go out and do their jobs.  Unfortunately, like the MBA in the old FedEx commercials, they need to be shown how.  When Keith Hernandez was traded to the Mets on June 15, 1983, he came with a chip on his shoulder, an MVP award under his belt and years of participating on winning teams in St. Louis.  He brought that attitude to the young players who were being cultivated on the Mets farm system.  In fact, he said himself when he saw Dwight Gooden, Ron Darling and Darryl Strawberry being brought up through the ranks, he knew the Mets were going to be something special.  When they added Gary Carter to solidify calling the game and his rough-and-tumble style of play helped round-out Hernandez’s field generalship, magic happened.  Hernandez’s respect amongst his peers and managerial staff made him the first captain in Mets history, and Gary Carter was named co-Captain.

Of course, Mets manager Davey Johnson had a lot to do with the so-called “swagger” of those teams.  However, he was smart to understand what and who he was working with.  He told them, famously, after not winning anything in 1984 to falling short in 1985, that they would not only win but they would DOMINATE.  Can you imagine saying that not just to the Mets but to ANY team these days?

My problem with the suggestion that, for instance, David Wright should be elevated to some figure head status in that he’d hopefully make the team his “own,” is this:  He is far too young…heck, he hasn’t even had that many years in the majors, let alone even won a championship, save the NL East pennant in 2006.  He could always walk after his contract is up.  I don’t think he would, however. I’m not saying if the Mets were to give a Captain’s “C” to someone, he could be the figure head someday, he could be good at it, just not now.  Let’s allow him to mature and BE a leader simply by doing, and not just because the management said, “This is your team, do what you want.”

He needs to be taught how to win.  None of these guys know how to do that.  Not Carlos Beltran, not Jose Reyes, not Luis Castillo.  Maybe Johan Santana.  That is evident after the team tends to win his starts these days.

This team needs to lead by doing.  I am not one to suggest a change in management will do anything tangible but in this case I highly endorse getting rid of Jerry Manuel immediately.  It’s clear that this team needs a manager who will LEAD, set a game plan, understand the roles of each player and not just hope for the best.

Hope is not a plan.

According to Andy Martino of the Daily News, Jerry Manuel and Omar Minaya’s jobs are safe for now.

The Mets have lost six of seven games since the All-Star break, but all indications are that manager Jerry Manuel and general manager Omar Minaya are in no immediate danger of losing their jobs.

Minaya is making a scheduled trip to Los Angeles for this weekend’s series against the Dodgers, but the visit is routine. Either Minaya or one of his assistant GMs, John Ricco and Wayne Krivsky, accompanies the Mets on every trip.

With the July 31 trade deadline looming and the Mets struggling but alive in a weak National League wild card race, no leadership changes are planned. That could change if the Mets continue to lose, but no one is on the proverbial hot seat at this time.

It sounds like a good way to go for now, but if the team doesn’t turn this current dry streak around soon, things could start to develop quickly.

Another thing that could set the wheels in motion would be declining attendance at Citi Field when the team returns to Flushing next week.

Earlier this year Omar Minaya and Jerry Manuel fawned over minor league phenom pitcher, Jenrry Mejia. Somehow through that love affair the kid surprisingly made the major league team right out of Spring. It was a desperate move then and looking back, it remains the same.

Especially considering one, the kid had barely over 200 innings of work in the minors and two, unbeknownst to him, he was anointed by Jerry Manuel and few other prominent figures around the team, a future Mariano Rivera armed with a Godly cutter and all.

No pressure there Jenrry. Here’s the ball, have fun. Nobody ever accused the Mets of being masters of public relations but this situation took the cake for me. Instead of dealing with the reality of not having a bona-fide set-up man, Minaya and Manuel decided to thrust Jenrry Mejia into the spotlight.

Why? Do I really have to ask? Remember, during Spring, both Minaya and Manuel were a Metro Card away from taking the 7 train out of Citifield. Anyway, what was done was done and yes Mejia did gain major league knowledge, but at what cost?

As of now he’s still out of commission with an injury. The plan before the injury, stretch him out to become a starter. I love that phrase, stretch him out, as if he’s a human Stretch Armstrong. That’s an old toy back in the day for you digital kids here.

It is very tempting to get an arm like his in the rotation. Just as tempting as it was for the Yankees to have Mariano Rivera go nine. If some of you remember Rivera wasn’t always thought of as a closer. He went from prospective starter to set-up man to the Mariano Rivera we know today.

He’s pretty much the antithesis of Frankie Rodriquez. He’s quiet, controlled, completely unflashy yet devastatingly effective, and oh yes, a future Hall of Famer.

Frankie Rodriguez would have fit in perfectly with the early 90′s Mets. He’s style over substance. Don’t get me wrong he was a pretty fantastic closer and at the time the Mets signed him, he was the best closer available on the market. That was then and this is now.

Then, while he was in Anaheim, Frankie was bringing the heat, regularly hitting 98 on the radar gun. Today he’s topping out at 92, but mostly around 90-91. Couple that with his erratic delivery, his arm slot is never the same game to game. It prompts one to wonder why Anaheim didn’t try to bring the single season saves record holder back?  What can the Mets do at this point? He’s signed through next year. However there are a few options, unfortunately if the team hits the skids, that could pan out.

Between now and the trade deadline the Mets would have to completely fall apart, to even entertain trading Rodriguez. None of us or the Mets are hoping for that obviously.

So let’s focus on next year, and what Jenrry Mejia could provide the Mets if they’re willing to go down that road with him. Instead of focusing on Mejia becoming a starter I’d have him when he’s healthy, working on his fastball and cutter and his command.

Mariano Rivera made his debut in 1995, appearing in 19 games for the Yankees that year, starting 10 of them. Starting simply wasn’t his forte and in 1996 Mariano Rivera became John Wetteland’s set-up man and did he ever blossom.

Pitching over 100 innings that year Rivera had an ERA slightly over 2 and racked 130 K’s. The second year stud was 12th in MVP voting that year, and earned his first of 5 World Series rings.

Jenrry Mejia next year, at some point, should join the team and truly set-up for Frankie Rodriguez. He should not be handed the empty innings that Manuel gave him earlier this season, which by the way, was a clear sign to me that he and Minaya were hoping to catch lightning in a bottle, while giving themselves enough wiggle room in case things went sour for the kid.

It was a terrible way to initiate your franchise’s supposed diamond in the rough. It was unfair to the fans but most especially unfair to Mejia. With hard work and a CLEAR game-plan, with proper expectations, Mejia could make his way back to Flushing and who knows, perhaps one day, make good on those Mariano Rivera comparisons. Only time will tell.