There is a conspiracy theory everywhere you look. I read one suggesting the Mets made David Wright captain to divert attention away from the field, where they are projected to be bad. Very bad.

Smokescreens like that never work. Besides, Mets fans are like children and dogs in a way, after awhile, they know when they’re getting duped.C’mon. Are you serious? How long do you think that will last? With virtually no hope given to the Mets this year, they’ll be coming out to see Wright and the young players such as Matt Harvey, Ike Davis, Travis d’Arnaud and Zack Wheeler. The last two you’ll probably see sometime in June.

Besides, if taking the fan’s attention away from the team is the goal, they should have done this three years ago as the attendance at Citi Field has consistently dwindled.

Wright is simply the best player the Mets have, and arguably the best player – outside of Tom Seaver – they ever produced. And best, I mean both on and off the field.

As Major League Baseball goes after Ryan Braun and others in a witch hunt over PED’s, Wright has publicly stood up against drug users. A long time ago, when I asked Derek Jeter about steroids, he said: “I don’t use them, so it’s none of my business.”

Guess again. It is every player’s business for their sport to be clean and Wright, whether or not it comes from his father who is in law enforcement, has always stood for that goal. He should be commended for that alone.

I know some don’t feel Wright is clutch enough, but that’s nonsense. Baseball is about failing three out every ten at-bats just to be good, and Wright is the best the Mets have in that regard. Who else would you rather see at the plate in the ninth inning of a close game?

Jeff Wilpon said the appointment was for all Wright has done, and will do, for the organization in the future. The Mets have been awful on the field since 2008, and even worse off it with the Ponzi scandal, numerous bad signings and public relations fiascos. With all those around him losing their heads, Wright kept his, to paraphrase Rudyard Kipling.

When it was clear the Mets were about to sack Willie Randolph, Wright spoke out for his manager – and against management – because it was the right thing to do. He blamed himself and the players, not the manager whom management had spied on with Tony Bernazard.

A leader sometimes deals with uncomfortable things, and yes, Wright spoke against Lastings Milledge coming in late. He downplays it now, but it had to be done. Players often take their lead from other players, and when somebody doesn’t hustle, Wright lets him know it in a low-key, yet effective manner.

He doesn’t get in their faces, just their minds. And, that’s what leaders, and captains, do.

I guess this seems like a victory for the Mets but the Mets were wrong in doing this. K-Rod attacked a 50 year old man at Citi Field in front of the families of his teammates.  The 50 year old had to be taken the hospital after the savage attack.  I find it amazing that so many people are willing to look past this and just move on.

I would have respected the Mets if they had taken this grievance as far as they could even if they lost.  Of course the Mets were only thinking of that 3.1 million dollars.  I understand that they were scared of a union with way too much power, but this was not K-Rod’s first incident here in New York and with the Mets.  Let’s not forget the incident with Brian Bruney where K-Rod had to be held back.  Also last year it was reported that K-Rod had an argument with Tony Bernazard.  Then earlier this season K-Rod had a confrontation with Randy Neimann, the 54 year old bullpen coach. Clearly K-Rod likes to fight with older men.  K-Rod also violated a court order by texting his girlfriend.  It also was reported by the daily news that K-Rod at least on 1 occasion attacked his girlfriend and the mother of his two children so bad that she had to be hospitalized.  Even with all this evidence to support their argument, the Wilpons decided to take their 3.1 million dollars and let this guy continue be handsomely paid and a part of the team.

K-Rod is a bully and an abusive pig, no other way around it. The guy obviously has personal problems and should not be on this team.  I respected the Mets originally for going up against the Players Union but in typical Mets fashion they took what little money they could save and just dropped it.  Everyone wondered why the Angels would let K-Rod walk after a record setting season, and let the Mets sign him.  Obviously it wasn’t just the money, they were just happy to get him off their team.

It’s just a matter of time before K-Rod does something to hurt someone else or make the team look bad.

About 2 weeks ago principal owner Fred Wilpon was asked about Omar Minaya’s job status after the 2010 season.  Clueless Fred responded by saying:

“Is the sun coming up tomorrow?”

I cannot understand where this vote of confidence is coming from.  Omar Minaya has been the General Manager since the end of the 2004 season.  In that time Omar has built a team that went to the playoffs ONCE!  As we all know in 2007 and 2008 the teams that Omar Minaya built collapsed in September.  2009 was an embarrassment as the injuries mounted, resulting in the Mets finishing in 4th place.  If the season was a week longer there was a real possibility that the Nationals could have finished about the Mets.

Omar was given up to 150 million dollars and could not put a championship team together.  Omar gave Pedro Martinez a contract that in all honesty he didn’t deserve.  Pedro was actually coming off the worst season of his career. I liked Pedro and was happy to have him on the team but there was a reason why Boston didn’t want to sign him that long.  Pedro eas injured for most of his contract and did not help the Mets win a championship.  Omar has given guys like Carlos Beltran and Frankie “Punchy” Rodriguez contracts that they didn’t deserve because they were coming off of career years.  For some reason Omar felt the need to give Luis Castillo a 4 year deal even though he was clearly on a decline.  Omar bid against himself and signed Oliver Perez to a contract that he flat out didn’t deserve.

Omar has been a horrible in season General Manager.  The Mets have needed help every year at the trade deadline but Omar except for trading for Castillo in 2007 has done nothing.  Every Mets fan knows that when July 31 is over the Mets will not make a single trade.

Last year he embarrassed the team by accusing then Daily News beat writer Adam Rubin of lobbying for a job within in the organization because Rubin exposed the inexcusable behavior of Omar’s buddy Tony Bernazard.  Omar gave an apology that made K-Rod’s seem heartfelt.  Whenever he gives a statement it turns into a downright disaster.

Now I know Omar has made the Wilpon’s a lot of money.  Remember the Wilpon’s never said their goal was to win a World Series, it was just to play “meaningful baseball in September.”  From 2005-2008 Omar’s teams accomplished that goal.  Omar has done a pitiful job as the GM.  He has not developed an impact player, he has let prospects come up way too early and he has brought guys in just because of their nationality.  Anybody who has run a organization like this should be shown the door, but this team gives him a vote of confidence.  Only the Mets.

Go back to last year and the press conference from hell where Omar Minaya called out Adam Rubin and accused him of trying to obtain a job with player development. The announcement that the Mets decided to fire Tony Bernazard should have been a simple one.  The Mets could have easily put out a press release informing the media that after Omar Minaya’s “investigation” the organization decided to part ways with Bernazard.  Instead the Mets made a bad situation worse and added another distraction to the team.

As school children I’m sure a lot of us would ask why we need to know history and the answer always was “those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” I guess the Mets never heard that saying because last week was another example of the Mets not learning from history and to top it off the recent history of last year’s Bernazard disaster.

It’s been almost a week and there are still a lot of questions regarding how Carlos Beltran’s surgery occurred.  The bottom line for me and I’m sure most fans is a simple one: Carlos Beltran had surgery on his knee, he will not be able to resume baseball activities for at least 12 weeks and he won’t be back for awhile.  All the Mets had to do was tell the press and the fans why he had surgery, the result of the surgery, and when they expected him to be back on the team.  The Mets did not need to put it out in the universe that Carlos Beltran went out on his own and got surgery on his ailing knee.  Now the Mets have started a war of words with their Center Fielder and his agent.  Like many wars this war was unnecessary.  Beltran had the surgery, it was done, and the Mets even if they did not approve of the procedure should have simply lied and put on a happy face to the public.

It’s 19 days into the 2010 and already there was a scandal and unfortunately with the current way the club is run I’m sure there will be many other embarrassing moments to come, hopefully the Mets will prove me wrong.

“most of the injuries happened while the team was on the road and that the team relied too heavily on other team doctors”

Jeff Wilpon also mentioned that the Dodgers team doctors had made the original diagnosis that Jose Reyes had a calf injury.  The Dodgers were not happy about this and felt that Wilpon was wrong when he made that statement, they released a statement of their own saying that:

“the Mets have official documentation showing that the correct diagnosis of Mr. Reyes was made here in Los Angeles in May.”

According to the Dodgers, Dr. Neal ElAttrache examined Reyes and concluded that Jose Reyes did have a partly torn accessory hamstring tendon.  The Mets decided to have Jose play in one game during that series in which he lasted only a couple of innings, he ran to first, came up lame and did not play another game for the Mets for 2009.

The Times asked the Mets to respond to Dr. ElAttrache’s diagnosis Mets public relations guru Jay Horrowitz said:

“The Mets and Dodgers doctors have spoken.”

This is so typical of this team.  The Mets have shown this whole season that they refuse to take responsibility for anything that they do wrong, always trying to blame it on someone else.  We saw that earlier this season when Omar Minaya had to fire his friend Tony Bernazard he tried to discredit Adam Rubin, saying Rubin wanted a job with the Mets and once again Jeff Wilpon is now blaming the Dodgers and their medical team in the mishandling of Jose Reyes’ injury.

Word going around is that the Dodgers are not happy about the Mets making these false statements and now there is a rift between the Dodgers and Mets.  I’m not surprised in the least, I wonder how the Mets will try to spin this latest mistake, they will probably embarrass themselves and most Met fans I’m sure.

Yesterday Omar Minaya after what I am sure was an exhausting investigation into the Tony Bernazard situation finally announced that the Mets fired Tony Bernazard.  In his press conference yesterday afternoon Omar claimed that the Mets human resources department was already looking into Tony Bernazard’s behavior and an investigation was already being conducted quietly within the organization. Omar then said that Daily News beat writer Adam Rubin, the reporter who last week broke the story about Bernazard taking his shirt off and threatening 17 and 18 year old kids in the minors to a fight had been lobbying for the last few years for a job in player development.  Rubin was shocked and rightly so.

Omar Minaya is a liar, pure and simple.  Last week when Omar Minaya held his news conference to tell reporters that the Mets were “investigating” Tony Bernazard he gave no indication once so ever that the organization was conducting any sort of investigation into Tony Bernazard before then.  Let’s face it, there is no way that the Mets did not know what Tony Bernazard did in Binghamton.  Omar and the Mets were trying to sweep this situation under the rug until Adam Rubin dug it up and reported it in the Daily News.  Omar knew full well that a few weeks ago Tony Bernazard cursed out an employee at Citi Field in front of people and children because he wanted a seat behind homeplate that was being occupied by a scout for the Arizona Diamondbacks.  The public did not know of these unprofessional acts by Bernazard until Adam Rubin broke the story last week.  Later in the week the Post reported that Bernazard was in a verbal argument with K-Rod, which in my mind should have been the final nail in his coffin.

Omar said in his press conference yesterday afternoon that he stumbled a little bit when he read Adam Rubin’s column on what happened in Binghamton because Rubin over the years has lobbied for a job in Player Development with the Mets.  Rubin denied these charges, saying that he has asked team officials from different teams over the years how to break into that part of the business, Jeff Wilpon according to Rubin even offered more than once to sit down with him and talk to him about breaking into the business as well as a job with SNY but Rubin turned him down everytime.

Yesterday’s press conference should have been a slam dunk, Omar should have told the press that the Mets have decided to part ways with Tony Bernazard, field some questions and wish everyone a good afternoon.  This was the perfect chance to wash our hands of this, build on some momentum from the weekend and go out and play baseball in perhaps the most important series so far this season.  Unfortunately Omar as usual could not complete an easy task.  Much like last year when he fired Willie Randolph at 3AM EST on the road this firing turned into another circus.  Attacking Adam Rubin who admittedly has written some tough pieces on Omar and his job performance is like what Adam said “despicable.”  It seems to be nothing more than an attempt at getting some payback.  Payback for what you ask?  It’s no secret that Omar and Tony Bernazard are friends outside of baseball.  Bernazard was hired in December of 2004, 3 months after Omar was named the General Manager of the Mets.  Had Rubin never reported in what happened in Binghamton, Tony Bernerzard would still be employed by the Mets, taking his shirt off, threatening to beat up kids who are away from the families and in a different part of the world for the 1st time in their lives.

Omar decided to try and ruin Adam Rubin’s credibility, pure and simple by putting this out in the universe.  Last week Omar used the word investigate about 100 times during his news conference, I wonder if Omar was investigating Adam Rubin’s past?  Did Omar call around the major’s asking for any dirt on Adam Rubin?  I think what Omar set out to do was to try and get Rubin off the Mets beat.  2Omar was not being professional, he was being personal.  You cannot attack a beat writer because he wrote an article that forced you to fire your best friend.

I think it’s no secret that I have been calling for Omar’s head for months now.  I have not agreed with most of his free agent signings the last couple of years, the lack of trades and the horrible way he has built up the farm system.  That dislike was against Omar Minaya the General Manager of the New York Mets, the public figure, not Omar the person.  I’ve never met Omar Minaya, I don’t know anybody who knows him personally so I had no reason to dislike Omar Minaya the person until yesterday afternoon.  Omar showed his true colors yesterday afternoon by attacking Adam Rubin without producing any shred of evidence to support his claims.  If Adam Rubin has been lobbying for a job the last few years produce emails of inquiry, text messages or a resume from Rubin to the New York Mets. While Omar has not yet shown any evidence that backup his claims, Omar has showed that as a “man” he’s petty and in my opinion despicable.  There is no other word to describe him after yesterday.  I wanted Omar fired because I felt he wasn’t doing a good job, it was nothing personal until now.  I will smile and maybe even dance a little much like Tony Bernazard did in Anaheim when the Mets fired Willie Randolph.

The attack on Adam Rubin shows that with this organization if you say and/or write something negative about the Mets they will fire you and/or try to discredit you.  Anybody think it was a coincidence that Matt Yaloff and Lee Mazzilli were very critical last year of the Mets on SNY and are no longer with the channel?  It came out during this whole mess with Bernazard that he would threaten the younger kids, telling them that if they didn’t do what he liked he would get them.   Adam Rubin said that he has received letter from parents of minor leaguers confirming this and I hope after yesterday and the permission of the parents he will publish those letter in his column.  Fear and bullying seems to be something Omar approves of to run this organization.

You have to admire Adam Rubin.  He’s not a columnists, he’s a beat writer, he has to be with the team day in and day out.  To write a column like he did 2 weeks ago in the Daily News knowing that he would have to see Omar and the rest of the organization on a daily basis he still went ahead and wrote what he felt was wrong with the Mets and Omar.

Last night Omar held yet another press conference, this time with Jeff Wilpon by his side.  Omar did not really apologize, he just said basically that he shouldn’t have made the comments he made about Adam in a public forum.  In fact Omar seemed angrier than he was in the afternoon.  Jeff Wilpon by the way stood next to Omar, basically nodding, sipping a bottle of water.  He did say that he gets a lot of phone calls on a weekly basis seeking career advice. The Mets and Omar had a chance to clear the air, to apologize but instead looked worse than before.

Omar Minaya I don’t like you as a GM and now I like you even less as a person and I cannot wait to see you on the unemployment line!  Omar showed that he has no class, while Adam Rubin showed a lot of class yesterday, he could have said a lot of things about Omar but decided to not too stoop to that level.  I wouldn’t mind having someone like that in the organization working with our younger guys compared to “men” like Tony Bernazard and Omar Minaya.  Mets fans it’s obvious that Omar Must Go!

Who really cares about a behind the scenes guy who has run amok? Of course, its embarrassing, but more to the owners than to the fans. The fans want their team to hit baseballs out of the park and for the pitchers to strike out the opposition, and most importantly win ballgames.

What it does say loud and clear, is Rome is burning and Nero, er Omar, keeps fiddling. The organization is in a shambles and the buck stops with Minaya. So, brace yourself Mets fans for another round of jokes about a hapless organization.

That segues to my next point: If a player, manager, or general manager in New York needs a thick skin, likewise so does the fan. Because when a season goes rancid, and this one spoiled before the all-star break, everyone jumps on the negative bandwagon (led by David Letterman, no doubt).

So as more stories regarding the doings of one vile former Mets executive (Bernazard) come to light, prepare yourself. This is the front office version of Luis Castillo dropping a game-ending pop-up against the rival Yankees. What it underscores is how futile the Mets are right now, both on and off the field.

If Bernazard was such an ogre how did he last this long? Maybe the organization needs to look in the mirror at the manner in which they conduct business. If Bernazard was a tyrant towards minor leaguers exactly how would that aid in their development?

And why wasn’t he stopped sooner?

(I just remember him talking at length on the field to National’s Manager Manny Acta before a game that made Willie Randolph seethe. Obviously, Omar had no control over this underling.)

All this reflects poorly on Minaya’s reign, and possibly adds another nail in his coffin. You can only fire so many people beneath you before your boss wakes up and realizes you are incompetent and it’s your head the ax is next sharpened for.

But, all of this is no solace to Mets fans who have been treated to a (nightmare) season of subpar baseball that has become fertile fodder for Letterman’s monologue.

The NY Post and ESPN have already confirmed the news through their sources.

The press conference can be viewed on SNY or heard on WFAN.

This news comes as no surprise as Bernazard was under investigation by the Mets in response to a couple of reports by Adam Rubin of the Daily News.

In one report, Bernazard allegedly ripped off his shirt and challenged a clubhouse full of minor leaguers to a fight, and even referred to one of them by a vulgar profanity that referred to a female body part.

In another report, he went into a profanity filled tirade against a subordinate in a dispute over his seat at Citi Field. The altercation was confirmed by an Arizona scout who was shocked by his behavior.

The NY Post also uncovered some other disturbing news when they reported on a verbal altercation between Bernazard and Mets closer Frankie Rodriguez that almost came to blows had it not been broken up.

Bernazard was also in an altercation with Johan Santana, and was also largely responsible for fueling the dismissal of former manager Willie Randolph.

It’s quite a surprise that he’s managed to stick around as long as he has, and I also wonder if Minaya would have acted at all if not for the outrage over the Daily News reports.

This is definitely a case of addition by subtraction.

First of all, going back to the Halladay deal. Whether it was or wasn’t true, I am glad the Mets did not make the trade. Now before you all start screaming at me, hear me out. I am not saying I wouldn’t want to have him on our team. What is there not to want? But the problem I see is simple. He’s only out there every fifth day. If the Mets’ woes were something that he, or any other pitcher could fix, don’t you think Johan Santana could have and would have done it already?

I’m not saying the one-two punch of Santana and Halladay wouldn’t be awesome. And not only would we have him, but the Phillies would not. But you can’t go out and get a guy, just so another team doesn’t. It’s not even about who they would have given up for Halladay. It’s whether or not the deal made sense. Think about this for a moment. The Mets haven’t been able to provide Santana with any run support, what makes you think they’d provide it to Halladay? It’s the same team behind any pitcher.

The Mets need a bat more than they need another arm. Someone who can play every day, therefore making a difference every day, and hopefully drive in runs. Because no matter how good the pitcher is, you can’t win if you don’t score. The pitching would be fine if they weren’t under so much pressure to be perfect because their offense is non-existent. The way you can’t have a pitcher be the captain of a team because he is only out there every fifth day, (and I’m not so sure I buy that, but that’s the point I will argue) that’s the same way you can’t rely on a pitcher to carry a team. Halladay is not the answer.

To anyone who said that the Mets are going in the direction of pitching and defense and that’s why they made the trade to get Francoeur, you are only half right. They may be looking to go in that direction, but they could have kept Church for that.

Moving on to the Bernazard issue. The Mets need to move fast with their decision process. They can’t continue to have this cloud hanging over them. They have enough problems on the field. And it would be one thing if it was just at the Double A level. Once the whole K-Rod incident comes into play, it’s a whole new ballgame. (No pun intended.)

Omar needs to stop talking and start doing. How many times did he use the word “investigate”? Someone at SNY should have put up a running tally in the top corner of our screens. It reminded me of President Obama’s Inaugural speach. How many times did he use the word “change”? Hmmm…notice a similarity?

The Double-A squad spent the day trying to downplay a story in the New York Daily News that said Tony Bernazard, the Mets’ vice president for player development, ripped his shirt off and challenged the players to a fight during a post-game tirade in the team’s NYSEG Stadium clubhouse July 1.

“I think it’s been blown out of proportion,” B-Mets manager Mako Oliveras said after his team’s 9-3 loss to the Connecticut Defenders. “Tony was trying to pump the players up. He took his shirt off but he had a T-shirt on underneath. To me, he never threatened anybody or asked anybody to fight. Before he started the meeting, he took his shirt off. That’s it. I’m telling you, it’s been blown out of proportion.”

In the original story reported by the Daily News, it said that Bernazard singled out the team’s shortstop Jose Coronado and called him a derogatory name referring to the female anatomy. But Brian Moritz reports a different story.

“No, he didn’t call me a name or ask me to fight,” Coronado said.

Brian also includes a quote from catcher Josh Thole, who believes the entire story has been totally overblown.

“This has been taken way too far,” B-Mets catcher Josh Thole said. “It’s uncalled for as far as you guys (the media) blowing this out of proportion, so I don’t think anything more should be said about it.”

Earlier today, I wrote a lengthy piece on why Omar needs to go.

Imagine if Omar Minaya had addressed this situation as soon as he first got a whiff of it?

Maybe the entire story has been overblown…

However, it could have been avoided and it may have never gotten to the press if Omar had simply picked up the phone, find out exactly what happened, and straightened out anything that needed to be corrected or addressed.

Instead, the news went in one ear and out the other, and only now does Omar decide he has to investigate.

According to a new entry on Bart Hubbuch’s Mets blog for the NY Post, Mets minor league players were not the only ones subjected to the mad ravings of Mets VP Tony Bernazard. Bart Hubbuch writes,

It turns out that ripping his shirt off and challenging minor-league players to fight him isn’t even Tony Bernazard’s most recent incident of outrageous, hot-headed conduct.

New York Mets All-Star closer Frankie Rodriguez confirmed this afternoon that he exchanged words on the team bus last week in Atlanta with Bernazard, the club’s embattled vice president of player development.

“Yeah [it happened], but I’m not going to talk about that,” Rodriguez told The Post before tonight’s game here with the Nationals. “Not going to get into it.”

Another player, who asked to remain anonymous, told The Post today: “That guy [Bernazard] is crazy. No one like[s] him.”

The hits just keep on coming.

This evening while meeting with reporters, Omar Minaya sounded like a broken record when he answered about seven questions about his hand picked assistant, with the same canned answer. “We take these allegations seriously and we will investigate these reports.”

David Lennon was a guest on SNY’s Wheelhouse after Minaya’s presser and he believes that Bernazard will not be fired for this incident. Hubbuch also said as much in his report adding,

“several team sources are that Bernazard, who is tight with Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon, will not be fired.”

Minaya did say that Bernazard is now at home in New Jersey, but it didn’t sound like it was for disciplinary reasons or because of anything regarding all of the incidents..

I believe it was Brandon Tierney of SNY’s Daily News Live, who asked a great question.

Why is the guy who is supposed to be running the minor leagues, spending such an unusual and extraordinary amount of time with the major league team?

Who do the Mets think they are fooling?

They knew about these incidents long before they leaked out thanks in great part to the investigative efforts of Adam Rubin of the Daily News.

They had this information in their hands since prior to the All Star break, but did nothing until the incidents went viral and exposed the Mets organization as the most dysfunctional team in sports.

Here is what we posted early this morning.

This morning, we learned that while in the clubhouse of the Binghamton Mets, Tony Bernazard challenged a few of the Mets young players, who are mostly 21 years old or less, to a fist fight. He actually tore off his shirt and personally challenged some of the Mets prospects to a physical confrontation. Adam Rubin reports,

The Binghamton Mets clubhouse nearly turned into a scene out of WWE Raw recently, when VP for player development Tony Bernazard removed his shirt and challenged the Double-A players to a fight during a postgame tirade, multiples sources told the Daily News.

Bernazard particularly went after middle infield prospect Jose Coronado, using a slang term associated with a woman’s anatomy, a source indicated. The confrontation happened about 10 days before the All-Star break, according to insiders.

What does it say about the integrity of the Mets when they knowingly tried to hide this embarrassing bombshell, and worse yet, they were prepared to do nothing about it.

Now, all of a sudden they want to swoop in like Dick Tracy and investigate the matter? Really?

As for Omar… Shame on you!

Omar Minaya remarked that he knew about the incident and totally downplayed it yesterday. At worst, he is an accomplice after the fact. At best he is an irresponsible general manager who cares little about the image of the organization he is paid to run. His integrity has taken a huge hit.

I’m shocked, but not surprised. Nothing surprises me anymore where the Mets are concerned.

Since then, Tony B. manages to get his name in the news every now and then mostly because of some ridiculous quote or action.

This past week though, he’s really gone over the edge and crossed the line, and it’s time the Wilpons cut bait with this off the field distraction who gives most Mets fans and players the creeps.

On Monday we learned, through Adam Rubin of the Daily News, that Tony B. dropped a volley of profanities so vulgar in nature, that it would have made Tony Soprano blush. He did this in the middle of a game at Citi Field in front of Mets fans both young and old. Adam Rubin writes,

At a recent game at Citi Field, scouts had assembled in a row of seats behind home plate. Mets VP Tony Bernazard showed up during play and wanted a seat occupied by a young Diamondbacks scout. Bernazard’s deputy, already seated in the row, suggested to the Mets VP that he wait until the half-inning ended, to minimize the disruption. Bernazard then ripped into his Ivy League-educated deputy with a profanity-laced tirade, mortifying observers in the section.

This incident fueled talk show radio for most of Monday morning and afternoon, particularly the Boomer and Carton show on WFAN who ripped Tony B. throughout their entire show and called the Mets the most dysfunctional organization in baseball.

This morning, we learned that while in the clubhouse of the Binghamton Mets, Tony Bernazard challenged a few of the Mets young players, who are mostly 21 years old or less, to a fist fight. He actually tore off his shirt and personally challenged some of the Mets prospects to a physical confrontation. Adam Rubin reports,

The Binghamton Mets clubhouse nearly turned into a scene out of WWE Raw recently, when VP for player development Tony Bernazard removed his shirt and challenged the Double-A players to a fight during a postgame tirade, multiples sources told the Daily News.

Bernazard particularly went after middle infield prospect Jose Coronado, using a slang term associated with a woman’s anatomy, a source indicated. The confrontation happened about 10 days before the All-Star break, according to insiders.

“That’s an all-timer if true,” an AL official said upon hearing the account, which was corroborated by multiple people with ties to the Mets.

Mets GM Omar Minaya acknowledged the incident but didn’t seem to be bothered by it.

“I know he did have a team meeting with them,” Minaya told the Daily News. “It was not a ‘you-guys-have-been-great meeting.’ I know he spoke to them in a stern voice. But as far as what he was wearing, what kind of shoes he was wearing, I don’t know anything about that.”

How many more embarrassments must we endure before the Mets finally shake this team up from top to bottom?

Isn’t it painful enough to watch this team day in and day out without these added twists?

We have become the laughing stock of baseball. At least the 1962 Mets were lovable, but this my friends, can only be described as pathetic and demoralizing.

What concerns me most right now, is the real possibility that we will once again usher in the 5-7 year period where no star player will want to play for the Mets. No free agent would get caught dead in a Mets uniform. Sure, we’ll still be able to get an aging star who is past their prime to accept the Mets’ millions. (AKA: Mo Vaughn, Kevin Appier, Tom Glavine) But don’t expect any 28-year old superstar to sign on the dotted line any time soon.

I bet if Johan Santana and Carlos Beltran had to do it again, Santana would have rejected the trade, and Beltran would be patrolling centerfield for the New York Yankees.

It looks like Mets assistant GM, Tony Bernazard is back to his back-stabbing ways, and this time it is Jerry Manuel who is lining up to be his next victim. Bill Madden of the Daily News writes,

Nevertheless, there’s still no getting around the fact the Mets are presently a depleted mess, plagued not only by this unfathomable rash of injuries to their most important players, but by the same inner turmoil that eventually led to Willie Randolph’s demise. I’m told that assistant GM Tony Bernazard, whom Randolph found to be an intrusive  influence in the clubhouse, especially with the Latin players, has been no less undermining with Jerry Manuel. For whatever reason, Bernazard seems to have the Wilpons’ ears, even more so than Minaya, and in organization meetings he’s never reticent to suggest areas where the manager might be doing a better job. I’m also told the Met high command ordered Manuel to tone down the not-so-subtle pleas for help in his pre and postgame mediafests and his periodic candor about his team’s deficiencies.

The Mets organization has to be one of the most dysfunctional in the league. The miscommunication and misrepresentations, the mixed messages, a new park with little to no Mets identity, the mishandled injuries, etc. Also, I knew it was only a matter of time before the Wilpon’s would put a gag order on Manuel crying to anyone who will hear that he needs another bat.

Alex Cora has had enough of the lack of fundamentals on the Mets, especially when it comes to bad fielding, running, .

“It’s kind of comical… Every time you put on ESPN, they’re making fun of us. Instead of being in the Top 10 plays, we’re on the worst 10 plays. It gets to the point where you get tired of it.”

 You’ve got to play good defense. Look at the teams leading the divisions — they catch the ball. Right now, I feel we’re the worst defensive team in the league. It doesn’t matter who you don’t have. You can’t go into slumps with defense. You’ve got to catch the ball. You can’t give a big-league team more than 27 outs, and we’ve been doing a pretty consistent job of that the last few weeks. They make you pay, man.”

Fernando Tatis sounded a little frustrated himself,

“One day I’m in left, the next day I’m in right, the next day I’m somewhere else, so it’s difficult. You have to really concentrate, especially when men are in scoring position. You have to anticipate the play.”

I’m glad Alex Cora spoke up after the game. Someone needed to say something about the incredible lack of fundamentals from everyone; veterans and rookies alike.

Are you ready for some more Ollie Follies? One day after Perez was charged with three runs on five hits while striking out four and walking four in a AAA start, the erratic lefthander says he’s feeling strong and he’s ready to go.

“The most important thing is I’m feeling real good and I’m not thinking about my knee. I was feeling really strong. I think I’m ready. I was a little wild, but more important, I feel strong… The key was not thinking about the knee, but thinking about a real game. I tried to feel the pressure and make it feel like a big-league game. I feel really good. I showed emotion because I don’t like to lose.”

The Mets have had little to show for the three-year, $36 million deal they gave Perez in the off season. He has a 9.97 ERA, and he hasn’t pitched for the Mets since getting knocked out in the third inning against the Phillies on May 2nd. Perez will get the start on Wednesday against the first place Dodgers who just got Manny Ramirez back. This oughta be fun.

The Mets will try to salvage the final game of the Phillies series this afternoon. Lets Go Mets!