There is an old football saying that states, “the most popular guy in town is always the backup quarterback.”  Although that phrase may not directly translate to the game of baseball, I think we can all relate it to the Mets current managerial situation.  The incumbent skipper, Terry Collins, has seen his tenure dominated by poor play thanks in part to a poor roster.  Lurking in the distance is current Las Vegas manager, Wally Backman, who at [...]

The Mets have assured Terry Collins that his job is not in danger and his future with the team will be discussed when his contract expires at the end of this season, two sources told Newsday. Not only is Collins safe, there have been no conversations about Wally Backman as a potential replacement, either for this year or beyond. In fact, Backman’s bold guarantees this week about fixing Ike Davis have rubbed some in the [...]

Yes. This was a year too late. While most Met fans were jumping for joy when Ike Davis re-discovered his swing in the second half of last year, I was one of the few who preferred demoting him to AAA to rework his swing and more importantly his mindset. I’m not saying I was right, but who are we kidding? I was right and I stood by it then and now. It’s a shame because [...]

Poor Ike Davis…  He gets demoted to Triple-A, deservedly so, and leaves for Las Vegas without commenting on his feelings or the matter. The obviously crushed first baseman kept his head down after the game on Sunday as he emptied his locker, packed his bags and headed for the airport. SNY sent their Baseball Insider Andy Martino to Vegas and asked Davis what was going through his mind after a couple of days to let [...]

With center field prospect Matt den Dekker still a long way from returning from the DL (read more here), and Rick Ankiel now hitting only .218 with a .286 on-base for the Mets, Terry Collins will look to give rookie Juan Lagares some extended play. Lagares has been languishing on the bench since being promoted, but Collins is resolved to change that and will start playing the toolsy centerfielder against righthanded pitching. “We’ve got to start [...]

Bob Klapisch of The Record, posted a strong rebuke of the current Mets team and says that the team was “built to fail.” “Niese’s masterpiece aside, the Mets have been careening toward disaster for most of May and are now on pace for 100 losses. No one should be surprised; this roster has been badly flawed from the outset. Still, it’s disturbing how quickly the season has unraveled, leaving in its wake the sense that [...]

We are getting perilously close to the time in the baseball season where free-falling clubs tend to fire their manager. Should the Mets sack Terry Collins in the wake of his ripping the fans – who by the way, aren’t coming out to Citi Field these days – they can claim justifiability, but would be making a mistake. Like many quick-fixes, it will not work. Despite Collins’ outburst, firing him is not the answer as it screams panic. [...]

The Terry Collins era was always going to go down as the bridge to brighter days. How else could you explain Sandy Alderson making Collins his first manager with the track record he possessed three years ago? Collins oversaw teams collapse in Houston and Anaheim, with the latter resulting in a mutiny. He was well-placed as a minor-league field coordinator, and could still be valuable in such a role for an organization going forward. The [...]

It must have been fate that I happened to be in my car at 1:00 pm yesterday. After listening to WFAN’s Mike Francesa, I see the other side to this Valdespin issue – in fact it goes beyond Valdespin. I only was in the car long enough to hear his opening monologue, but you know what? He was dead on. Look, Valdespin is a jerk – he’s an immature bench player who constantly finds himself [...]