MMO Fan Shot by Matt Dorritie

And just like that, Carlos Beltran’s tenure as manager of the New York Mets is over before it began.

Beltrán’s dismissal should not come as any great surprise. His name was one of the first linked to the Astros sign-stealing scandal when the story first broke, and he was the only player named in Commissioner Robert Manfred’s report detailing the league’s findings from its investigation.

While he was not in a position of authority at the time of the incident – unlike fellow recently-fired managers A.J. Hinch and Alex Cora – it has been reported that he was one of the key figures responsible for setting up the scheme.

When news of the scandal first broke in November – a mere eight days after the Mets hired Beltrán – General Manager Brodie Van Wagenen proclaimed, “Anything that happened, happened for another organization. I have no idea if anything did or did not (happen). But at this point, I don’t see any reason why this is a Mets situation.”

In this context, there is an argument to be made that the Mets could have stood by their selection of Beltrán as the team’s manager. The Mets are not culpable for the actions of the Houston Astros, and finding a new manager three months into the offseason is a position no general manager wants to be in.

Manfred also explicitly stated that no players would face penalties for their roles in the scandal, so it does not appear that the league was putting pressure on the organization to remove Beltrán.

However, the upside of keeping Beltrán was minimal. Past transgressions don’t necessarily equate to future ones, but the mere mention of Beltrán’s name in Manfred’s report immediately damaged his reputation in the game.

When Van Wagenen was hired as the Mets general manager last offseason, he spoke at length about his intent to build a positive, winning culture in the Mets clubhouse. Keeping a new manager, especially one Van Wagenen hand-picked himself, who was directly involved in one of the biggest cheating scandals in league history was not beneficial towards instilling such a culture.

From a game management perspective, Beltrán has no prior experience as a manager at any level. The ethics of the situation notwithstanding, the Mets may have been able to publicly justify keeping Beltrán on board if he had a proven track record as an accomplished Major League manager. However, no such record exists, making it impossible for the organization to publicly declare its trust in Beltrán to lead the team solely based on his merits as a game manager.

Herein lies perhaps the biggest issue in this ordeal: trust. It is difficult to guess how Mets players would have reacted had Beltrán remained at the helm. Some may have reserved judgment or viewed his involvement in the scandal as a one-time mistake. However, others may view him as the ringleader of the scandal, which would have immediately put his credibility in the clubhouse into question.

The issue of trust also extends to Beltrán’s relationship with the front office. In their public statement announcing Beltrán’s removal, Van Wagenen and COO Jeff Wilpon declared their belief that Beltrán was honest and forthcoming with them. Yet, trust, like much else in life, comes in shades of gray.

The fact is that Beltrán lied publicly about his involvement in the scandal prior to the Mets hiring him as their manager. Given that the relationship between managers and the front office is more entwined than ever, it is hard to imagine that Van Wagenen and ownership would have felt comfortable instilling him as the team’s new leader had they known his involvement in the scandal.

In the end, Beltrán’s removal, however disappointing, was inevitable. Now, it is the organization’s responsibility to find the right manager capable of guiding this team in the right direction moving forward.

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This Fan Shot was contributed by MMO reader Matt Dorritie. Have something you want to say about the Mets? Share your opinions with over 26,000 Met fans who read this site daily.

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