So, I just finished reading a post on metsblog.com, where Matthew Cerrone posts a tweet from Ian O’Connor regarding Joe Torre’s comments about whether he’d listen to the Wilpon’s regarding a chance to manage the Mets.
Here are the quotes from Cerrone and also Michael Baron that left me turning my head to the side like a confused lhasa apso.
“I have yet to speak with a Mets fan who is in favor of Torre managing the Mets. I mean, they respect him, as do I, but he’s not the answer for what ails this team.” – Cerrone
“However, at this point in time, the Mets need to bring in a guy who not only gives them a great chance to win and is a good on-field strategist, but also a personality with some spice – someone who is a no-nonsense guy. As much as I respect Torre, I don’t think he fits that mold.” – Baron
Before I explain what confuses me let me be clear, I think talking about a new Manager before figuring out the General Manager position is a mistake. I don’t think you get the best GM you can get when you tell him or her they have full control, oh except on picking a manager. Doesn’t work for me. I do not know if Joe Torre is a fit for the Mets because I do not know what direction they want to go in 2011.
Here is what I do know.
To say that Joe Torre doesn’t “fit” this team as presently constructed is totally wrong in my opinion. This idea that the Mets need somebody with “fire” is honestly starting to get to me. The Mets do not need a sideshow Manager. They need somebody who knows how to win. Is Jose Reyes missing “fire” and excitement? What about Santana? Is David Wright not competitive?
It’s like some of us think we need a Manager to haze the current roster. This is why I don’t totally buy into the idea of Wally Backman. People want Backman because they seem to think he’s going to bring this magical fire to the Mets.
He’d be a rookie manager, coming into a clubhouse that has an established idea of how they need to act.
Winning in the minor leagues is not the same as winning in the Major Leagues. You can be tough on a Single A player, but that doesn’t mean that all of a sudden Carlos Beltran is going to respond to the same treatment that a 19 year old kid does.
You have no idea how Wally Backman will perform managing in the Major Leagues. If you want to totally rebuild, fine, he’s worth a shot. However, this idea that the Mets next Manager has to have some “spice” is basically saying, if the Manager is Wally Backman or Ozzie Guillen, then it’s a failure.
You know what the 2011 Mets need? Somebody who knows how to win, and somebody who can teach David Wright, Jose Reyes, Ike Davis, Mike Pelfrey etc. how to be winners.
You think David Wright is gonna learn how to perform in a big spot because if he doesn’t he’s going to get yelled at? Would that work for you at your job?
You think Jose Reyes is going to learn to stay conditioned, and to focus on his play and not his celebration when he’s got a Manager like Ozzie Guillen who makes himself the headline?
“Not the answer for what ails this team,” what ails this team is underachieving and not knowing how to become a champion that EVERYBODY knows guys like Beltran, Wright, Reyes should be.
Do you think Derek Jeter would’ve become Derek Jeter if he had Ozzie Guillen as his Manager?
I don’t know if I want to see Torre in a Mets uniform or not, but if the direction this team decides to go is to continue to try and “win now,” then I want to see a Manager who has the mentality of “win now,” and not “discipline now.”
I want a guy who can see the Mets roster and figure out ways to win, and figure out ways to educate our young leaders and mold them into champions, not a guy who is walking in just to add some “spice.”
