The Dark Side Gets Darker

That is some irony right there. “The dark side gets darker”. Seriously? Leave it to me to come up with something like that.

Well, as you all know, and probably are hung over from celebrating, the New York Yankees have officially been kicked out of the 2010 MLB postseason. Go ahead! Scream your head off. I’ll wait a second. Done? Good.

The Texas Rangers did what the Minnesota Twins could not do. They sent the Skanks of New York to the golf course. Hey Skanks, say hello to David Wright and the rest of our boys. Let them know we miss them. Well, it is our reality. We are dealing.

While everyone was celebrating the win of Texas, I read this status on FB by none other than a Yankee fan:

So people would rather see a crack head win the MVP rather than a Yankees. And they say we have problems.

This was followed by:

I think Met fans are defending Hamilton because their entire 1986 team was on crack like he was.

The first led to my FB status change to:

To all the dumbass Skankee fans out there cracking on Hamilton: SHUT THE HELL UP! He proved you can change your life around. He deserves this. Stop being bitter!

Fans of the New York Yankees have repeatedly called out Mets fans for being bitter. Well the statuses of the above Yankee fan proves just how bitter a person who deals with a severe loss can be. I mean, watching A-Roid just standing there at home plate watching strike three like the biggest dumbass on earth is kind of devastating. Mets fans know what that’s like from 2006. So does my heart bleed for them? Hardly.

What makes the first status the dumbest comment of all time by a Yankee fan is the lack of logic. Was it not years ago when the Yanks brought to their team a big drug addict in Doc Gooden? Wait there was more. Let’s see. Darryl Strawberry, Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, the man now known as A-Roid. I’m sure there are plenty more.

To say that Yankee fans, not all just some, are classless is not completely fair. They’re stupid too. Why would you bring up someone’s personal life struggles as a reason to not give someone the MVP award? Hey stupid! The award is for contributions on the field, not off it. Did you think about that before your dumbass self decided to talk out of your ass?

We can talk about A-Roid and Clemens because their drugs affected their play on the field. If they get the MVP award, it is because drugs helped them get to where they were. The award Josh Hamilton got was for what he did on the field. His alcohol and drug problem was off the field and a few years ago. The battles he fought affected the life of his wife, children, and family. What A-Roid and Clemens did had nothing to do with their family.

See, what some Yankee fans fail to realize is personal lives do not get touched. You want to attack the player for what they did on the field, feel free. You leave the family life alone. You leave their personal life alone. This is not a joke. This is serious.

So I agree with the decision for Hamilton to get the MVP. Did you not see his numbers for the ALCS? The man was a beast. He batted .350 with four home runs. You seriously do not think he deserved it?

The anger, that soon translated to rage, that I felt after reading that status was beyond crazy. If I could have, I would have reached through the computer and beaten the life out of that Yankee fan, not just for being a Yankee fan, but for being the dumbest one on earth. I’m sure Yankee fans everywhere are proud of this one. Stupid!

Wilpons Turn To Speak

So there was a lot that was said during the press conference with Fred and Jeff Wilpon. A lot of conflicting stories, a shocker and some stupid reporters. This presser was mostly repetitive. If you did not watch it, be grateful. I lost nearly an hour of my life listening to repetitions.

I will say that you could see how tired, upset and hurt the elder Wilpon was. I actually felt a little sorry for him. I seem to be feeling sorry for a lot of people today. He knows what needs to be done and I think he will certainly see to it that it happens.

On to the presser:

Both made statements to start off. However, Fred Wilpon’s stood out the most.

We’ve had [some] good years but too many bad years. I love the New York Mets. I love this franchise. They are a part of our family. As CEO of this team, I have the last word… The buck stops here. So I take the responsibility [for what happens on the field]. The last four years have been the most frustrating and disappointing.

Regarding Omar Minaya, Wilpon Sr. said:

We encourage Minaya to take some time off and think about what his future is going to be. He is going to do that. He can stay with the organization. The new GM will have to make the decision for him to stay.

Regarding the new GM, Jeff stated:

We will ask permission to speak to new GM candidates and hire someone as soon as we believe is feasible. We are considering up and comers and those with long-term experience. We are going outside the organization so we can get some new ideas and energize our team and fan base.

There is no internal candidate right now. So we will be looking outside of the organization.

The old GM had [autonomy]. (In other words, he probably will as well.)

(Type of GM) More experienced GMs, some who have lost their jobs and might get a second chance. Even some young guys. [We will look at] what kind of culture they want to bring in.

Why did Fred Wilpon feel so bad, disappointed:

Because the expectations were high. We thought we were on the right track. We came close….were close but we couldn’t close. We invested a lot fo time and energy and passion and money and we did not get to where we wanted to get to. We made inveestment that did not prove to be great investments.

Clearing up perceptions on ownership, it was said they would have taken advisement on dumping players. The claim it was never brought to their attention. Wilpon continued with:

Play the players who are going to win that particular day. They were not told not to play them. They were told to play the player to win that particular day.

Minaya has never been told that he was not told who to sign or who not to sign. This is a very good jo. People want to be teh GM and the Manager. (Really? That was not my perception. lol)

We are not capable of picking baseball players. That has been the perception. It is an incorrect perception.

Decisions are made between [Fred, Jeff and Katz]. Jeff’s responsibilities are not to pick baseball players. Jeff’s responsibility is to execute it…in running this entire business.

The attention was brought about more firings. Jeff answered:

John Ricco and everyone else will know their fates tomorrow.

Could someone come in and say they hate everyhing and want:

Jeff: We would listen to that plan and see that that guy gets the job.

Wilpon Sr.: We would not want someone to make that decision the first day. But he has to make an assessment.

Clearing it up regarding players:

Jeff: We can’t just dump all of that salary out int shtreet. He has to come up with interesting ways to do that.

On the topic of players, it was asked about getting rid of David Wright:

You’d have to listen. Let me be clear – David Wright is part of the long-term plan if I have anything to say about it.

Back to asking about finances which I am a little tired of hearing about because Marty Noble seems to think SNY viewership is down. Wilpon Sr. seemed perturbed by this:

SNY is reaching a record viewership.

The Madoff issue…the money smarts. There is no question. You don’t like to lose money that was stolen from you. But the betrayal is something I will never ever forget. I will go to my grave remembering that. That was a total betrayal of us. We were investors for something like 25 yers. But it was only one part of our busisness. But that’s not part of the business that is running the [mets].

Short-term goal for 2011:

Jeff: New GM, new manager then to win games.

There will be an announcement regarding ticket sales. What will get Mets fans to buy tickets again?:

Jeff: The change has to be the drive.

Other interesting quotes:

Jeff: Those who don’t remember the past are doomed to repeat it. Of course there will be changes in how we do everything.

Jeff: We’re frustrated and upset like our fans.

Wilpon, Sr.: Our job is too put people in a position to succeed. We thought were giving them resources to succeed. So we have to take on that responsibility. If the people you put in did not succeed, we did not do what we wanted to do. So we have to take on that responsibility.

Wilpon, Sr.’s message to fans:

We’ll work as hard as anybody can work. We’ll hire the best person or people we can possibly find.

Side note

After the presser, Jeff Wilpon spoke with Kevin Burkhardt and stated that HoJo will have a job with the organization.

A Teary Minaya Talks To Media

A little while ago, with tears in his eyes, former Mets GM Omar Minaya spoke with the media. Here are some of the things he had to say.

I think I have been fortunate to have been able to work here. It has been a dream. The only part of the dream that didn’t happen was winning a World Series….We had talent, we put talent together. The team has to close it out. We just couldn’t get it done.

To Mets fans:

I want to thank the Mets fans. They have been very loyal. The organization [minor leagues] are in good shape. The major league club, the nucleus of the this team, is healthy. The ownership are committed to winning. Thank you for their support. Keep the faith. Keep on believing. Its going to happen. I believe the nucleus  of this organization are trying as hard as they can to make it happen. Thank you for the support over the years.

Regarding working in another role with the Mets:

We spoke about that. It is not fair to give me another role. At some point in time we may discuss that. The GM should have autonomy to have the option to hire his own people.

Something may happen later on. We did talk about a future role. But let’s allow the new GM to come in and see what happens first. I am open to it.

Did he feel a change was needed:

I think we needed a change. I spoke to Fred and Jeff about this. We had three years that we had to finish the job. We came one game short. …we are expected to win. I was given the payroll to get the job done. Everybody has tried. The bottom line is the job was not done. It has not happened. I totally agree with them that a change was needed.

Where will he go? Remember he can still come here and work as a scout:

I am a baseball guy. I’m going to spend some time with my kids. I have been blessed to have been surrounded by so many great people.

I’ll be doing some type of talent evaluating somewhere. As a New Yorker I want to see this organization win the World Series.

Minaya feels the new GM should be the one to choose who comes in. While he would be open to staying on in another form, he would like the new GM to make that call. This will be discussed later in the offseason.

I would like to wish Omar Minaya the best of luck wherever he ends up. Contrary to how other Mets fans feel, he did do some things right like getting our farm system in order. So I would like to thank him for that. Sorry to see you go. From a personal stand point, you did more than you and other Mets fans realize.

So thank you.

Relieved of Duties

The announcement has been made. Executive VP and GM Omar Minaya along with Manager Jerry Manuel have been relieved. In layman’s terms, they were fired. The Mets have declined his option. There has been no word if Minaya will be reassigned. Since the Mets still owe him money, he can still be around. However, he also has the option to leave should he choose.

Here is a statement by COO Jeff Wilpon:

We need to hire a new General Manager with fresh perspective who will transform this club into a winner that we want and our fans deserve.

Jeffy Boy fails to realize that in order to make the club a winner, he needs to mind his own business. Take a backseat my friend. You are not the GM. You have no credentials to be a GM. It is not in your job description. Just because you own the team, that does not mean you can play GM.

From the official Mets statement

Thank you for your support during another extremely disappointing season. Like you, all of us at the Mets had high expectations for 2010 and we did not come close to meeting them. Since reaching the National League Championship Series in 2006, we have underperformed. The failure is unacceptable and we share your anguish…

We appreciate all that Omar and Jerry have done for the Organization and thank them for their time and effort. Changes like these are never easy, especially when dealing with people you like and respect.

So Merry early Christmas Mets fans. You got what you wanted and demanded.

Reyes Doubts Future

We need to be ready. Whatever happens, happens. You never know. But like I said, [Manuel and Minaya] are still with us. I don’t even know if I’m going to be here next year. Like I said, let’s see what happens.

Those were the words of Jose Reyes regarding the firing of Mets GM Omar Minaya and manager Jerry Manuel.

Well in that comment, it seems Reyes is doubting his future with the New York Mets. He feels they might not want him to be around next year. Why? It is all about the contract. Apparently, the way his mind is working right now after all of his injuries, he feels the Mets will not pick up his option.

I think it would be stupid not to. Like it or not, Reyes does bring quite a bit to the table like speed and ability to get on base. He is agile and has a great glove when his head is in the game. He sets the pace for any game. Once he gets going, everyone on the team gets going. Reyes is the team spark plug.

Contrary to what many feel, I do not think breaking up the core is the answer to this team. The core is good. So we need to keep them. This includes David Wright, Carlos Beltran and Reyes. I’ll throw in Ike Davis and Ruben Tejada for good measure.

Firings and Hirings

As if nobody saw this coming? You have to be completely daffy and lack common sense to have not come to theconclusion of the New York Mets getting rid of their GM Omar Minaya and manager Jerry Manuel. The internet is being flooded with Mets fans celebrating over the firing of these two.

SI.com and the New York Post are both reporting the announcement will be made by Wednesday. Now, Minaya can be placed in another spot with the team. We all know he is a great talent scout. Will that happen? We’ll see. As of right now, nothing is being said except they are both fired.

At least it is a start in the right direction. So now we wait to see who the next GM and manager will be. While everyone has talked about new Arizona Diamondbacks GM, Kevin Towers, there are still others ripe for the taking. One person who may not be even getting looked at is Mets assistant GM, John Ricco. For good reason. We do not want any of the Minaya regime to remain.

A couple of names being tossed around by Jon Heyman are former Diamondbacks GM Josh Byrnes, White Sox assistant GM Rick Hahn, former A’s GM Sandy Alderson and current Rangers GM, Jon Daniels. Being that Daniels is under contract and the Rangers are going to the playoffs, do not expect him here. Even if he is from Bayside.

Now for manager, Mets fans would love to see Bobby Valentine or Wally Backman. We’ve been over this half a dozen times already. No need for another visit. Whoever they choose, however, has got to be better than what we’ve had to endure.

What the Mets need are two guys who have balls. Having a “Yes Man” is not the answer. People say that me being pushy is a good thing. When people push me, I push back. This is the new attitude that the new GM and manager need to have. If the Wilpons push them, they need to push back. Push Jeffy Boy flat on his ass and tell him to “back the hell up”. If they cannot find a guy like that, we can look forward to another dismal season.

I believe the new GM and manager will be key to the 2011 season. It will  be a very long, stressful and tedious offseason trying to right this ship. Well, that and ownership knowing where their place is, like behind the desk with the checkbook out and a pen in hand.

So what will it take for you to believe in the organization again? Selling the team is not going to happen. Let us be realistic.

Another Lost Season

Today I find myself thinking sadly about the fast approaching end of the 2010 season. (No baseball to watch makes me sad.) I have been thinking about the last few weeks that have had Mets fans agreeing that change must take place, but disagreeing about what that changes should look like.

So, I sit here in weird anticipation of Oct 4th….the day after the end of the season.

I will be at the last three games of the season as I have done for the last ten years. 1999 was the first year that I had done that. So I have been through the last week of seasons that were fun and heartwarming while others have down right SUCKED.

I have watched Bobby V, Art Howe, Willie Randolph and now Jerry Manual as each was in the last days of what was originally a promising career. Instead, for them , it turned out to be a walk into the abyss. A walk that was most times not solely because of their own actions.

Bobby V had Steve Phillips, a disaster that Bobby could never overcome. Art Howe had… well …Art Howe. Nice guy and all but he was compared to a character from “Weekend at Bernies” and I am sure you know which one. Then there was Willie…an ex yankee- which in this town gave him a major disadvantage right from the start. But he surprised us as he ALMOST lead us into the promised land. (Thanks Carlos).

Now we have Jerry. And he has had constant adversity to contend with…ie..injuries, Minaya, Wilpons, etc.
Change is needed again. The bottom line is that they (The NY Mets) have the ABILITY to get the talent and the ABILITY to manage the talent.

SO what the hell are they doing wrong? As with any company it all starts at the TOP. All of the responsibility begins at the TOP.

So here it is, almost October 4th and we as Mets Fans look to the TOP. We need some MAJOR IMPACTFUL CHANGES.
CHANGES that will lead to MAJOR IMPACTFUL METS BASEBALL. We have the ABILITY, so show us that you care. Make those changes and make them MAJOR. Those at the TOP owe it to us Mets Fans.