Good morning Mets fans,
Ain’t much in the papers (I did read one story that suggests that Jeter will re-sign with the Yankees. Good job Scoop.)
Mets Today nailed it:
.. Mets fans are either disinterested in, or don’t want, Collins or Melvin. If either is announced as manager, it will be received with the pomp and circumstance of a cricket concert. No one will care. No one will feel one way or the other. And when the tough times occur in 2011, the fans will start blaming the guy they didn’t want in the first place — whether it’s fair or not. They’ll lose faith in “the plan”. They’ll think the Mets just sold them yet another bill of goods. They’ll get angry at first, and then they’ll stop caring. In turn, they’ll stop buying tickets to games at Citi Field, and starting talking about football — just as they did this past summer.
High stakes poker for Sandy. I’ll get behind whoever he picks, but the above scenario is very realistic.
…
Junior’s Baby Sister showed up for breakfast in her blue Mets cap. Lots of hope for this one.
This week on Mets Police: obviously the manager is the big topic, expect this and every blog to spend three days on this. I’m particularly looking forward to 37 tweets all saying “Mets expected to name xxx manager” on Monday.
Later in the week it’s time for the (somehow) annual tradition of Mets Turkeys. Email your suggestions to [email protected] Yes, I already have Ollie on the list. Ollie is having an awful season in the Mexican Winter League which is troubling because I went 7 and 5 there myself last winter.
I have some ticket stuff for the next week (keep those suggestions for columns rolling in) but I’m holding them because the combination of manager and holiday will distract everyone.
I’ll likely do Holiday Filler and recap Mets blogs I dig….suggestions to [email protected]
I’m still working on the sister site Sports Police in between work and a full calendar of children’s sporting events. I think we could use a solid basketball guy over there if you are interested.
I’m on twitter @metspolice (and @nysportspolice)
Keep the faith Mets fans…even the losers get lucky sometimes.
I’m going to trust that Sandy Alderson will make the right choice until he gives me a reason not to.
I’m not excited about any of the four finalists… but really, why should we be getting excited about the manager? He doesn’t hit, field, or pitch. He doesn’t make game-winning plays. He fills out a lineup card and tries to make the right moves to let the players win the game.
Tell me I won’t have to look at Luis Castillo & Oliver Perez next year – that will make me happy.
He doesn’t hit, pitch, field etc.
Does a symphony conductor play an instrument? What do you think he’s doing up there, on the podium? Dancing? There’s a lot of preparation that you never see, it’s backstage, in practice, etc. He sets the tone. He decides the pace. He picks who plays what.
Dude, seriously, you completely and deeply (I’ll throw a Bush-ism in here) misunderestimate the role of manager.
I’ll give you more, Paul.
The conductor is in the position of motivating the players. They’ve already got contracts. What’s to motivate them?
They were motivated enough to make it through all of the competition to drafted or signed, then they made it through all of the competition to reach the majors and then they made it through more competition to stick in the big leagues.
I think you’re doing a disservice to them to suggest that major league players can’t continue to motivate themselves.
Further, the case has been made that managers really don’t do anything to add wins to a team’s victory total.
A team has its own personality, apart from its individual players. That personality needs nurturing.
That aside, players need incentive to know if they go to the wire for the manager, that the manager is going to go the distance for them too.
Chief, just more evidence, your lack of finding a basketball person, of just how much basketball blows.
I could live with Hale (despite his being an Arizona alum) and naturally, from an emotional stand point, I want Backman, but I will what I have said all along, Collins & Melvin would nauseate me.