Welcome Back Carlos Beltran
While there are many potential pitfalls, the New York Mets hiring Carlos Beltran as the 22nd manager in team history is amazing, and it is cause for celebration.
By and large, it does seem like Mets fans are celebrating. Perhaps, it is because he is replacing an unpopular Mickey Callaway. It could be that after all this time the fans who had a certain level of frustration with him realized they were unfair, and with time having passed, they can better appreciate him. Whatever the case, the fans are excited, and that’s great.
Another factor here is after years where there was a hang up over Beltran wanting to sign with the Yankees in 2005, he made his intentions known he wanted to be a Met. As a result, Beltran only interviewed for the Mets job eschewing opportunities with the Cubs and Padres.
He now becomes the Mets first ever Hispanic manager. For what it’s worth, he was also their first true Hispanic superstar. As such, he is fully aware of what he’s taking on, and to that end, there’s arguably no one better to handle all that is coming his way.
His reward is not just being the Mets manager, but he’s also going to get to manage the Mets when they play in his home of Puerto Rico.
In Beltran, the Mets are getting a savant. As described in the book Astroball, Beltran picked up on things before the analytically driven team could. He also helped bring the team together as one unit. He accomplished that not just by being multilingual but a leader interested in making everyone in that clubhouse comfortable feeling like a member of the team.
With Beltran coming home to the Mets, we can envision how well it worked when other former Mets managed this team.
Gil Hodges engineered the 1969 Miracle Mets. Bobby Valentine was the first Mets manager who led the team to back-to-back postseasons. Most recently, Willie Randolph led the 2006 Mets to within an at-bat of a pennant.
Speaking of that at-bat, Beltran handled that with the class and dignity which has come to define him. He’s overcome both that and injuries to build a Hall of Fame career. He overcame all of that and some hard feelings which existed at the time he was traded for Zack Wheeler to not just want but to get the Mets manager job.
In the end, Beltran is back with the New York Mets where he belongs. After all these years, the fans love him, and he loves this team. He’s now coming home to where everything is possible.
He can guide the Mets to one or more World Series. He can join Tom Seaver and Mike Piazza in the Hall of Fame. His 15 will hang in left field with Casey Stengel‘s 37, Hodges’ 14, Seaver’s 41, Piazza’s 31, and soon Jerry Koosman‘s 36.
In fact, when all is said and done, Beltran could emerge as one of the most beloved figures in Mets history. To be able to even contemplate this is incredible, and it is a reason why Beltran returning to HIS Mets is a dream come true.
I loved him as a player and ignore the people that can’t let that 1 AB go. Go check the boxscores of the other games in that series you’ll remember he hit 3 homers before that to keep us in the series. Anyway very happy hes back and the more you see and hear the more you like it.
Well said
“In Beltran, the Mets are getting a savant.”
—–In Beltran, the Mets are getting an even worse communicator than Callaway. Here’s a short interview that left me boggling at the bland nonsense dished out by Beltran. There’s not one line, not one thought, not one clause, that leaves the reader with the impression that Beltran has more than a superficial understanding of the game or more than a rudimentary ability to communicate–if that. And this is supposed to be a guy among the top 30 managerial minds in the game? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq-hsXwsRLw
Andy Martino: “Carlos I know you’re not going to speak critically about the Mets or any other opportunity but you’ve talked a little about why you think you’re more ready now than a few years ago to manage. What’s the case for you as being a major league manager next year?”
Beltran: “Well honestly I think that first time on i just retired from the game the Yankees give me the opportunity to interview for the job. I wasn’t thinking about it so this time around I feel like I’m more prepare by working in the front office from the Yankees, being able to see that the that the where baseball is going, being able to see that that the way the information the value that information has on players and how you can make good decisions to put the guys out there in a position to be successful, so I do feel that, you know, I’m in a good position, uh, I know that experience as a manager is not there, but uh I played 20 years in baseball so I get to be able to be uh proactive in the clubhouse, uh, dealing with situations and in the clubhouse and being able to work on how important chemistry is in the clubhouse so those things, I feel like I had them down. The manager situation have to come with opportunity and and time to do it.
Martino: As much as the Yankees use analytics to game plan here how much have you learned about that side of the game and how a manager can use all that new information?
Beltran: Think about if you’re trying to do an investment decision, you want to have information to make make sure you’ve made a good decision so the same thing, analytics is the same. You know a lot of times I don’t like to call it analytic I like to call it more like information you know and the players also when they hit that word you know they’re more receptive to receive that information to understand why are they doing right what are they doing wrong and make adjustment because baseball is about making adjustments.
Martino: Last question. Just as somebody who had a great career, long career in the game you have a good job now with another team, I’m sure a good life, what makes you what makes someone at your level still want to get in a dugout and have that competition and do this job potentially at some point.
Beltran: I love the game. I love to compete. I did it for 20 years and uh, and I feel like I can impact, you know, player’s life in a positive way, you know. There’s no doubt that as a manager you’re gonna have your moments where, you might need to sit down and have a tough conversation with a player, but at the end of a day I did that as a player, you know, so, it won’t be a different, you know. I feel that I bring positive to a clubhouse. I can bring a lot of good things you know, I was able to throughout my career to be able to have good relationship, been able to have good conversations with the players, and I’m willing to the same as a manager.”
—–Wow. That’s a “savant”? There isn’t a single original thought in there. It’s “cliche conjunction cliche conjunction cliche conjunction…”
I’d love to be wrong about Beltran, but he’s got 20-plus years of going on the record about the game. Where’s the couple of minutes where he offers any real insight? This is clearly what the Wilpons wanted, but it’s not going to be what the players need, and the fans are going to get tired of it very quickly when it’s coming from their manager.
Art Howe, Willie Randolph, Jerry Manuel, Terry Collins, Mickey Callaway…. Here we go again.
https://twitter.com/joelsherman1/status/1190374242954686465?s=21
And yes, he’s a savant
It appears as if you’re ridiculing Sherman, who tweeted, absurdly in this context:
“Beltran actually listens to questions and answers them without cliche, but with insight.”
—In the interview I transcribed, as with every other I’ve found, Beltran answers questions *only* with cliches, and with a complete, thoroughgoing lack of insight that seems almost pathological, but is probably only symptomatic of a lack of meaningful intelligence.
A Hall of Fame baseball *player*, but as ordinary a mind as it’s possible to imagine. The Mets needed a manager who could counteract the extraordinary shortcomings of their incompetent GM and inept ownership. In that regard, Beltran will serve the Mets very, very badly.
This is like your pulling the 85% quote with Callaway. You keep confusing press conference answers with what really happens.