When the New York Mets signed James McCann heading into the 2021 season, they thought they were getting a player on the verge of a breakout. After an All-Star season in 2019, the Chicago White Sox backstop took his game to a new level in 2020 improving in each and every area of his game.
Unfortunately, McCann came to the Mets, and whatever gains he made in 2019 and 2020 disappeared. Instead, this looked liked the McCann from his early days with the Detroit Tigers. That was a catcher who wasn’t great behind the plate, and he didn’t hit all that much to offset whatever struggles he had defensively.
There are a number of reasons for a set-back with the Mets. Part of it was the adjustment to a new city, and we know it takes extra time to adapt to playing in New York. There were other factors like being separated from his catching coach, and Chili Davis just not being a modern hitting coach who helps players succeed.
For better or worse, McCann is going to be the Mets catcher in 2022. That means, the Mets are going to need for him to figure out how to return to being the McCann he was in 2020. Mostly, the Mets need him to get back to being the framer he once was.
The one positive you can look at was his ability to steal the strikes on the corners. He was very good at that, which is at least an indication his skills did not erode completely. That said, he’s going to need someone to help him with all the other parts of the strike zone. The best thing the Mets can do on that front is to make sure the next manager brings on a catching coach who can work with McCann and Tomas Nido.
On the batting front, at least Davis is gone. It doesn’t seem like Hugh Quattlebaum was much of help to him and the other Mets batters. If the Mets make the right hire, they could see McCann, and others, see a return to career bests in barrels and exit velocities.
If that happens, the Mets suddenly have a real weapon behind the plate. More to it, they would get getting the catcher they thought they were signing last season. That would take the Mets entire team to an entirely different level as a terrific framer elevates the pitching staff, and having another bat would deepen the lineup.
In many ways, no matter what the Mets do with the rest of their offseason, McCann is going to remain a pivotal player. His returning to his 2020 form makes the Mets a significantly better team. They’re on a whole different level. If not, well, they can still compete and win, but it’s going to be all the more of a challenge.
When you look at the New York Mets 1999-2000 teams, Bobby Valentine carefully built in coaching staffs. Yes, he brought in the best coaches he could find (and/or were forced upon him), but he did something more. He specifically built a coaching staff dedicated towards winning.
Valentine’s first base coach was Mookie Wilson. Really, who better than Mookie to tell the players what it meant to win in New York. He was there for their transformation from complete and unmitigated disaster to one of the best teams in baseball history. He would even have the hit (alright, reached on error) which would help cement their status.
Valentine might’ve learned the importance of having that former winner on the coaching staff because he had the same experience. Back in the early 1980s, he was the third base coach for Davey Johnson. When he was hired as the Texas Rangers manager, Valentine was replaced at third by Bud Harrleson, who had been on the coaching staff with Valentine.
Fast forward to 2015, and there was Tim Teufel, who like Valentine and Harrelson, was the third base coach. Like the aforementioned, Teufel did bring his own level of expertise. Of course, part of that expertise was how to thrive in New York and how to win.
When the Mets build their 2022 coaching staff, that is something they should be atuned to in building their staff. Obviously, teams should hire the best coaches possible. In fact, the Mets already started that process by retaining Jeremy Hefner. In that process, there should be an allotment for a coach who can help players with the process of navigating New York.
Look, New York is a challenging place to play. It’s the most challenging in all of professional sports. To some degree, it is all the more difficult playing for the New York Mets. There is an added level of scrutiny, and after years of Wilpon malfeasance, there is just a certain portion of the media and fandom who just can’t let of the lol Mets mindset.
The best way to help the players mitigate against that is to bring in a coach who understands winning here. Looking at the Mets, there may not be anyone better suited to that than Edgardo Alfonzo.
Alfonzo, 48, was a Mets minor league coach and manager from 2014 – 2019. During that time period, he worked his way up from bench coach and roving hitting instructor to the New York Penn League Championship winning manager for the Brooklyn Cyclones. That was it for Alfonzo because Brodie Van Wagenen had no use for Mets legends who were winners.
As Alfonzo told Mike Puma of the New York Post, he actually thought he was going to get a promotion for winning. After all, that’s what is supposed to happen when you succeed in your job. Well, now presents the belated opportunity for that to happen.
The challenge for the Mets is determining how he could best help a coaching staff. In all honesty, his familiarity with analytics and willingness to apply and interpret them will be what ultimately dicates what job he could be offered. Whatever the case, there should be a job for Alfonzo.
After all, this is a player who played at a Gold Glove level at two positions in the infield. He was a terrific hitter and one of the most clutch players to ever wear a Mets uniform. He can just bring an immense amount of knowledge to the job, and he has the proven ability to communicate with players from all backgrounds.
Alfonzo can be an asset to the 2022 Mets if they are willing to let him be one. The team will certainly be better if he is a part of the coaching staff helping this team win their first World Series since 1986.
The New York Mets seem to be narrowing their managerial search, and reading the tea leaves, it seems Buck Showalter will be the next manager. There are reports Steve Cohen wants him, and there are ties from the New York Yankees between new general manager Billy Eppler and Showalter.
If we are going to go back to Eppler’s old Yankees ties, the Mets could also look at Willie Randolph for the managerial role. With Randolph, there are two things which stand out in his candidacy: (1) he’s actually had success as the Mets manager; and (2) he has unfinished business.
When we look back at Randolph’s Mets tenure, people mostly remember the bad. There was the 2007 collapse, and he was fired one game into a west coast trip. There was the chasm between him and Carlos Delgado. Of course, many forget the 2008 Mets also collapsed, but this time under the helm of Jerry Manuel.
Really, Randolph had to deal with more as the Mets manager than most did. He never had the full backing and respect of ownership. Things got so bad Manuel and Tony Bernazard were going behind Randolph’s back to not only spy on him but to find reasons to remove him from the job. The shame of it was Randolph was quite good at the job.
First and foremost, Randolph was immediately challenged in his job by trying to find a way to graciously end Mike Piazza‘s Mets career. Randolph did it in a way where Piazza not only had a strong season, but he had his dignity during the course of the season.
Randolph was gifted an old foe in Pedro Martinez atop the rotation. Notably, despite the many battles between the two during the heyday of the Yankees/Red Sox rivalry, there was nothing but respect between the two. Randolph had tried to protect Martinez from the team, but to no avail.
Another challenge with Randolph was the Carlos Beltran situation. He helped Beltran navigate through what was a disaster of a 2005 season and get him playing at a Hall of Fame level. By most accounts, the two had a good relationship, which is something a smart manager will have with their superstar.
One important part of that is the ability to adapt. When Randolph first took over the Mets job, he initially tried to make the Mets more like the Yankees. Case-in-point was the restrictions on facial hair. That is something he eventually rescinded.The ability to adapt to the job is of vital importance.
There were other highlights from Randolph’s tenure with the most important being his development of David Wright and Jose Reyes. With respect to Reyes, he was able to help him hone his skills to develop a more sensible approach at the plate to help him become an All-Star. With respect to Wright, he admitted in his book, The Captain: A Memoir, Randolph helped him become the Major League player he wanted to be. If not for injuries, that would’ve been a Hall of Famer.
Looking at Randolph, one of the biggest skills he had was his working relationship with Rick Peterson. The two worked together to get the most out of the Mets pitching staff, and we saw them do some things which may now be considered commonplace. For example, Randolph had a very quick hook in the 2006 postseason, and he was not afraid to let his superior bullpen win him games. The Mets will be looking for something like that in 2022 with Jeremy Hefner being retained as pitching coach.
Overall, Randolph had strenghts and weaknesses as manager. As we saw with him, the strengths far outweighed the weaknesses. That’s a major reason why he’s second only to Davey Johnson in winning percentage. He was a very good manager, who for some reason, never got another opportunity to manage.
Perhaps at 67, Randolph no longer has any designs on managing. If he does, we need to remember he was a good manager for the Mets. Unfortunately, he never received a fair shake. All told, Randolph knows what it takes to succeed with the Mets. No, he’ll never get the job, but there should have at least been some level of interest.
When Bob Geren left the pennant winning New York Mets for the Los Angeles Dodgers, it seemed like that was the last we’d see of him. After all, Geren made a lateral move to be closer to his family.
If Geren is willing to return to New York for the managerial job, that’s very good news for the Mets.
Geren, 60, had a very positive influence when he was last on the Mets bench. He was the analytically driven and versed coach who served as the confident and counter-balance to Terry Collins.
Geren’s positive impact went beyond just aiding with decision making. He had a very strong impact on making their catchers vastly improved.
Under Geren’s tutelage, Travis d’Arnaud went from raw behind the plate to a terrific framer. He had a similar impact on Kevin Plawecki, and really, anyone who suited up behind the plate for the Mets.
Geren continued this work in Los Angeles. He did it with both Yasmani Grandal and Will Smith. Unlike most of the managerial candidates, with Geren you have something tangible to point to as to how he improves a team.
Part and parcel with that is his ability to communicate. While it was a purported issue in Oakland, Anthony Recker indicated it hasn’t been one since, and he’s one of the reasons he’s advocating Geren for the job:
Guy has been to the World Series FOUR times starting with the 2015 team here with the METS thru last year! He’s been a part of the Dodgers Org that has blended analytics and baseball experience/knowledge as well as anyone! GET THIS MAN! https://t.co/QHmgtYe2QM
— Anthony Recker (@Anthony_Recker) December 7, 2021
In many ways, Recker states the case succinctly. Not only can Geren communicate and coach, but he knows better than most how to use analytics.
There’s a reason smart teams want him. Billy Beane chose him to manage. After that stint ended, Sandy Alderson with his vaunted front office moved quick to hire him. The Los Angeles Dodgers poached him away from the Mets.
Really, Geren understands this job better than anyone the Mets will interview. He knows the amount of input Alderson wants and the wriggle room, if any, a manager gets.
Geren understands the New York media and all the duties of a Mets manager. He knows what it’s like to lose and win with the Mets. In many ways, he checks all of the boxes of what the Mets covet in a manager.
With all that said, Geren likely isn’t the front-runner. Where he ranks is anyone’s guess. That said, if the Mets were to hire him, they would be getting someone who understands how to succeed in this job better than anyone.
The Veteran’s Committee inducted six new members to the Baseball Hall of Fame: Bud Fowler, Gil Hodges, Jim Kaat, Minnie Minoso, Tony Oliva, and Buck O’Neil. For most of these players, their induction righted a long standing wrong. However, it did something else. It lowered the bar on what is truly a Hall of Fame level player.
Putting aside O’Neil, who spent his career in the Negro Leagues and was inducted for more than just his playing days, and Fowler, who played in the 1800s, the players inducted were not up to the level of what we have seen of recent Hall of Famers. Of course, that’s not really news with players like Harold Baines being inducted three years ago.
This is what the Veteran’s Committee typically does. For every wrong they right, they also proceed to lower the bar on what is and what is not a Hall of Famer. Consider, the WAR/WAR7/JAWS for each of the new inductees:
- Hodges 43.9/33.7/38.8
- Kaat 50.5/38.1/34.4
- Minoso 53.8/39.7/46.7
- Oliva 43.0/38.6/40.8
By standards for each position, each one of these players falls far short. As a result, it does open the door for players who were once seen not Hall of Fame worthy for various reasons. One such player would be David Wright, who would’ve probably been a lock for the Hall of Fame if not for his back injury robbing him the rest of his career.
In his 14 year career, Wright posted a 49.2/39.5/44.3. His WAR would be third highest amongst that group despite his career being far shorter than that group. His WAR7 would be second best and his JAWS second best despite the end of his prime being robbed from him. Just think about that. Wright didn’t get to have a full career, and he still posted better numbers than players who had lengthy and storied careers.
What Wright was able to do in his brief career was remarkable. If he was able to have 1-2 more full seasons, he very likely would have easily cleared the bar for Hall of Fame induction. That goes double when you consider he would have had the benefit of being able to be inducted after spending his entire career with the Mets, and perhaps, some boost from his play in the World Baseball Classic (not all that likely).
In the end, Wright’s career will always be defined by what ifs. What if Jon Niese covered third. What if the Wilpons treated his career with more concern. What if Carlos Beltran doesn’t strike out. What if Terry Collins had a clue in the 2015 World Series. Mostly, what if he stayed healthy.
Whatever the case, based on what we saw with the recent inductions, Wright’s career has now risen to the caliber of Hall of Fame worthy. While it’s likely the writers will overlook him, based on recent standards, we may very well see him inducted by the Veteran’s Committee one day.
When it comes to Gil Hodges, he was never really going to be able to be present to celebrate his Hall of Fame induction. His tragedy was dying too young.
The tragedy for Buck O’Neil is he passed before the honor. It was an unnecessary tragedy, and it’s one where many have to explain themselves.
Back in 2006, there was a push to fully examine the Negro Leagues to honor those overlooked players and executives. Many people would be inducted as part of the project, but for reasons no one could explain O’Neill wasn’t included.
It’s like all the times he was not inducted by various iterations of the Veteran’s Committee. The man lived 94 years, and yet he had to wait 15 years after his passing to be inducted.
This is an embarrassment for the Hall of Fame. They cheated a great player and a great man out of celebrating this honor.
They also cheated the fans. Few loved baseball like O’Neill, and even fewer could tell the complete story of the game. His speech would’ve been one for the ages.
Sadly, we’ll never get to hear it, and O’Neill has long since passed. A historical wrong has been corrected, but it happened far too late.
With the signings of Mark Canha and Starling Marte, we can rest assured the days of Dominic Smith being an everyday left fielder are over. That is good for the team who needs better defense and for Smith who needs to return to being a first baseman.
Of course, the problem with that is Pete Alonso. By WAR, he was the best player on the Mets last season. That is partially because of his bat. He had a 134 OPS+ while hitting 37 homers. He has established himself as the best power hitter in Citi Field history, and he just might be the best power hitter ever produced by the Mets organization.
However, Alonso was more than just that. Alonso had a reputation as a bad fielder in the minors. He made significant strides to become just a poor fielding first baseman. In his first two seasons, he was a dreadful -5 OAA each year, and he combined for a terrible -4 DRS. By all measures,. he was a bad fielder at the position, albeit one who could stick due to his bat and ability to scoop balls.
That’s not Alonso anymore. He did the work to become a good first baseman. He had a 2 OAA and 5 DRS. He rated as a top 10 first baseman by OAA and top five by DRS. Anyway you look at it, he was a good first baseman, and he was an excellent hitter. However, that is only part of the equation.
After the current collective bargaining agreement negotiations, there is the expectation there will be a universal DH. If and when that comes, the Mets have to decide who should be the DH. There are some arguments for Robinson Cano, but who actually knows if he can hit without the PEDs and laying dormant for a season.
Notably, in 2020, the answer to that question was Alonso. It was not the initial plan, but for a myriad of reasons, it worked out that way. One of the biggest reasons why was Dominic Smith was just a better fielder at the position, and he was hitting.
Aside from his rookie season, he has put together good numbers at first. That includes his 2 DRS this season and 0 OAA. That was in a much shorter sample size than Alonso and with Smith spending time preparing to be the left fielder. For Smith, that’s part of the problem. Instead of honing his craft, he has been spending his time preparing to play out of position.
As we saw in 2020, when he is playing his natural position, he’s great. In that season, he was arguably the Mets best player. He hit, and he fielded. He was clutch and he did it in a very challenging time. The Mets need that player back.
At the moment, there is a discussion the Mets still need that bat. As we saw in 2020, Smith can very well be that bat. He just needs to be put in the best position to succeed. In left field, he was wasting energy trying to be good at a position he shouldn’t be playing. He also broke down cheating him of his ability to succeed at the plate.
That’s not to say Alonso should never play first. He needs to be kept up to speed. Injuries happen, and Smith could falter. However, when push comes to shove, in the event there is a universal DH, Smith should be the first baseman with Alonso at DH. In the end, if Smith is Smith, this will take the Mets to a whole new level, and it will help to further cement the Mets are true World Series contenders.
The New York Mets slipped the signing of Max Scherzer in under the wire before the owners voted unanimously for a lockout. That means they officially can’t pursue free agents and can’t make trades (again, not officially), so they now need to turn their attention elsewhere.
That’s probably a good thing for this team because they need a manager. Really, aside from having Jeremy Hefner as pitching coach, they need to assemble an entire coaching staff.
It seems the early odds-on favorite is Brad Ausmus. Sandy Alderson wanted to hire him previously. Billy Eppler did hire him before he was told to fire him. It’s assumed Steve Cohen doesn’t want a first time manager.
The popular choice seems to be Buck Showalter, but it’s hard to see the fit. Alderson wants to script and control managers, and Showalter isn’t that guy. Also, Eppler fired Mike Scioscia, who was very much cut from the same cloth as Showalter.
There are bound to be many names we haven’t considered. After all, that’s what we saw with the front office search.
While it’ll probably never happen, it’ll be great to see Willie Randolph‘s name in the mix. We know he can handle New York, and he has unfinished business here. It would be great to see him get another chance.
Overall, we don’t know who the Mets are targeting. What we do know is the players are locked out, and they probably will be for some time. With that being the case, the Mets are probably going to go full bore trying to hire a new manager.