Carlos Beltran
Being a New York Mets fan isn’t what it always was. The 1969 and 1986 Mets defined the organization as a team of what can be. Even the disappointments like 1973 and 1999 showed us that even in losses, the Mets organization is known for the potential miracles that can occur.
Maybe it started with Dwight Gooden missing the championship parade while sitting in a crack house. Maybe it was Kenny Rogers walking Andruw Jones with the bases loaded, or it could have been Todd Zeile’s ball getting stuck on the wall.
Frankly, it was probably the Wilpons getting sole ownership of the Mets organization. At some point, this Mets team went from miracles to Carlos Beltran striking out looking, the two collapses to close out Shea Stadium, and sadly, so much more.
In that vein, let’s try to rank out the Mets collapses. Just a fun little exercise for us Mets fans.
5. 2025 Collapse
This is the freshest, and it probably seems worse that it was. Actually, it is worse than it was, but this is being viewed through the prism of Mets history,
Unlike some of the other collapses, this was a a slow moving train. We all watched on with horror for months as this happened. This was the man getting run over by the roller in Austin Powers.
This collapse started in June with Griffin Canning went down. For months, this team was David Peterson and just four other guys in the rotation, and then Peterson lost it.
Yes, there was so much enthusiasm entering the season with the 2024 shocking run to the NLCS, and the Juan Soto signing. That all said this team was just snakebitten.
This team lost AJ Minter and Jesse Winker for the season. Sean Manaea and Kodai Senga were trying to pitch through injuries. The additions at this year’s trade deadline didn’t have the magic touch. Ultimately, that was it – the magic was gone.
Still on the last day of the season, they had a chance, and they again blew it. This was as bad as it gets, but not the worst it gets for the Mets.
4. 2007 Mets
Unlike most Mets collapses, the 2007 Mets were a case of the Philadelphia Phillies just took it from them. No doubt the Mets fell apart, but the Phillies played baseball at an insane clip instead of the Reds 14-11 September.
The issue with the 2007 is they just ran out of starting pitching. That final week of the season was David Williams and Phillip Humber start games. Billy Wagner was hurt, and Aaron Hellman was on whatever comes after fumes.
We didn’t realize it at the time, but Tom Glavine was pitching with a fork in his back. He was just done, and we saw the Miami Marlins take full advantage.
In reality, this collapse was sown in 2005 with Jeff Wilpon forcing Pedro Martinez to pitch. Also, like we saw with the 2025 Mets, this was a slow moving train as well.
The 2007 Mets slide began in June. From June 1 to the end of the season, they were 54-56. They were just an average team. It was just hard to see at the time, but we know it now. And, we knew it from what we would see the next season.
3. 1998 Mets
The 1997 Mets shocked baseball by somehow finishing with an 88-74 record. They attacked the offseason adding Al Leiter and Dennis Cook in addition to re-signing John Olerud.
They then made the big move by trading for Mike Piazza after Todd Hundley suffered an elbow injury. After some early issues with Piazza adjusting to New York and the booing, the Mets vaulted to postseason contention.
On September 16, they had a big win against the Houston Astros and found themselves a half-game up in the Wild Card standings. From there, they would finish the season going 2-6, losing their last five games.
Making it all the worse is they just needed to win one more game over that stretch. of course, the Mets would completely blow two games over that stretch.
Keep in mind, the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs would play in a winner-take-all Wild Card play-in game. The Cubs finished the season on a 4-6 stretch, and the Giants finished the season losing their last two games.
The play-in game was Steve Trachsel against Mark Gardner. The Mets couldn’t even win to enter this fray. If they won two, they advance to the postseason. It was all for naught as they choked it all away.
2. 2022 Mets
As written about here, the 2022 collapse was worse than the 2007 collapse.
The Mets had Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, and Chris Bassitt lined up in a series where the Mets had to win one game to win the division. Instead, they were swept. At the time, their 10.5 game blown lead was the third largest division lead blown in Major League history. It’s now fourth thanks to the 2025 Detroit Tigers.
Because of the collapse, instead of having a first round bye giving Scherzer, deGrom, and Bassitt much needed rest, they hosted the Wild Card Series, again with their pitching lined up perfectly.
Keep in mind the hubris of Mets fans. At the time, they were actively debating lining up deGrom for Game 3 so he could start the NLDS after the Mets swept the Padres. This Mets team was that good.
Instead, Scherzer pulled a Glavine in Game 1. After deGrom won Game 2, Bassitt was not good in Game 3 with the Mets managing just one hit against Joe Musgrove and his glistening ears.
In many ways, this team unnecessarily panicked. They forced Mark Vientos and Francisco Alvarez into a pennant race after purposefully not giving them cups of coffee earlier in the year. To add insult to injury, Buck Showalter was named Manager of the Year for his guiding the Mets from an easy division title to a team who completely fell apart.
1. 2008 Mets
This is not a popular choice, but it is assuredly the worst of all the collapses. Everything from that season was disturbing.
Rumors still circle about Carlos Delgado and Jose Reyes purposefully quitting on Willie Randolph. Jerry Manuel worked behind the scenes with Jeff Wilpon to force Randolph’s firing. To make it all worse, the Mets did it to Randolph after the first game of a west coast trip began.
Oh, by the way, Randolph was the rare manager fired after a win. Instead, we got Manuel and his clown show. He was at least aided by a rejuvenated Delgado.
On August 27, the Mets led the NL East. Ironically, they opened September by sweeping the Milwaukee Brewers. After that sweep, they were ahead of the Phillies by 3.0 games, and they were ahead of the Brewers by two games in the loss column.
From there, the Mets would go 10-12.
On September 19, they led the NL East by a half-game. Over the final nine games of the season, that became a three game deficit. No, it wasn’t seven in 17, but it was inexplicable.
This team lost six of their final nine games. They were tied for the Wild Card entering the final week of the season with the Marlins (again). They would lose two out of three.
Unlike the prior year where it was Glavine who just didn’t have it, Beltran had a big homer to tie the game against the Marlins. Just when you thought he was changing the narrative from 2006, Manuel decides to go with Scott Schoeneweis, a reliever with a 7.00 September ERA that month.
It was classic Manuel. He was a bad manager making indefensible decisions.
Oh, and keep in mind, the Mets went out and got Johan Santana in the offseason. He was the ace missing in 2006, and he was the starter who could’ve prevented 2007 from happening. Apparently, nothing could stop Manuel, Jeff, and company.
Even if you want to believe 2007 was worse, consider this was the second year in a row only exacerbating everything. To make it even worse, this is the way they closed out Shea Stadium, the same place that saw the 1969 Mets, the ball go through Bill Buckner’s legs, Robin Ventura’s Grand Slam Single, and Mike Piazza’s homer after 9/11.
This loss was the cumulation of everything that happened after Beltran’s strikeout. After this, we had an awkward ceremony, and the team falling apart with the Wilpons getting caught up with the Madoff scandal.
The 2008 collapse was as bad as it gets. Sadly, being Mets fans, we have plenty of years from which to debate.
Weird things happen in the MLB postseason. Since the expanded postseason format, things rarely, if ever, goes as planned.
The first expansion was in 1969. The New York Mets shocked the world that year. Even though the Mets had won 100 games, they beat the favored Atlanta Braves in the first ever NLCS.
The Mets went on to shock the world by beating the 109 win Baltimore Orioles in the World Series.
Four years later, behind the Tug McGraw mantra of “Ya Gotta Believe!” the 1973 Mets won the NL East with only 82 wins. That team beat the Cincinnati Reds in five games (back when the NLCS was five games) to advance to the World Series.
To hear Howie Rose tell it, if Yogi Berra pitched George Stone in Game 6 instead of Tom Seaver, that team likely wins the World Series. Still, an 82 team in the World Series highlights how crazy things can happen.
In 2015, aided by a Washington Nationals choke job (insert Jonathan Papelbon–Bryce Harper joke), the 2015 Mets won the division. Daniel Murphy became Babe Ruth, and the Mets trio of Jacob deGrom–Matt Harvey–Noah Syndergaard led the Mets to the pennant.
If not for Terry Collins, the Mets win the 2015 World Series. He was as bad as you can be, and the Mets largely didn’t win because of him.
It’s also worked against the Mets.
The Mets dominated the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1988 season. However, Orel Hershiser would come up huge, and he’d help the Dodgers with a huge upset. Fueled by Kirk Gibson’s shocking homer in Game 1, the Dodgers beat what could’ve been seen as an all-time great Oakland Athletics team.
In 2000, the Mets had some luck with the St. Louis Cardinals beating the Atlanta Braves. That cleared the way for the Mets to beat the Cardinals and win the pennant.
In the World Series, they faced off against an 87 win New York Yankees team, who ended that season on the verge of an epic collapse to miss the postseason. If Todd Zeile’s ball bounces over the wall, or Armando Benitez throws a strike who knows?
The less said about that World Series, the better.
In 2006, the Mets were the best team in baseball and seemed destined to win the World Series. El Duque got hurt warming up the NLDS, Billy Wagner faltered in the postseason like he always does, and Carlos Beltran struck out looking.
Meanwhile, we watched on with horror as the 83 win Cardinals beat an imploding Detroit Tigers team to win the World Series.
No matter the win total, if the Mets make the postseason, they will be sputtering in. Who cares?
This is still a team who can win a World Series. Everything they need is here.
Nolan McLean is a real ace, and Edwin Díaz is the best closer in baseball. As we saw with the Dodgers last year, you can win getting 2-3 innings from everyone.
We’ve already seen that Clay Holmes–Sean Manaea piggyback work well. It can certainly work with the rest of the staff.
Pete Alonso and Juan Soto had series winning homers last postseason. Francisco Lindor led the way like he’s doing during the current stretch run. Mark Vientos shook off late season struggles to be the Mets best player last postseason.
This Mets team can win the World Series. They have what it takes. They just need to get there. Even if you’re still skeptical, just look at past postseasons to look at how crazy things get.
The commentary when the New York Mets signed Francisco Lindor was he was grossly overpaid. That was a narrative screamed all over the airwaves, and it was at its most intense during Lindor’s early season slump.
Of course, the narrative was always false, and as usual, it had a twinge of #lolMets to it. With his near MVP season leading the Mets to the NLCS, Lindor shut that narrative up . . . for now.
Enter Juan Soto.
Soto received a MLB record 15 year $765 million contract. That carries a $51 million AAV. It’s a staggering number, and when he’s paid more than Shohei Ohtani, you’re allowed to question the disparity.
We can point out Soto is four years younger and just now entering his prime years. We can discuss Soto’s durability against Ohtani’s injury history. There’s more to contemplate, but it’s all a pointless exercise.
Determining whether or not Soto is overpaid is directly tied to the value he brings the team.
Each offseason had its own trends, but over the past six seasons, teams have paid roughly $7.6 million per 1 WAR. As a result, for Soto to be worth the deal, he would have to produce a 6.7 WAR per season.
On that note, Soto is coming off a season with a 7.9 WAR. Two of his past four seasons have exceeded 7.0 WAR. If Soto produces at this level during the peak years of his deal, he’s exceeding the AAV paid to him.
Of course, the $7.6 million is an average. We have twice seen the value surpass $9 million. At a $9 million valuation, Soto would only need to average a 5.7 WAR to be worth the deal.
Of course, this presumes WAR/$ doesn’t increase with increased revenues in baseball. As the WAR/$ increases, Soto’s production need not be at the 5-7 WAR value to be worth the deal.
Of course, the Mets signed him to be exactly that. As seen with pure hitters like Yordan Alvarez, Edgar Martinez, and Frank Thomas a hitter of Soto’s caliber can absolute produce that value.
Yes, this presupposes Soto will hit like a Hall of Famer. That’s what he’s done in his career, and there is zero expectation he will suddenly cease being that.
Look, the Mets signed Ted Williams. With apologies to Darryl Strawberry, the Mets finally landed the next Ted Williams.
There’s knowledge that comes with being that level of a hitter. As Soto discussed in his press conference, his discussions with Aaron Judge made both better.
Notably, it was the best years of Soto’s and Judge’s careers. It’s a relationship Soto can now have with Lindor. Moreover, think of the impact Soto can have on Francisco Álvarez and Mark Vientos.
There’s also the message adding a player like Soto sends to the rest of the league. Look at the Mets back at Pedro Martinez in the 2004 offseason. It paved the way for Carlos Beltran and eventually Billy Wagner.
Was Pedro worth his contract? Well, partially thanks to Jeff Wilson, certainly not. However, it was a move which made the Mets relevant, and it led to helping the Mets acquire players which would nearly lead to a pennant.
The Mets arguably already had that with Lindor. However, acquiring Soto pushes things even further. It puts the team on par with the Los Angeles Dodgers and their three MVPs.
The Mets are at a completely different level now. They haven’t been here since the 1980s. The Mets are now set to have a decade plus run as a World Series contender.
Lindor brought relevance. Soto takes the Mets to a new level entirely. Yes, Soto’s production will mostly likely be worth $51 million per year. The extra intangibles he brings means he will assuredly be worth every single last penny of the deal.
All signs point to the New York Mets signing Juan Soto. Steve Cohen will not be outdone here, and he’s found a player seemingly eager to be the next great player to come to the Mets.
Arguably, Soto would be THE best hitter to ever don a Mets uniform. When you go to the create a player on MLB the Show, in terms of hitting, it looks like Soto.
At 26, the Mets would be getting their next Mike Piazza, Carlos Beltran, or Francisco Lindor, i.e. a future Hall of Famer in their prime. However, Soto might be the most promising.
That’s from an offensive standpoint. Defensively, it’s an entirely different discussion.
Yes, Soto has been nominated for a Gold Glove the past two years. However, seeing how Lindor can’t get nominated, we see how much stock we should put into that process.
Soto is not a good outfielder. He had a -1 OAA in 2024, and he has a cumulative -25 OAA over the past three seasons. Over that time frame, he has rated as the worst defensive right fielder in all of baseball.
Making matters worse is Soto’s speed. He’s slow. To put it into perspective, DJ Stewart is faster. There were only six right fielders in all of baseball slower than him.
As a result, he’s a poor to middling base runner. Put another way, he’s effectively a one tool player, but that one tool is so worth it.
That goes double for the Mets. Soto hits .333/.466/.709 at Citi Field. That’s Barry Bonds PED level production.
That production takes the Mets to the next level. Instead of losing in six games to the Los Angeles Dodgers they beat them. He’s that much of a difference maker.
Of course, contracts are not made in a bubble. They carry long term risks. As noted, we can argue Soto is already poised to move to DH, and we don’t know his feelings on being a full-time DH.
Of course, some of the concern could be mitigated with opt outs. That creates the drama of revisiting this every few years. It could also hasten a mistake contact in the future.
All told, there are obvious risks with Soto signing a megadeal. We can’t pretend they don’t exist. It’s something that needs to be considered, especially for David Stearns who puts an emphasis on run prevention.
All told, the Mets still should do everything possible to sign him. He’s the perfect fit for this team. They’re blessed to have an owner who won’t hamstring building this roster because of this deal.
Soto should be a Met even if we should stop pretending this deal would carry significant risks.
Good on the New York Mets players for making the decision hard for the front office. What once looked like a team that would be sellers is now a team who is in Wild Card position.
Certainly, the players don’t want to waste this opportunity. Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo have already publicly put pressure on the front office to be buyers.
However, this is David Stearns at the helm, and he’s cut different. He looks to sustainable winners, not one-and-done teams. Remember, this is the same person who traded Josh Hader when the Milwaukee Brewers were in first place.
Looking at the Mets, they’re on the precipice of building that sustainable winner. They have starting pitching prospects less than three years away. They have position player talent closer than that.
The question for this organization is do they sacrifice the future for this year. Of course, it’s a balancing act. Certainly, the Mets can be on the alert for more Phil Maton type deals. However, the real difference making players come at a real cost.
There’s an argument for an alternative path. That path has been forged already by José Buttó.
For his part, Buttó had struggled in his early Major League starts. He was far better this year, and eventually, partially out of necessity, he was moved to the Major League bullpen.
As a reliever, he is 3-0 with one save and a 0.84 ERA. With him and Maton, the Mets have two reliable arms in front of Edwin Díaz. Obviously, a team with a 4.07 FIP, the tenth worst in the majors, needs more help.
If the Mets aren’t inclined to trade off top prospects to do that, maybe they should be using those top prospects in 2024.
Again, Buttó’s move there has paid dividends. There’s a chance Tylor Megill can help there. Looking at David Peterson, his experience out of the pen last year appears to be helping him as a starter this year.
It’s something we have seen work against the Mets in the past. No one needs to be reminded of Adam Wainwright striking out Carlos Beltran to end the 2006 NLCS.
Keep in mind, Wainwright was struggling in Triple-A with the Cardinals. He had a 4.64 Triple-A ERA. He proved to be a better Major Leaguer.
At the moment, the Mets have a trio of struggling starting pitching prospects in Triple-A: Dom Hamel, Blade Tidwell, and Mike Vasil. Looking forward, Hamel and Vasil will need to be added to the 40 man roster before the 2024 Rule 5 Draft this offseason.
Rather than trade these players (or others), why not give them a look in the bullpen. Let’s see Hamel’s high spin rates fool batters. Tidwell’s fastball/slider combination appears ready for a MLB bullpen now. Let’s get Vasil away from the ABS system.
Let’s see what these young arms can do now. We’ve seen teams do this all the time to help them win. For that matter, Stearns did that in Milwaukee with Corbin Burnes, Freddy Peralta, and Brandon Woodruff.
Stearns knows how to execute this plan. He knows how to take starting pitching prospects and move them to the bullpen with an eye towards eventually using them as Major League starters here.
The plan makes sense for the Mets in the short term. It could payoff in the long term. Perhaps, this is the way to improve the Mets bullpen now while working to develop their top prospects.
Want to know the quickest way to find out someone knows nothing about baseball? Let them tell you Francisco Lindor isn’t worth his contract.
When Steve Cohen officially took over as New York Mets owner, he quickly announced to the world the days of the Wilpons was over. He did that by not only authorizing the trade for Lindor, but also by establishing a personal relationship with the player.
This wasn’t Curtis Granderson and salmon. It was Lindor invited to Cohen’s home to have dinner with his family. Then, the mega deal came.
10 years. $341 million.
The contract was a statement. It’s been a constant talking point. It’s a lightning rod for a Mets team who has underperformed what we expected them to do when Cohen took over.
Make no mistake the contract is not the reason for the Mets relative struggles. It’s hasn’t stopped Cohen from spending. Moreover, Lindor has been great.
Since coming to the Mets, Lindor has an 18.1 WAR, 119 wRC+, and a 21 OAA. People just don’t understand how great these numbers are.
By WAR, Lindor is the 8th best player in all of baseball since joining the Mets. His wRC+ is tied for 36th overall and third among shortstops. His OAA is the third best and second among shortstops.
Lindor is a top 10 player in baseball. At worst, he’s a top two shortstop. He plays everyday giving the Mets a Gold Glove at short a with 30/30 caliber offensive threat.
He’s giving the Mets what Carlos Beltran and David Wright once did. Like with Beltran, he had a slow start to his Mets career before becoming that superstar player forever judged by a massive contract and early animosity with the fans.
With Lindor, it was him and Javier Báez and the thumbs down. For Beltran, it was poor reaction to the booing and the initial unwillingness to answer the curtain calls.
Despite the early difficulties, Lindor has played like a future Hall of Famer with the Mets. He’s been a leader and a superstar. He’s been worth every penny.
When Lindor signed his deal, 1.0 WAR was worth about $9.5 million. At an 18.1 WAR, Lindor has been worth $171.95 million. Through the end of this year, he will be paid $126.4.
That means he’s provided the additional value of a player who has provided a 4.4 WAR per year. That’s essentially what Pete Alonso has provided the Mets in his career.
Think about that for a moment. Lindor providing production at a level equivalent to his play and Alonso’s. He’s providing value equivalent to TWO superstar players.
And yet, somehow, people want to question whether he’s worth the money?!?!?! If you’re paying attention, and actually understand the dynamics, he’s been worth more than he’s being paid.
Lindor is a superstar. He’s a future Hall of Famer. His 12 will be retired by the Mets, and he will have a Mets cap on his Hall of Fame plaque. He’s been worth far more money than the Mets have paid him, and that will likely remain the case throughout his Mets career.
According to various reports, the New York Mets are out on Shohei Ohtani. The Mets are not at fault here.
The fact of the matter is Ohtani doesn’t want to come to New York. He doesn’t want the media attention and responsibility that comes along with New York.
Certainly, Ohtani has spent his entire life in the limelight. He gets more attention than just about any baseball player. He understands the responsibilities that comes with being the best player in the game.
And yet, he’s being a bit short-sighted here, and thus, is making a mistake.
Frankly, the Mets history is replete with players who didn’t want to deal with New York. Even worse, it’s full of players who just don’t want the Mets.
However, for the most part, when they come here, they love it here.
The classic example was Keith Hernandez. He was devastated about the trade to the Mets. He was persuaded to stay, and it led to his being a beloved player with his number retired.
Time and again, Darryl Strawberry has said he regrets leaving the Mets. Players like Cliff Floyd and Billy Wagner were at one point skeptical of being a Met only to sign in free agents and cherish being a part of this team.
Mike Piazza was shockingly traded to the Mets. Even more of a shock, he’d get booed by the fans. Despite that, he signed a deal on the eve of free agency, became one of the most beloved players, and dons a Mets cap on his Hall of Fame plaque.
There was Curtis Granderson who came to the Mets in free agency after his New York Yankees tenure. He talked about how he heard Mets fans were real fans and later said Mets fans were louder.
Even a player like Carlos Beltran keeps finding his way back to the Mets. He didn’t initially want to come. The Wilpons made him want to leave, and yet he’s returned twice.
Point is there’s something special about being a Met. Even the most reluctant end up loving the experience and want to forever be a part of the franchise.
Ohtani is passing on that partially because he doesn’t want the New York media scrutiny and attention. Being fair here, that’s about to follow him anywhere he goes.
He’s also missing out on a city that would allow him to live somewhat in obscurity. After all, this is a city where Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino live. Harry Potter lives there. Hell, Spike Lee not only lives there, but he’s at every New York Knicks game.
New York comes with attention, but it also allows for a somewhat normal life. Being fair, Ohtani gets the same with Los Angeles.
With the Mets, Ohtani would get Steve Cohen who is not afraid to spend. He’s also an owner who wants his players to feel welcome and be like family.
There’s an adoring fanbase desperate to embrace him.
That’s not to say the Mets are the best fit for Ohtani. In the end, only Ohtani can figure that out for himself. To some degree, he has and is nearing a decision.
It’s just unfortunate he’s ruling out a team that could change his life for the better. Yes, the Mets need Ohtani, and he doesn’t need the Mets. That still doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be a great experience for him.
In the end, Ohtani should’ve given it more of a chance, and that is mostly why he’s making a mistake.
The expectations were once David Stearns came to the New York Mets the team was going to hire Craig Counsell to be their next manager. That seemed all the more to be the case when the main competition seemed likely to come from the Houston Astros, who didn’t seem as serious about him as the Mets were.
Of course, we now know the Chicago Cubs gave Counsell exactly what the Mets could offer – a large market and a big contract. However, Chicago is closer to home for Counsell, and it doesn’t come with the issues presented by the New York media, who have sometimes been all too happy to run managers out of town.
This is a situation somewhat similar to what we saw with Steve Kerr. He was practically hired to coach the New York Knicks until he wasn’t. Golden State had all of what New York had to offer without the media or front office issues. For the Mets, the front office issues aren’t present.
With Counsell taking the surprise offer from a Cubs team who had not fired David Ross as their manager, the Mets were left looking to hire someone else. Because the Mets did their due diligence, and didn’t just go through the process to hire Counsell, they were able to quickly pivot to Carlos Mendoza.
At this point, we should remember Stearns was entasked with hiring a manager. Not with hiring Counsell, but with hiring a manager. He did that with Mendoza.
The reviews on this hire are all over the place, but that is partially the result of this shocking nature of the turn of events. You’ll see the loudmouths and naysayers killing the decision. The sycophants and optimists love the move.
In reality, no one can really know what to make of this decision.
On the bright side, it’s not Buck Showalter, who was a mediocre manager who fought against the modern game. From here, we don’t know if Mendoza will be Luis Rojas or Kevin Cash. With Rojas and Cash, we see what separated them was the front office.
Rojas was neutered from the start in the wake of the rash Carlos Beltran firing. Rojas was handed scripts from which he couldn’t deviate. In essence, he was never truly allowed to manage, and he became the fall guy for a poorly led and frankly clueless front office.
Cash has succeeded with an exceptionally run Tampa Bay Rays organization. They gave him what he needed to succeed, and to his credit he has. In essence, this means Stearns has to make good on this hire.
It is incumbent on Stearns to first give Mendoza the staff and data to be successful. More importantly, Stearns has to build the right roster. If he does that, we can the strengths and reputation Mendoza had lead to him being a successful Mets manager.
If that is the case, we can see him quickly in the postseason like Willie Randolph (a good name to throw in here for bench coach) did with the Mets. From what we saw in Milwaukee, we can and should expect that. After all, Counsell was a losing manager before he and Stearns turned things around there.
Back in 1998, Nelson Doubleday went down the hall and told Fred Wilpon the New York Mets were going to go out and get Mike Piazza. When Wilpon brought up the injured Todd Hundley (lost for most of that year), Doubleday said they were getting Piazza.
That was the way it was with Doubleday. He made sure the Mets went out and got the best players. He was in charge when they got Keith Hernandez and Gary Carter. Sure, it led to disaster with Bobby Bonilla, Vince Coleman, Eddie Murray, and Bret Saberhagen, but the team was always trying to bring in the best players.
Being fair to the Wilpons here, they did learn their lesson after they let Mike Hampton walk in free agency, and the team refused to go out and get Alex Rodriguez. When that 2000 pennant winner blew up with those decisions, they went out and got Omar Minaya and pivoted.
When Carlos Beltran and Pedro Martinez were free agents, Minaya made sure they were Mets. Then, the Madoff scandal happened, and the Mets would not bet the Mets again until Steve Cohen took over the franchise.
When the Wilpons were faced with having to sell, they hired Brodie Van Wagenen to completely mortgage the future and try to win one last World Series before they had to hand the franchise to someone else. Their big move and big salary they took on was Robinson Cano.
That was partially because Cano wanted to come back to New York, and Van Wagenen was doing a favor to his former client. It also helped the Seattle Mariners were eating money on the contract regardless of whether or not Cano was eligible to play.
That same offseason, Bryce Harper was a free agent. Harper was a player who belonged on the biggest stage. Harper loved the Mets pitching and was highly complimentary of them during the 2018 All-Star Game:
For a player that wanted to win, the Mets would have been in the conversation if the team pursued him. Instead, the Mets were set with Cano, and then they tried to sell us having no $30 million players is the same thing as having two.
https://x.com/TimBritton/status/1088516450019627008?s=20
With that, Harper went to the Philadelphia Phillies with him really having no other realistic suitors. Since that time, he has won the 2021 NL MVP and 2022 NLCS MVP. He has completely altered the trajectory of the Phillies franchise who is in consecutive NLCSs.
Helping Harper and the Phillies get there is Zack Wheeler. Van Wagenen tried to sell us they replaced Wheeler in the rotation with Marcus Stroman despite both pitching in the same rotation in 2019. He then went on to tell everyone Wheeler was only good for two halves of his entire career despite his being the best free agent starter on the market.
Wheeler asked the Mets to stay after he was almost traded to the Milwaukee Brewers. He asked to stay for less when he hit free agency. He didn’t want to uproot his New Jersey family making it between the Mets and Phillies for him. The Mets didn’t want him. Instead, we got Rick Porcello.
Wheeler has been a Cy Young caliber pitcher with the Phillies. He has been a postseason ace. With Harper, he has the Phillies back in the NLCS.
This never should have happened. This was Wilpon and Van Wagenen incompetence. Fortunately now, the Mets have an owner that is not going to let this type of nonsense happen again.
This probably should be the last straw for Buck Showalter. Every single time you think things can’t get worse, it gets worse.
It all started going bad in Atlanta last year. The Mets needed to win just one game to win the division. Instead, they were swept to complete a historic collapse.
The Mets followed that with a loss in the Wild Card Series. In the decisive Game 3, Showalter waited too long to have Joe Musgrove’s ears inspected, and he looked weak doing it.
This Mets team was supposed to be an NL East contender. At the moment, they’re 30-33 sitting in fourth place 8.5 games out of first place.
The season has hopefully reached its nadir as the Mets got swept by the Atlanta Braves. It marked the first time in Mets history where they lost three straight games they led by three runs.
The Mets are reeling losing six straight. Neither Max Scherzer nor Justin Verlander looked good. The bullpen is a mess. Worse yet, Showalter is proud of the team?
This just feels like the final straw for a souring fanbase. The fanbase was souring well before this senseless quote.
There’s the Daniel Vogelbach fascination. Batting Francisco Álvarez last. His general mistrust of young players leading Mark Vientos from being red hot in Triple-A to ice cold when he’s needed most.
There should be fingers pointed in many different directions, but usually, in these circumstances, it’s the manager who goes.
Admittedly, it’s not likely Showalter is fired. Same goes for Billy Eppler. At least not yet. However, that doesn’t mean the Mets shouldn’t do it.
At the moment, their hopes like with their young players. However, Showalter is reticent to fully deploy them, and we see him trying to hold them back. It’s really time for him to go.
Part of the issue is hiring interim managers is messy. You can’t conduct a full search. Oft times, you’re hiring a coach from a failed staff or shoe-horning a guy atop an existing staff.
If the Mets were to fire Showalter, they should consider hiring Carlos Beltrán as the interim manager.
Beltrán is already with the organization. He’s a name who could excite the fanbase and bring some juice to the team.
In the past, Beltrán was definitively not the guy. However, due to current circumstances, he could be exactly what the Mets need.
With much of the Mets hopes tied to Álvarez, Brett Baty, and Vientos, we should remember Beltrán mentored David Wright and Jose Reyes. He is also well aware of what Francisco Lindor is going through this year.
There’s a lot he knows. There’s so much more he doesn’t. It’s a free try for the Mets to see if he can. If he can’t, the season is teetering on lost anyway, and that’s with a manager who has done this for 22 years.
There’s also the karma of giving Beltrán the job after it was wrongly and needlessly taken away from him. If there’s any org that needs good karma right now, it’s the Mets.
Ultimately, this will not happen. Not now. Perhaps not ever.
Just because it won’t doesn’t mean it shouldn’t. We can dicker over Beltrán or the next guy (Eric Chávez?), but what is becoming incredibly clear is the Mets need a change. Showalter needs a change.
If the Mets do pull the trigger and fire Showalter, it will be a decision we can be proud of.