Jerry Manuel has enough street-smarts to know hes perilously close to getting fired in 2010 or if he doesnt, he should take note of the way the Mets have booby-trapped the organization. There are enough managers-in-waiting to rattle even the most clueless incumbent.
In just the last two weeks, the volatile Wally Backman was hired at Class-A Brooklyn. The more cerebral Tim Teufel was promoted to Class-AA and Terry Collins, who managed the Astros and Angels a decade ago and interviewed for the Mets job in 2004, is now the organizations minor league field coordinator.
All three represent a clear and present danger to Manuels job security. Obviously, the Mets hierarchy isnt holding Manuel solely responsible for a 92-loss season that was sabotaged by injuries. But the apathy and lack of hustle displayed by the players who finished out the year stands as a nagging indictment of Manuels leadership.
Backman, in an interview with the New York Post, fired a thinly-veiled warning shot at Manuel when he complained about, the way (todays players) run the bases. Some of the lackadaisical styles that you see out there. They wouldnt have survived … playing in New York in the 80s. The people woulda run em out of town.
Backman isnt campaigning for Manuels job, at least not openly. And since his teams season doesnt begin until June, he wont be next in line should Manuel falter. But theres little doubt an anvil hangs over the managers head as the Mets stagger into 2010.
Manuels chances of surviving would be enhanced if he was given a clear idea of the Mets business plan: are they intending to challenge the Phillies, or instead taking a slower, longer-range approach towards rebuilding the broken farm system?
The fuzzy mandate has similarly handcuffed GM Omar Minaya, whos unsure if hes allowed to pursue Matt Holliday in earnest, push to the front of the line in the Roy Halladay sweepstakes or start developing prospects again, the way the Mets used to in the 80s.
In that sense, its not just Manuel whos failed; Minaya is responsible, too. Six of the Mets seven minor league affiliates finished with losing records in 2009, and the top-tier clubs at Class-AAA and Class-AA were a combined 61 games under .500.
The Mets currently have just one rising star: first baseman Ike Davis, who combined to hit .298 with 31 doubles, three triples, 20 home runs and 71 RBI in 114 games between Class-A and Class-AA. Hes a year away from Citi Field, if that, and developing quickly enough to keep the Mets from investing in Carlos Delgado beyond 2010.
But Davis aside, the Mets talent-pool is as thin now as its ever been which is to say, theyre too top-heavy for any sustained run. One major league official said, Jeff (Wilpon) forgot how his father (Fred) put this team on the map by pouring money and resources from the ground up.
But to do that, the Wilpons have to be willing to invest as opposed to just spending. Despite their NL-high $140 million payroll last year, the Mets were less than generous on the next generation. According to Baseball America, the Mets doled out $3.1 million on last Junes 35 signed draft picks the lowest in the majors and a 50 percent drop-off from their 2008 investment.
Reigning in costs isnt Minayas call, of course. That comes from Wilpon, who may or may not have been stripped clean by the Madoff scandal. Initial reports say Sterling Equities, the Wilpons investment firm, may have lost close to $800 million, although there are conflicting accounts which indicate the Mets actually walked away from Madoff with a small profit.
In either scenario, the Mets are unlikely to continue over-paying for free agents in a win-now climate. That philosophy has failed.
The Mets havent been the same since Game 7 of the 2006 NL Championship Series, when they were beaten by a less-talented Cardinals team on its way to the World Series. Minaya keeps spending the Wilpons money as if the Mets were just a player away. Hes just about out of time.
The 2009 carnage spoke volumes of the organizations miscalculation: with a gorgeous new stadium, a huge payroll and a big-market stage, the Mets have somehow become irrelevant. Manuel will be the first casualty if the team plays poorly in April and May, but a bigger fix is now in order.
Totally eclipsed by the Yankees enormous shadow, the Mets should use that cover to rebuild in the next 2-3 years. They need to pay their scouts and minor league personnel in a way that makes them an irresistible, forward-directed franchise.
Firing Manuel would probably satisfy the cravings of the Mets fan base, but theyd trade their blood-lust for 2-3 years of patience if they knew Wilpon and Minaya were spending their money wisely.
As popular as the Yankees are, theres an entire sub-culture of fans dying to root against them. The Mets once filled that void: they used to be younger and hipper and more fun to watch. They can reclaim that past, but only by admitting 2010 isnt going transform this roster into the Yankees or the Phillies, even if Holliday or Halladay somehow land in Flushing.
