Class Dismissed

Firing an employee is a difficult task that should be handled with care and dignity. The New York Mets organization botched manager Willie Randolph’s termination.

Willie Randolph was fired after meeting with General Manager Omar Minaya at the latter’s hotel room hours after the Mets defeated the Los Angeles Angels.

The Mets organization released an email indicating Jerry Manual replaced Mr. Randolph at 3:18 AM Eastern Time.

The ineptness of New York Mets front office is matching the ineptness of the roster. The players embarrassed themselves at the end of the 2007. The Mets front office embarrassed themselves by firing Mr. Randolph in such a clumsy manner.

Mr. Randolph could have been fired after the Mets collapsed in late September, losing the division on the last day of the season to the Philadelphia Phillies, after blowing a 7.5 game lead with 17 games left to play in the season.

Fortunately for Mr. Randolph, Omar Minaya had faith in the embattled manager’s abilities. But Mr. Randolph’s status as Mets manager was tenuous.

The Mets organization wanted to mute any potential backlash. Firing New York’s first African American manager and a beloved New Yorker was going to draw criticism. But firing the manager at 3:00 in the morning, after press deadlines, is a cowardly act.

Mr. Randolph was showered with sympathy – even from fans who wanted him fired after last season’s debacle.

The actual time of the dismissal and the method used to announce it were not the only mistakes the Mets organization made.

Mr. Randolph and the two coaches were allowed to get on a plane, traveled 3,000 miles to California, and were whacked after the Mets won the first game of a west coast trip. Whacked, because that’s what it appears to be – a botched hit job.

Mr. Randolph understood he was in danger of losing his job. “Sunday night before we left to fly to California, Omar and I had a heart to heart [conversation] near the trainer’s room,” Mr. Randolph recollected. “I know you are under a lot of pressure, that there’s stuff going on. If you feel you want to do this now, go ahead and do it. But don’t make me get on that plane if I’m not the guy you want.”[i]

The Mets organization actually decided to fire Mr. Randolph and the two coaches three weeks ago, but the organization was unable to decide on the appropriate time to fire the manager.

But the Mets were about to play six games against two last place teams. The front office falsely believed the Mets would play better against the Colorado Rockies and the Seattle Mariners and were worried about the repercussions of firing Mr. Randolph during a winning streak.[ii]

Firing Randolph was not a surprise. Sources within New York Mets front office leaked news items to the press indicating Mr. Randolph, pitching coach Rick Peterson and first base coach Tom Nieto were the verge of losing their jobs.

The front office source named their replacements. Jerry Manual would be the eventual replacement. The new pitching coach would be Dan Warthen. Luis Aguayo and Ken Oberkfell would be added to the Mets coaching staff.

Firing Mr. Randolph during the current baseball season is debatable. But the Mets were not performing to expectations. It was not entirely Mr. Randolph’s fault.

The New York Mets are a poorly constructed team. The Mets are counting on major offensive production from Moises Alou – a 41-year-old, injury prone leftfielder.

Rightfielder Ryan Church suffered a second concussion during this season, but was allowed to travel by plane to Colorado before he was fully recovered. That was the first mistake. The second mistake was not putting Mr. Church immediately on the disabled list when it became apparent he was not in any condition to play baseball.

Mr. Randolph was managing a baseball team with 23 players because the Mets refused to place Alou and Church on the disabled list. Instead, management hoped both outfielders would recover immediately.

Mets first baseman Carlos Delgado’s offensive production has declined over the last two seasons. In addition, he is a defensive liability at first base.

During the off-season, the Mets signed Luis Castillo to a four-year contract even though Castillo had bilateral knee surgery. Mr. Castillo is 32 years old. He can no longer play a day game after a night game.

Shortstop Jose Reyes has been an unproductive leadoff hitter since Willie Randolph removed him from a game because Reyes did not run hard to first base after hitting a routine ground ball to an infielder. Not hustling was becoming routine for Reyes. The manager attempted to instill discipline. Instead, the young shortstop stopped producing.

Left-handed pitcher Oliver Perez reverted to his inconsistent form after a solid 2007 season. Mr. Perez was wildly inconsistent prior to joining the Mets. He is an unrealiable starting pitcher.

The Mets bullpen has been effective. Aaron Heilman has blown two saves, has allowed 55 baserunners to reach base in 39 innings. His ERA is 5.03. Billy Wagner has blown five saves this season.

The Mets have a thin bench. The current roster includes three catchers. Robinson Cancel is the third catcher. The last time he played in the Major Leagues was in 1999. He appeared in just 15 games.

Fernando Tatis is a utility player. He has not played a full season since 1999. He was out of baseball during the 2007.

General manager Omar Minaya did not help Mr. Randolph. Mr. Minaya made several bad trades, for example he made the mistake of trading a starting pitcher for a relief pitcher.

Right-handed starting pitcher Brian Bannister was traded to the Kansas City Royals for right-handed relief pitcher Ambriox Burgos in December 2006.

Bannister is a successful pitcher for the Royals. Burgos appeared in 17 games during the 2007 season, but is currently recovering from elbow surgery. Burgos will not be available for the 2008 season.

Mr. Minaya traded right-handed relief pitcher Heath Bell to the San Diego Padres for outfielder Ben Johnson and right-handed pitcher Jon Adkins in November 2006. Bell is a successful relief pitcher for the Padres. Johnson is in the Mets minor league system. The Mets released Adkins. He is currently in the Reds minor league system.

In addition, the New York Mets have had several unsuccessful drafts. Their minor league system lacks players who are ready to play in the major leagues.

The problems within the Mets organization are not Mr. Randolph’s fault. The problems are system wide.

Willie Randolph was not the Wilpon’s first choice to manage the New York Mets, but the decision to hire a manager belonged to Omar Minaya. He was given complete autonomy over personnel.[iii]

The Mets organization did not have confidence in the new manager. Randolph was the lowest paid manager in baseball.

Usually, managers are allowed to assemble their coaching staffs. Mr. Randolph was not allowed to assemble a coaching staff with the exception of hitting coach Rick Down – who was fired during the 2007 season.[iv]

Mr. Randolph sought a contract extension after the successful 2006 season. Contract negotiations were contentious. Jeff Wilpon “told Randolph’s agent, Ron Shapiro, that the Mets ‘could just go out and get another manager’ – his way of telling Randolph that the Mets won the National League East in spite of him.”[v]

Mr. Randolph had an enemy within the Mets organization – Vice President of Development Tony Bernazard. Mr. Bernazard spent a lot of time with the players in the clubhouse before and after games. He used this time to tell the players about Mr. Randolph’s unflattering personnel evaluations.

In addition, “Bernazard was only to eager to point out Randolph’s faults to the players, while privately assuring them in the last year that a manager change was coming.”[vi]

Bench coach Jerry Manual also betrayed Mr. Randolph. Understanding the power structure within the organization, Mr. Manual began confiding in Mr. Bernazard. “On numerous occasions, Manual was said to have complained to other members of the organization about Randolph being late with the lineup every day. According to club sources, Manual also wasn’t shy about suggesting that Randolph was overmatched in game situations and that he refused advice from his bench coach.”[vii]

During his tenure as manager of the Mets, the media and fans constantly criticized Mr. Randolph for his strategic moves during a game.

The Mets organization is in turmoil. Ownership is inept. The front office is operating in a Shakespearean world of betrayal and dishonesty. The players are unmotivated and ineffective. The farm system is a barren wasteland. Any class the Mets had was fired at 3:00 AM.




[i] Willie Randolph and Wayne Coffey, “Willie Randolph Opens Up After His Recent Firing As Mets Manager,” New York Daily News, June 20, 2008.
[ii] Bill Madden, “Willie Randolph Had No Chance With Mets’ Owners and Undermining Coaches,” New York Daily News, June 21, 2008.
[iii] Bill Madden, “Willie Randolph Had No Chance With Mets’ Owners and Undermining Coaches,” New York Daily News, June 21, 2008.
[iv] Bill Madden, “Willie Randolph Had No Chance With Mets’ Owners and Undermining Coaches,” New York Daily News, June 21, 2008.
[v] Bill Madden, “Willie Randolph Had No Chance With Mets’ Owners and Undermining Coaches,” New York Daily News, June 21, 2008.
[vi] Bill Madden, “Willie Randolph Had No Chance With Mets’ Owners and Undermining Coaches,” New York Daily News, June 21, 2008.
[vii] Bill Madden, “Willie Randolph Had No Chance With Mets’ Owners and Undermining Coaches,” New York Daily News, June 21, 2008.