N.Y. Mets: Meet The New Boss

From the desk of:  HEAD-BUTTING MR. MET

The Great Communicator Has Spoken

New York Mets: Indians Pitching Coach, Mickey Callaway, Named 21st Manager in Club History.

I won't lie ...

I knew Mickey Callaway was pitching coach for Terry Francona throughout his five years with Cleveland, but not much else.

Joe McEwing, Kevin Long, and therefore Mickey Callaway, didn't even make my personal list of candidates. 

Yeah, I said it.

Alex Cora was my first choice.  I would have been agreeable with Ron Gardenhire, or Manny Acta, and I was slightly intrigued with Sandy Alomar Jr.

Callaway didn't make my list for the very reason he is/was a pitching coach with only five seasons of experience (and only a couple seasons coaching in the minors previous to that).  Otherwise, I was aware he was an active MLB pitcher from 1999 through the 2004.

The list of pitching coaches turned field manager is short, and the list of successful ones even shorter.  Roger Craig comes to mind.  Boston asked former pitching coach John Farrell to manage the Red Sox after the Bobby Valentine fiasco and returned them to prominence.  George Bamberger, former pitching coach of the once formidable Orioles pitching staffs, later served as manager of the (Brewers, and) Mets, but only as a favor to Frank Cashen.

Like football, I'm a believer in good coaching trees.  As noted, Callaway comes to the Mets having worked the last five seasons with Terry Francona.  That's gotta count for something.  He's also being widely reported in the tabloids as a great communicator.  Sandy Alderson going right for the hire, instead of conducting a second round of interviews speaks volumes.  The tabloids have been describing it as Callaway's "wow" effect - that once you speak with him, he wins you over.

Apparently, all was not well and good during Terry Collins' years as Mets manager.  Local tabloids characterized the end of season exit interviews as rather condemning of the former manager who retires with the second most career victories in the organization's history.  Trust, or lack there of, between Collins and younger players, favoritism and not holding veterans accountable, and an overwhelming lack of communication were chief among gripes.

That being said, I could have done without the introductory (paraphrasing) - these players are going to be the most cared about group of people in all of major league baseball.

Expressing a desire to establish an environment of fairness, with respect towards individuals, while emphasizing team precepts, would have sufficed.

On a separate note, Sandy Alderson has now twice handed over the reigns to a pitching coach; first with Bud Black in San Diego, and now with Mickey Callaway and the Mets.  On an executive level, he is therefore not breaking any new ground here.

Sandy Alderson also made it clear the Mets are a pitching oriented team, and so Callaway fits well into the team's present condition.  Alderson also seems satisfied with Callaway's willingness to incorporate new age metrics.

Mickey Callaway is also part of a younger class of managers, in their mid-40s or so, being hired in recent years.


My Concerns:

• Managing with conviction:  The last skipper sometimes let his players manage for him.  Being every one's friend is nice, but where it concerns managing, unpopular decisions usually turn out being the best decisions.  It's not a player's job to like it; it's a manager's job to manage nonetheless.
• Neutralizing the media:  The sharks were constantly circling Willie Randolph and Jerry Manuel.  For the most part, the media ate them up and spit them out.  Terry Collins handled the media very well.  Sometimes we didn't know that hell he was talking about, but at least he didn't take any crap from them.
• Managing and manipulating a 25-man (40-man) roster:  He'll be responsible for double the number of pupils he is normally used to.  That's a bit over-stated.  These coaches and players are together all the time.
• Managing in the National League:  Strategy; substitutions; a running game.  Pitching changes are not as straightforward in the National League than in the junior circuit.  Just ask Terry Collins.  If you mismanage the bullpen and bench, that's all on you, dude.
• Playing to team strengths:  The Mets set an organization record last year for most home runs in one season.  But where did that get them?  I want Mickey to also establish competency in manufacturing runs as a reliable back-up for when the long-ball goes dry.  Did Sandy Alderson ask him if he knew what a bunt was?

From what I've gathered, most Mets fans seem on board with Sandy Alderson's selection.

Now that I've had a few days to let it sink in, I'm warming up to the idea as well.  I'm not opposed to Mickey Callaway being manager.  I'm just a little more wait and see.