Recently appointed manager of the New York Mets, Mickey Callaway, already has a beef with the out-of-touch front office of the organization. Good for him, because the plan they have needs to be trashed.
The New York Mets have tried every which way they can imagine to dismiss themselves of any responsibility for the injury-plagued and disappearing edge their starting pitching held on the rest of baseball a mere two seasons ago.
The litany of disappointment within causes too many tears for fans of the Mets, but suffice to say, the last man standing (erect) is Jacob deGrom, who with a slight turn here or there would have been in last’s night’s discussion for the NL Cy Young Award.
For those who haven’t heard and to recap the latest “fix,” the Mets will not be allowing starting pitchers whose name is not deGrom or Noah Syndergaard to work through a third time through the order in any of their starts.
Their reasoning? Get this: It’s to help prevent more injuries to these, apparently, very fragile arms. Give the Mets credit for originality but nothing else because this strategy is designed to fail.
Luckily for the Mets, though, they have stumbled upon someone who can breathe a breath of sanity into the organization. That would be Mickey Callaway who, in a report published by NJ.com, is not bashful in voicing his exception to “The Plan”. Hear, hear.
“I haven’t seen that report,” Callaway told WOR’s Pete McCarthy earlier this week. “I think you use every players’ strengths to the max. If I see deGrom or Syndergaard, their slot lowering — we’re going to be monitoring all of these things during the game. We’re going to be prepared going into the game, knowing who’s a good matchup and who’s not a good matchup. And if I see them tire, they’re not going to get to face the lineup the third time through.
“But if they’re showing us that they can continue to go and they’re strong, everything mechanically looks good, they’re healthy, and their stuff looks good, then they’re going to pitch 12 innings if they can.”
Voila! There is finally someone in the Mets’ organization who has half a brain. And let’s remember he was born in baseball as a pitching coach for one of the most successful teams in baseball the last two seasons, the Cleveland Indians. And apparently, he not only has the brains but he has the b___s to confront a bad idea, regardless of where it came from.
Mets fans, rejoice. Because this is something lacking and much needed if the organization is to work itself from the quagmire they have built for themselves over the last few years.
I’d give a year’s pay to a charity if either of the Wilpon Brothers has ever held a baseball in their hand, other than the obligable tossing out of the first pitch here and there. They know nothing about the game, and they contribute nothing to the franchise. They do, however, succeed in tying the hands of general manager Sandy Alderson when it comes to signing checks designed to improve the team.
Alderson, at least on the surface, appears to be a go-along to get-along type of guy. He takes orders from the menu given to him, sends it back to the chefs, and delivers the meal to the table, or in this case, the Mets’ roster. Not good enough.
But if Mickey Callaway has a plan for the Mets, and it appears he does, and if he’s willing to push the idea his baseball acumen has told him needs to be sold, a breath of fresh air has finally descended on Citi Field and the Mets organization.
Keep an eye on this one and I will too because it’s bound to be a barn burner as the Hot Stove League moves along over the winter.
