New York Mets legend Edgardo Alfonzo reportedly hoped for a promotion prior to his eventual New York Mets dismissal.
According to Mike Puma of the New York Post, just before Edgardo Alfonzo’s firing in October, he thought he might be promoted.
“I thought I might get promoted a little bit because we won the championship,” Alfonzo told Puma.
Alfonzo, Puma writes, “Said he never received a real explanation for his ouster from general manager Brodie Van Wagenen.” Now, even as the team has announced that Alfonzo will be inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame in May, Puma reports that Alfonzo is hoping to find a job with another organization.
There’s an interesting question at the heart of the issue: why did the Mets fire Alfonzo, and then hire Carlos Beltrán for the big-league job? Brodie Van Wagenen, of course, has every right to staff the minor league system with managers he trusts. But why not stick with Alfonzo, especially after winning a championship?
On the one hand, Alfonzo’s dismissal isn’t the most important thing in the world. Sure, he led the Brooklyn Cyclones to a league championship, but minor-league standings don’t mean much for the big-league club. Alfonzo’s replacement, longtime St. John’s head coach Ed Blankmeyer, has decades of experience that will undoubtedly help the Cyclones continue to move players up the Mets’ minor league ladder.
On the other hand, though, cutting Alfonzo loose is a strange move to make, especially when he seemed to be doing nothing wrong and everything right. Alfonzo, after all, is one of the more beloved Mets of the last 30 years and had just won a minor-league championship. Why not keep him around?
Alfonzo reportedly thought he might get promoted. Instead, the Mets let him go. Then they hired a different fan favorite, with no managerial experience, to manage their big-league club. Now, in May, Alfonzo will enter the Mets Hall of Fame less than a year after the team parted ways with him for little apparent reason. Class A manager turnover isn’t the biggest deal in the world, but it seems like there’s a disconnect somewhere.
