A lot of people are calling for Jerry Manuel’s head – with good reason. I’d have no issue seeing Manuel our as manager.
But here’s my issue: Who would take over?
I really have no idea. Lots of people are in favor of Wally Backman or Bobby Valentine. But there are also many who wouldn’t like that move at all.
So, please, I’d love to hear your suggestions and reasoning. If Manuel gets canned, who takes over?
“Mets reach terms with reliever Chad Cordero on minor-league contract. Deal will be completed today.”
-Ken Rosenthal tweets
Remember when he was good and Mets fans were clamoring for him to no avail? Now he’s not very good (out of baseball) and the Mets sign him.
Genius!
The last two games in San Francisco have seen the Mets facing one of the better rotations in the NL. But the Mets pitching hasn’t been far from stellar. Surrendering only three runs over the last two games should be enough to see the Mets win one or both games. Unfortunately, they haven’t been able to score any runs, and have been shutout in both games.
So is adding a bat an issue? If so, where?
Ike Davis sure isn’t hitting. The young first baseman is ice cold, hitting just .182 in his last 15 games. Jeff Francoeur should see his time diminish as Carlos Beltran made his return on Thursday night and Angel Pagan will be seeing more time in right field. But they seems to be the least of their worries.
With Luis Castillo on the DL and Jose Reyes nearly there, the Mets are relying on Alex Cora and Ruben Tejada up the middle. Cora’s OBP is a cool .279 while Tejada just worked his back up to .300. Sure, they’re middle infielders who are bench players taking on a much larger role, but if the Mets are looking to add some pop, this might be the place to do it.
Outside of that, I think the Mets should be looking to get Josh Thole a lot more playing time. Rod Barajas gave the team a nice jolt at the beginning of the year, but he too has been chilly at the plate and hasn’t hit a home run since May. Thole and Henry Blanco should be the tandem behind the plate, trying to find a taker for Barajas. That will allow the Mets to bring in another arm in the bullpen, which can’t hurt.
In short, the Mets need to hope Reyes and Castillo can get healthy and bounce back to form. If not, it might be time to explore a trade for a second baseman.
“I think I'm going to try to split that time up. But if we face a series where we face four right-handers I'm going to still have to find time for Francoeur and find time to give Beltran a day off.”
-Jerry Manuel
I really can’t wait to see how Manuel works with Bay/Beltran/Pagan/Francoeur in the outfield. It should be fun.
“We're just not clicking offensively right now. We got a good team and we'll be fine.”
-Jerry Manuel
$2 million for calling out your teammates.
