Bob Klapisch | North Jersey Advance- Unlike some Mets fans who seem to have a lifetime grudge against Terry Collins, I largely have no problem with the job he’s done, particularly this year. He’s not as cerebral as Tony La Russa, nor is he quite the motivator Joe Torre was in the late ’90s, but you’d nevertheless be surprised how Collins’ energy has catalyzed his clubhouse. Some people — including a growing number of GMs — already think managers are irrelevant, or at least interchangeable. To them, there’s no such thing as a good or bad manager, just someone who understands data and enforces company policy. But Collins is old-school enough to interpret his job differently. To him, it’s about “creating a good atmosphere where no one is looking over their shoulder.”
(Chris Soto: Weren't we actually talking about this very topic a few days ago? LOL. Yes, as much grief we have given Terry Collins in the past, the same guy deserves praise right now. Is he the most effective Manager? No. Does he manage his bullpen well. Probably Not. However, the man did a DAMN good job holding the club together during dark times this season while waiting for reinforcements arrived. Once he got better troops to work with...he has been able to push all the right buttons.)
Fred Kreber | New York Post- Yoenis Cespedes was named National League Player of the Week Monday for a seven-game performance that forced manager Terry Collins to conjure up memories of Barry Bonds. “I’ve seen some guys firsthand and the only guy I can even compare him to closely would be when Barry Bonds would get on a run. What this guy was doing on the road, every time you needed him to step up, he stepped up. The other day he hit one off Edwin Jackson, he hit it off the end of the bat. It just kept going. You just shook your head. … After [that], Matt Harvey walked over to me, he goes, ‘It’s time to move him to the next league.’ He’s a special talent.”
(Chris Soto: As long as he is not on 'roids like Barry Bonds was.... What we have been seeing from Cespedes actually reminds me of a former Met.....the 2004 version of Carlos Beltran. Beltran was traded from the Royals to the Astros that season and in 90 games with Houston he caught fire hitting 21 HRs in 90 games. Then the playoffs came and he hit 8 more HRs in a 12 game span to carry the Astros to within 1 strike of the World Series. It feels exactly like that. It's worth noting....Beltran became a Met after that ridiculous run.....will Cespedes remain one? I hope so.)
Tim Rohan | New York Times- About 20 minutes before baseball’s trade deadline on July 31, the Mets’ top baseball executives were holed up in a conference room at Citi Field, nearly out of options for filling their dire need for a formidable hitter in the lineup. One last time, they discussed whether to make a last-ditch trade for Yoenis Cespedes. The decision to trade for Cespedes was hardly unanimous. Some good fortune — and last-minute judgment — brought Cespedes to Queens. They wondered if Cespedes, normally a left fielder, could play center field, they thought his approach at the plate was too wild, that he chased bad pitches and did not walk enough and then there was the glaring fact that he would become a free agent at the end of the season. But on his way out of the room, [Alderson] paused to confer with Wilpon, who had been listening to the debate. Alderson asked him, just to be sure: Was he comfortable making the deal? “Go for it,” Wilpon told him. Minutes later, as news of the deal was announced
(Chris Soto: Luckily for the Mets, the trade for Cespedes has worked out really well for them. They had every right to be leery of Cespedes for the reasons listed above. However, sometimes.....you need to take risks and It was really nice to see that with a ton of risk staring him in the face....Jeff Wilpn was okay with letting his staff do their jobs. Still being a part of.....but not interfering with what his team debating and agreed was the right thing to do. Wilpon's pockets are surely thanking him now.)
15 comments:
Terry Collins deserves manager of the year. I was a past critic, but this club has such unity, he gets it.
But...please Terry don't compare hike to Bonds. It might make him more expensive.
Chris, the Beltran comparison is a very good one.
Some say the best decisions are the ones you don't make. Nope, the best decision is one they DID make.
Two things about the Cespedes deal. First, I had no idea that this guy could play a credible CF, and to me that's been absolutely huge. Otherwise, they only traded for a guy to push Conforto on the bench. It's why I didn't understand talk of Jay Bruce.
Secondly, some things have been obscured by Yoenis's unreal performance. It's been amazing. The question I can't answer with authority is this: How necessary has it been?
Going into the trade, I thought the Mets needed another bat. I didn't think it had to be King Kong. I thought a normal Carlos Gomez would help, since it was important to get Lagares off the field vs. RHP. Obviously, the injured Gomez is no use at all.
Anyway, Cespedes has earned all the praise. But in getting it, he's overshadowed spectacular performances by d'Araud and Conforto, the addition of Wright, the rise of Wilmer, the stunning quality of Familia, the arrival of Clippard & Reed, the clutch play of Johnson & Uribe, and the overall great hitting (and defensive flexibility) of Daniel Murphy.
It could be argued that the Mets didn't need the insane level of performance that Cespedes gave them. OTOH, it could well be that his "star power" and "presence" finally gave everyone else the room to relax & thrive.
Credit to Jeff Wilpon for saying, "Go for it." Or perhaps to Sandy Alderson for framing the debate in such a way that it left Jeff with only one obvious choice.
James Preller
Really amazin to watch Mets games now, know that if they score first they're probably going to win. And if the other team scores first, the Mets are probably going to come back and win.......crazy....
Need?
Don't need?
There's no way I would want to go back in time and change anything to find out.
D'Arnaud & Conforto's stars can shine and I'm sure they would be the first ones to say they are happy that Cespedes is out shining their brilliance, even if it leaves them in his shadow.
Morning.
It's been a long time since I followed a team that had such a dominant hitter like Cespedes.
There's a lot of great things that have happened to this team since the all-star break, but the Barry Bonds comparison probably sums it up perfectly.
Cespedes has shows us that the field can tilt and the entire outcome of the destiny of one team can change with one player.
Without Cespedes, are the Mets trailing the Nationals?
James Preller
They're leading the Nats but not by 9.5.
Maybe.
But I feel pretty sure that without Cespedes the Mets would not be in a position to feel as comfortable providing rest to cut down on some of the young pitchers season workload.
The Nats will lose enough games on their own to insure a Mets win for the division.
What the Mets need to do is re-focus NOW on the Dodgers and keep the best lineup in the game in order to win home field advantage for that series.
Everybody can rest all winter.
Regarding the NY Times article:
Cespedes low on base %, free swinging, and reluctance to trade young pitchers (especially for a rental)- doesn't that sound like Sandy Alderson's reasons to not want a player?
With that in mind and the article written after the trade occurred stating that Alderson was reluctant and Jeff Wilpon needed to tell him to make the trade for Cespedes. .......
It seems like Alderson really was the person in the room that was not in agreement to acquire Cepsedes.
Most likely Alderson asked Jeff Wilpon one last time before making the trade as a last chance to get Wilpon to change his mind.
I am not buying that ONE article that Jeff pushed Sandy to make the trade. it was reported only once and not corroborated by any other NY media outlet, who absolutely drools over those types of stories and not a peep about it since YC turned into Godzilla, which seems inconceivable that at least one of the NY hacks would be hammering away at that story. the overall preponderance of evidence suggests that Sandy saw that now was the time and made all sorts of moves to upgrade, at the expense of minor league talent for rentals. he was also ready to part with Wheeler and Flores for Gomez, who did have one more year of control, but would have cost substantially more than YC. also bear in mind that YC has a higher career OBP and lower K rate than Gomez, so I don't see him excluding players based on a preconceived profile. My guess is that Sandy was reluctant to give up Fulmer for a YC rental (this was widely reported) but ultimately pulled the trigger at the last minute because he was out of alternatives, not because Jeffy pushed him to. Some writer probably made up a scenario based on their own narrative and used some level of reluctance to present a conflict that not one other writer has corroborated since. If it did happen that way, it would have been far more widely reported at the time and the beat reporters would be sticking it in Sandy's mush on a daily basis following every monster game for YC. He was willing to trade more talent for a player with less power, lower OBP and higher K rate, so I don't see that narrative holding water
Anon Joe F
Joe
Sounds plausible.
But the writer (Klapisch) I referred to is not a hack. He does not have a history of bad/questionable reporting.
Yes it is possible that Alderson changed his mindset from what the history has been. A history he has proven time and time and time again.
It could be possible that not only did he change his mindset on the way a batter approaches hitting to be accepting of a hitter that embodies everything he has historically not been in favor of.
Heck it could also be possible that his mindset changed so drastically that he would not only support but also argue against others that were arguing what he historically supported in the past.
All if that is possible.
Probably as possible as Klapisch's report not being accurate.
By the way.... I was surprised to hear just now, NY radio hosts reporting that their sources pointed to Alderson having to be talked into Cespedes by Wilpon as well.
Possible?
Not possible?
I usually look toward history as signs of why things occur.
My reading of the article was that there was a debate amongst the baseball people, a decision reached, and that when SA was headed out the door to make the call, he asked Jeff to sign off on the deal.
And Jeff said, "Go for it."
I don't give Jeff a ton of credit for this, nor do I see a smoking gun as to exactly which man in the room had issues with Cespedes. Clearly, all of those negatives exist and were appropriate to discuss. Losing Fulmer, the low walks, the weak performance in Boston, etc. The point is that it was debated and a decision made. The right decision.
I don't think it's fair to criticize Sandy on this one.
James Preller
Just saying...
The way Alderson keeps ALL information under lock and key, not a surprise others may not report.
Either way though......
Super glad Cespedes is with the Mets.
Yay.
And good for Alderson to call the Tigers gm to make the deal.
Some day, in a fee years the whole story will come out. Either I'll be right or wrong.
Doesn't matter right now.
Will matter less if Cespedes is resigned.
Go Mets
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