Mets to Meet With Girardi For Second Time - Tony Plate

                                                                     

                                                                 

The New York Mets have scheduled a second meeting with former New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi for a second time either today or Wednesday as he is expected to meet with Brodie Van Wagenen as the team tries to fill its managerial opening.

He has done a good job currently as a studio host on the Major League Baseball Network. I think Girardi would be the best choice for the job due to his eleven years of experience and he is a proven winner since he won the World Series with the Yankees in 2009.

He knows that it is not easy to manage in New York, however he has shown that he can handle the pressure of managing in New York with a strong personality.  Girardi is a general type of manager which is the opposite of Mickey Callaway’s laid-back approach.

I think the players will respond well to Girardi since they are focused and built to win now and also will be a playoff contender. They work hard and will play to win therefore Girardi’s strong personality type would not be necessary to motivate the players.

I think the second-best choice would be Dusty Baker since he has 22 years of managerial experience. He has a career record of 1,863-1,636.  He recently managed the Washington Nationals in 2016-17.

The Mets have Carlos Beltran, Eduardo Perez and Tim Bogar also scheduled to receive second interviews. The Mets will not be rushed into making a decision.

In other baseball news the Houston Astros are heading back to the World Series for the second time in three seasons due to Jose Altuve’s clutch, walk-off home run off of Aroldis Chapman in the bottom of the ninth inning to win this past Saturday’s Game 6 over the Yankees 5-4 which enabled them to win the American League Championship Series.

 Prior to the walk-off The Yankees had tied the game in the top of the ninth on D.J. LeMahieu’s dramatic two-run home run. The Astros outfielders had made two spectacular catches in different innings to prevent a Yankee rally twice.

It was a terrible gut-wrenching loss for the Yankees who lost to their nemesis the Astros in the playoffs for the third time in five years. A dejected Aaron Judge said that “The season was a failure”.

The difference in the Series was that the Astros capitalized on opportunities and the Yankees didn’t. Also, the Yankees lack of defense and the mediocre pitching of the bullpen led to their downfall.