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9/17/21

Reese Kaplan -- If Rojas Is Gone, Should the Mets Right a Wrong?


A lot of people in the land of Mets fans were very upset when Brodie Van Wagenen seemingly dismissed club favorite Edgardo Alfonzo without any explanation for why he had done so.  In his final season managing the Brooklyn Cyclones he delivered them a championship on September 10, 2019 against all other competition in the New York-Penn League.  For that Van Wagenen rewarded him with an exit from the clubhouse.



Now if you search for a rationale as to why it happened, you'll come up fairly empty.  Van Wagenen said it was a "player development decision" which is interesting since the players who were indeed developed by Alfonzo had nothing but praise for the man.  

He had gone around the mill as a player, finally ending his career with the Long Island Ducks alongside former teammate Armando Benitez before joining the Cyclones as a coach before being promoted to manager.  He delivered the team their first championship in 18 years yet he was not beloved by the General Manager.  

Cynics think that Van Wagenen was upset that Alfonzo never considered hooking up with him as his agent, but that speculation is not rooted in facts, merely conjecture.  Jeff Wilpon wanted to retain Alfonzo to perform public appearances and goodwill on behalf of the club, but Alfonzo wanted to be in a uniform and in the dugout calling the shots.  

In fact, when Van Wagenen called Alfonzo to meet, the A-ball manager thought he was receiving a promotion for all that he had accomplished, not being separated from the team that found him in Venezuela.  


The Mets did make a great gesture during this 2021 season when Alfonzo joined Jon Matlack and Ron Darling with induction into the club's Hall of Fame.  I take off my hat to salute new owner Steve Cohen for trying to mend fences with a fan favorite whose dishonor by Van Wagenen was undeserved.  

The question now is whether or not that honor bestowed upon Alfonzo is enough to mend the broken fence created by technically Jared Porter's predecessor.  More importantly, if Luis Rojas is shown the door for his inability to motivate any of his hitters other than Pete Alonso and to manage during the plague of injuries, would Alfonzo be a suitable replacement?  

He would certainly cost a lot less than veteran MLB managers seeking work.  He would be applauded loudly by the fan base and the media for his hire, but of course a manager (other than Terry Collins) is judged on wins and losses, not popularity.  

Right now the club is without a GM, they have a soon-to-retire multi-faceted front office person in Sandy Alderson, Luis Rojas is on very thin ice and there are innumerable roster issues to resolve.  

Somewhere far down the list is who will be the next face of the franchise when it comes to running the clubhouse, but you could certainly do a lot worse than bring Fonzie back where he belongs.  He's respected by the players, adored by the fans and would restore some faith in Queens after a disappointing 2021 season. 

13 comments:

  1. Alfonso might be > Rojas. But after this year: pay for, and hire, only the very best. Hire Epstein, let him decide.

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    1. Remember, Epstein is the one who gave Porter and Scott their chances.

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  2. I guess we are stuc with Sandy for another year. Name him King and bury him in a castle.

    Hire Theo as POBO.

    Hire The Fonz as manager

    Hire Backman as bench coach

    QO Conforto

    QO Thor

    5 yrs to Stroman

    6 yrs to Baez

    3 yrs. to Lugo

    get innings for Thor in the winter

    same for Jake

    Convert Vientos 100% to LF

    Take the rest of the day off.

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    1. No to Stro. Need pitchers willing to go the extra mile. Stro's idea of a good outing is six innings and 87 pitches and call it a day.

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  3. Reasonable plan, Mack. Do you think the guy with a .450 OBP in AAA, Khalil Lee, will at least slide in as 5th OF in 2022? Next highest guy in AAA Intl League is at .415.

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  4. I agree 100% but the question is will they?

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  5. I was wondering when Lee would draw mentions here. His talents in all areas seem above average, though his BA is merely average.

    I love the Fonz, but if a lot of the criticism of Rojas was that he had MnL success, but no ML managing experience, I can't see any replacement with the same lack of experience.

    Rojas was a coach with the ML team before becoming mgr, and Fonz doesn't even have that.

    How about a coaching jon in Queens for Fonz in '22?

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  6. Rojas did not have a great minor league resume.

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  7. I would rather have Beane over Epstein. Epstein will win you one championship, maybe. Eventually, his teams need to be torn down and start over (Sox in 2019, Cubs in 2021). Beane has had prolonged success with the A's.

    A few years ago (I believe it was 2018), Wally Backman had just started as manager of the Long Island Ducks. I got his autograph on a Sunday afternoon. While he was autographing for me, I said "The Mets could use you now." He just rolled his eyes and shook his head as if to say "No way!"

    Bob W

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  8. A little late to the party here on this post, but the answer to the question posed at the top of the article is "Yes"

    I like most of Mack's plan above, although I would also prefer Beane over Epstein at the top. Also, I'm not really a fan of Backman. I think this team needs to really dial in on the 'character' aspect in their hiring practices. Backman seems to have too much baggage for me.

    I agree about the two Q.O.'s that Mack suggests, although I seriously doubt either player would accept (collect the draft picks).

    I agree with the Baez projection, Stro .. ok . would prefer a little shorter deal, maybe 4 years tops).

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