Marinak For President

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Sherman is still on fire: https://nypost.com/2018/09/12/the-mlb-insider-the-mets-should-hire-to-rescue-the-franchise/

[Ceetar]

anything interesting/quotable? I try not to click on Sherman links.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

It says "Don't be willfully ignorant." You and 62 can not read it together than complain about it

[Centerfield]

I know nothing about Marinak, but if he is anything like Sherman described, I can't think of a better candidate.

It sounds though, if Marinak were to happen, that both sides would have to be convinced to go that route.

The big traits, though, are having a large understanding of where the game is now, set beliefs on what sustains winning, and the intellect, endurance and backbone to convince, coerce and — ultimately, if necessary — pull ownership out of its familiar habits.

This part is interesting. By use of the word "pull", I wonder if Sherman is implying that if ownership won't raise the budget he may pull the "Well I may just have to report you to Manfred..." card. I mean, most likely not. But it's interesting to consider.

Edited September 12, 2018 by Guest

[Ceetar]

I'm not willfully reading a hack if I can help it.


Google says Marinak's from Virginia Beach and 2 years younger than David Wright.

[Edgy MD]

I'm not particularly sold on gravitas. Or backbone. They can be the sort of virtues or character traits or job qualifications that are more projection than substance.

I'm also not buying in on the "rescue" mentality.

I love the notion of a GM charged to "elevate the potential of the Mets brand into something sustainably unique." Though I think the Mets brand is that. And sustainably so. I just think they aren't particularly good at leveraging it. In fact, brand management is the job I'm applying for.

[batmagadanleadoff]

This is the catch-22 dilemma the Mets are caught in. Anyone with the clout and backbone to stand up to the Wilpons wouldn't get hired in the first place. It's a disqualifying trait and the reason for two first place finishes in 30 years. It's why it didn't make much of a damn difference that the Mets had Sandy Alderson, one of MLB's top office guys if he's gonna be handcuffed financially, second guessed by the owners and micro-managed to within a molecule of his thoughts.

[Benjamin Grimm]

It's still three first-place finishes in thirty years. 1988 hasn't dropped off the other end yet.

[Centerfield]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: It's still three first-place finishes in thirty years. 1988 hasn't dropped off the other end yet.

And 2018 isn't over yet!

[MFS62]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: It says "Don't be willfully ignorant." You and 62 can not read it together than complain about it

Which 62?
I can, and do, read. Even Joel Sherman's columns.
I also would have used "then" instead of "than", as someone who is not ignorant would have.

Later

Edited September 12, 2018 by Guest

[Guest 41Forever]

Marinak, who played baseball at the University of Virginia and has a Harvard MBA, lacks experience in day-to-day baseball operations and reps dealing with reporters. Look, there are no perfect candidates.

I think experience in day-to-day baseball operations and dealing with the media are really big parts of the job.

[Lefty Specialist]

Oh, heavens to Murgatroid.

The Wilpons will do the hiring. The Wilpons want someone they can control. That's the biggest requirement for the job. While the Wilpons have a 'burning desire to win', they want to do it on their terms. I'm sure they'll find someone to do their bidding and hope that lightning strikes, like they always do.

[Centerfield]

Was thinking about this last night. As much as I'd love to see this guy come in and whip the Wilpons into shape, in the end, this is not realistic.

Specifically,

*No one this smart and this strong would want to work for the Wilpons.

*The Wilpons would never hire a guy like that.

*Even if by some miracle it happened, the Wilpons would eventually meddle and fuck everything up.

*I think the Wilpons are really overleveraged. And no GM in the world can fix that.

*They're hiring Mark Shapiro or someone worse.

[Ceetar]

Centerfield wrote: Was thinking about this last night. As much as I'd love to see this guy come in and whip the Wilpons into shape, in the end, this is not realistic. Specifically, *No one this smart and this strong would want to work for the Wilpons. *The Wilpons would never hire a guy like that. *Even if by some miracle it happened, the Wilpons would eventually meddle and fuck everything up. *I think the Wilpons are really overleveraged. And no GM in the world can fix that. *They're hiring Mark Shapiro or someone worse.

*Plenty of smart and strong people do in fact work for the Wilpons. Whether or not these specific asshole billionaires are better or worse than others is minor compared to holding down this highly coveted job.

*If they think he's the right guy, sure they would.

*Everyone meddles. I thought he was strong enough to resist meddling?

*I mean, maybe they are personally, but the Mets themselves aren't. A new GM is going to have the ability to do some things at least, even if it's not pushing the payroll to 200.

*No they're not.

[Edgy MD]

Mark Shapiro gave Peter Brand his first job. He's OK with me.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: It's still three first-place finishes in thirty years. 1988 hasn't dropped off the other end yet.

Two first place finishes in thirty seasons.

[Centerfield]

So I guess it's official now.

So I'd be curious to know from the "money doesn't guarantee winning" and "at least the Wilpons aren't Charles Manson" crowd, what they think is the reason for this level of failure.

[Frayed Knot]

So Joel Sharman continues on his suggestion streak on what the Mets need for their front office, this time floating ideas such as:
- seeing what it would take to lure Billy Beane away from Oakland
- seeing if dangling a GM role would be enough to lure Alex Cora away from the bench in Boston after just one year
- going to the booth and speculating about Ron Darling as a GM-type
- or even dipping into the pile of agents to run a team (been done before) such as with Brodie Van Wagenen (currently reps Frazier, Cespedes, Syndergaard, Nimmo and others)

[Edgy MD]

If the Mets are going to hire an agent to run their organization, it sure as shit better be Bean Stringfellow.

[Frayed Knot]

... speculating about Ron Darling as a GM-type

And Darling says he's interested, acc to Raissman in a NYDN piece

money quotes: "if someone wants to sit down with me and talk about putting a team together I would absolutely take that meeting,”
“I know a lot of things would have to change with my family to take that task on, but everyone who loves the game wants a chance to put a team together, and I’m no different, ... I would prefer that
to managing a team. The day-to-day stuff (involved in managing) would not be my favorite. But the behind the scenes stuff… I would be more qualified for those personal relationships away from the field.”

[Frayed Knot]

Or not (via the NYPost):
"“I don’t [want to be NYM GM] ... I work for three different networks. I don’t have time to work as a general manager, nor do I have probably the skills to do it."
“So folks, I’ll just be here between [Gary & Keith] for as long as I can do it.”


Always fun when you get completely different statements -- both accompanied by quotes -- from the same person presumably just hours apart with the second set as a reaction to the first.
Now it shouldn't be surprising that he's not going to use his main current job to campaign for a different job and, just as obviously, that a move to a front office position would be instead of
his current gigs rather than in addition to them so the 'I don't have the time' statement is pretty meaningless.

It also helps to keep in mind that this is all in reaction to Sherman's think piece floating him as a possible candidate, not because there's any actual info that he's being considered and that all
these non-traditional GM targets Sherman speculates about are contingent on the creation and hiring of a team president type of position between the new GM and ownership for which there
is also no actual info.

[Ceetar]

I think I might dig Darling as GM, but yeah, this is all just fodder for the most part.

[Edgy MD]

Jock-in-the-Booth isn't an easy job, but it's a tough job to get and it's a lot easier to build a long tenure with than GM-ing a team

[Benjamin Grimm]

Bud Harrelson has expressed remorse about giving up his cushy coaching gig for the insecurity of being a manager. He could have had a Joe Pignatano-length tenure as a coach.

[Frayed Knot]

Edgy MD wrote: Jock-in-the-Booth isn't an easy job, but it's a tough job to get and it's a lot easier to build a long tenure with than GM-ing a team

And it pays!! Particularly if you spin your local job into an additional network gig, or two (MLBN + TBS)

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

He's "Forty Under 40" material. And he's got a haircut by which you could set a watch. Seems ideal.

But, yeah... resources or no, this team's ownership is the sort that tends to chase away ideal candidates, or anyone with choices now. THAT, Edgy, is our brand these days.