Replacing Mickey: The Quest for a New Mets Manager

[Edgy MD]

Johnny Lunchbucket wrote: Mets by the Numbers has http://www.mbtn.net/?p=3162officially endorsed Tim Bogar, even though he's behind in Iowa.

This is good stuff.



For a guy who didn't get on with Valentine, he seems like a real Valentinian candidate. Marginal but memorable former player for the team. A long career of coaching including an impressive managerial track record in the minors. An audition with Texas (much briefer than Valentine's but still.)

Vic Sage wrote: Were you intending this to be a satire of the Mulvaney press conference? Because it's spot on.

Not at all, but damn, yeah. It must have been a sub-conscious thing.



I frankly suspected I didn't even have a sub-conscious, but there it is.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Eighteen years ago, The Big E predicted that Tim Bogar would be a great coach/manager some day:



http://leaptoad.com/mets/profile.php?PlayerCode=0477&tabno=7http://leaptoad.com/mets/profile.php?PlayerCode=0477&tabno=7

[HahnSolo]

Latest from Martino. This could be interesting...thoughts on "bombshell candidates"?





@martinonyc

1h1 hour ago

One person connected to team has said a “bombshell candidate” is in the mix if a clear favorite does not emerge from the current group. Have fun with that one. No way David Wright would ever do this so don't go down that road btw

[Benjamin Grimm]

Kate Upton?

[Edgy MD]

Frank Stallone?

[Centerfield]

It's Jeff.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Wally Backman might be considered a "bombshell".

[Centerfield]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Wally Backman might be considered a "bombshell".

I guess so right?



Others that I would consider "bombshell"



1. Bobby Valentine

2. Davey Johnson

3. Lou Piniella

4. David Wright

5. Ted Turner

[HahnSolo]

Twitter speculation on Jessica Mendoza and AJ Hinch.

[Edgy MD]

2. Jessica Mendoza


4. Darryl Strawberry


6. Kurt Russell


8. Bobby Bonilla


10. Gary Carter.

This sucks. Now I'm going to be so disappointed if it's a boring old "qualified" candidate.

[Edgy MD]

Gosh, looks like the Jessica Mendoza theory has preceded me.

[Centerfield]

I don't know if Jessica Mendoza meets my definition of bombshell.



I'd be more inclined to go the route of Charlize Theron or Natalie Dormer. Maybe Naomi Watts, but she's more like girl next door than bombshell.

[Vic Sage]

http://www4.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/35th+Annual+Salute+Women+Sports+o_C2VyTSgoMx.jpg>

[Guest 41Forever]

Tony LaRussa's name bouncing around Twitter as a bombshell.

[bmfc1]

=Centerfield post_id=24902 time=1571755226 user_id=65]It's Jeff.

[Benjamin Grimm]

=Centerfield post_id=24909 time=1571756875 user_id=65]
I don't know if Jessica Mendoza meets my definition of bombshell.

[seawolf17]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I don't know if Jessica Mendoza meets my definition of bombshell. She's certainly prettier than Joe Torre.

"'It's hard to say what she looked like; kind of like Joe Torre with tits.' This joke can only be explained by a picture of Joe Torre, but none exist because he breaks camera lenses."



-Jim Bouton

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Eighteen years ago, The Big E predicted that Tim Bogar would be a great coach/manager some day: http://leaptoad.com/mets/profile.php?PlayerCode=0477&tabno=7http://leaptoad.com/mets/profile.php?PlayerCode=0477&tabno=7

Love those fan memories. Bogar played mainly during my "Wilderness Years" when I was out of state, no games on TV, fresh off "Worst Team" era, and the strike that led to an additional year of pay-no-mind-to-baseball. Basically I missed almost the entire Dallas Green Era, returning only in time to see it end.

[Edgy MD]

When Gary recalls TB, he tends to mention that the one time in his Mets career he was playing well enough to win the shortstop job outright, he got badly injured.

BASEBALL; Bogar Is Trying to Reverse a Career Slide By Jennifer Frey Feb. 25, 1994 https://www.nytimes.com/1994/02/25/sports/baseball-bogar-is-trying-to-reverse-a-career-slide.htmlThe New York Times Archives February 25, 1994, Section B, Page 11 The perfect day came to an end at 3 A.M. in a hotel room in Center City, Philadelphia. Tim Bogar awoke with an awful ache in his left hand, the pain so great he could not get back to sleep. His wife, Karrin, was there with his baby son T. J. Earlier in the night, friends had joined him to watch sports highlights on television. He had gone 4 for 5 with two homers, 4 runs scored and 4 runs batted in in the game against the Phillies. All those numbers represented career highs for Bogar, who was trying to prove to the Mets that he just might cut it as the team's starting shortstop, rather than as the utility infielder they had pegged him to be. Big Opportunity Wasted But Bogar made a stupid mistake. On his last at-bat he hit an inside-the-park homer and slid head first into the plate. His left hand twisted, the ligaments tore and suddenly his season was over on Aug. 15, his big opportunity wasted away. "It didn't seem bad at first, not until I woke up in the middle of the night in pain," Bogar said. "I didn't even realize what I had done until the next day." Bogar went to the park, avoided the trainer and tried to take batting practice. He could not swing the bat. He was placed on the disabled list that day and had surgery exactly one month later. While the hand healed over the winter, the Mets went shopping for a shortstop and signed the veteran Luis Rivera on Jan. 19. Now, Bogar, 27 years old, is competing for the shortstop job at the Mets' spring-training complex and faces an uphill battle if he wishes to establish himself as the everyday guy. "I sat there and thought about how much opportunity I missed in that month and a half," Bogar said. "If I would have played the last month and a half and done some more positive things and proved to them I can be an everyday player, they might have had different priorities this winter. But by hurting myself, I put doubt in their minds about my abilities." Knee Injury in 1990 Once a strong prospect at shortstop, Bogar was labeled a utility infielder after he returned from a 1990 knee injury that forced him to miss most of his minor league season. At that time, the organization correctly predicted that Bogar would have a quicker route to the majors in a utility role. But when the Mets traded shortstop Tony Fernandez to Toronto last June, they suddenly found themselves without a shortstop and Bogar found himself with a chance. He made the most of that opportunity, surprising Manager Dallas Green with his performance -- at least, until that head-first slide in August. "I think when the general manager broke him down, he was valued at best in our minds as a utilityman who can play a variety of positions," Green said today. "But when we traded Tony, he stepped forward and did the most with it. I gotta give him credit, he did more with the bat than I expected." Bogar has never been a high-average guy, not even in the minors, and he has been criticized for a lack of range in the field. Last season, he hit .244 with 3 homers and 25 r.b.i. in 78 games. "I've never made an all-star team, I've never been a star, not even in the minor leagues, but I'm here," said Bogar. "I'm the type of guy that's never noticed, but I'm needed." INSIDE PITCH FRED WILPON, co-owner and president, addressed the team for five or six minutes before the start of workouts Thursday morning. He commended the players for their attitude and warned them that any player who did not give 100 percent effort would be gone. In addition, Wilpon announced that all team members must participate in 90-minute seminars on dealing with the news media. . . . BUTCH HUSKEY continues to work out on a special program and Manager DALLAS GREEN said that Huskey must recognize that this is going to be a transition year for him -- a transition from out-of-shape to in-shape, that is. "He's not going to be able to do much here by the looks of it," Green said, alluding to spring training. Huskey is expected to start the season with the Class AAA club.

[Guest 41Forever]

Sherman reporting Metheny not interested in Mets because he's been working for the Royals and could be Ned Yost's replacement.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Tim Bogar makes the cover of not one, but two Mets programs. That's two more than Mets Cy Young award winner R.A. Dickey.





https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48942340168_65c6458788_c.jpg>



https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48942890006_446ba3f0ff_c.jpg>

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

That's good in Bogie's case because the statistics measured that he sucked.



I'm proud to be leading the Tim Bogar 4 Manager Bandwagon, even as I didn;t realize that was my position until I woke up this morning and didn't even realize he was coaching Washington and not Houston till Greg told me so on Twitter.



But ya know, that's just as good. He comes with knowledge of the enemy.

[seawolf17]

"Statistics Cannot Measure His True Value, Except His Statistics Are Seriously Terrible, Which Now That We Really Look At It Means He Doesn't Bring All That Much Value, As It Turns Out."



What "value" did Tim Bogar bring, exactly? Nobody was buying tickets to see Tim Bogar play. They didn't have BOGAR 11 shirseys for sale in the team store.



Goodness, those were lean years.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Did Homeboy Sandman even mention Tim Bogar???

[Centerfield]

1996 Tim Bogar. .546 OPS. 0.4 WAR.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Did Homeboy Sandman even mention Tim Bogar???

You're not gonna believe this but he does. At the 14 seconds mark. In fact, Bogar's the first Met to be mentioned.

[Benjamin Grimm]

You're right! Holy crap!

[Edgy MD]

There you have it: value!

[Vic Sage]

Tim Bogar = scrappy utility guy who "played the right way" = white guy who couldn't hit that well. (see Joe, Super)

[Frayed Knot]

Sure, but wait'll you see Bill Pecota!