Mendoza Hot Seat Thread

[Gwreck]

The Mets hold an option on him for 2027 but this is the last guaranteed year on his contract.

Obviously we’ve heard in-the-moment calls for his immediate firing.  Thinking realistically, how bad would things have to be for a move to be made?

I’ll set the over/under at a .500 record and <6 games back from the division on May 31.  If the Mets can’t accomplish that, Mendoza can’t continue.

That’s 59 games in, with 36 of them coming against the weakest* opponents the Mets will face this year.

 

*Proprietary Gwreck formula, averaging a team’s 2025 record and 2026 FanGraphs projected record.  The bottom 10 are well-represented in the Mets’ March/April/May schedule:  Colorado (6 games), Washington (6), White Sox, Angels (3), Minnesota (3), Pittsburgh (3), Sacramento (3), Tampa, St. Louis (3), and Miami (6).

[MFS62]

29 minutes ago, Gwreck said:

I’ll set the over/under at a .500 record and <6 games back from the division on May 31.  If the Mets can’t accomplish that, Mendoza can’t continue.

 

That would be a good decision point but I'm not sure who his replacement would be.

BTW I agree with your list of weak opponents.

Later

[Gwreck]

As a point of reference:

the 2022 Phillies fired Joe Girardi on June 3 with a 22-29 record.

They went 65-46 the rest of the way, capturing the final wild card spot.

[Lefty Specialist]

The problem is.....who will replace Mendoza if he's fired?  And please don't say Carlos Beltran.

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

Willie Randolph II: Electric Boogaloo

[metirish]

13 minutes ago, Johnny Lunchbucket said:

Willie Randolph II: Electric Boogaloo

Let's bring back Omar and Adam Rubin while we are at it 

 

I would think is this current losing streak goes past what , 11, 12 he's gone 

 

I would take Girardi , although this team right now just doesn't look very good, like poorly constructed bad 

[ashie62]

There's Kobra Kai and

Kai Correa, bench coach and a real possibility 

[Centerfield]

I’m at the point where I feel bad for Mendoza. I think it’s inevitable that he’s going to be fired. I think he knows it too. 
 

For me, he’ll go into that unique club where I think he’s not a good manager but I like him anyway. 
 

Terry Collins is in that club. Buddy too. 

[Edgy MD]

Well, almost every firing is inevitable.  You are hired to be fired.  Few managers retire out of the job.  Dying in the job is probably as just as common.  But I guess Terry and Casey Stengel both go down as guys who retired out of the gig, so maybe it's a 2-to-1 ratio.

It's just an exercise in how long you can keep the wolves away from the door.  And in Carlos' case, the wolves are in the house.

Should the "Names Here" thread be merged with this 'un?

[Edgy MD]

I guess he is going to survive 'til Tuesday.

[MFS62]

Has he received the dreaded "Vote of confidence" yet?

Later

[Centerfield]

I felt it was a long shot. It takes extraordinary circumstances for any club to consider firing a manager before Memorial Day. Doing so a month before requires even extraordinarier circumstances. 
 

But these are fairly extraordinary circumstances. 
 

 

[The Hot Corner]

I don't think a reincarnate John McGraw could make this group much better.

 

[ashie62]

Lindor did a great job of painting Mendoza in a sympathetic light 

 

[Edgy MD]

1 hour ago, The Hot Corner said:

I don't think a reincarnate John McGraw could make this group much better.

 

I definitely think a philosophical shift could make a difference.

[Radar]

I really don't think the manager is the problem. Yes, as all managers do he's made mistakes but given the club he's been handed I sympathize with him. Total new coaching staff, almost total new roster, maybe over expectations on players like Benge and even Baty, too much confidence in pitching staff to rebound leaving us with three guys you really can count on for starters and first base well flip a coin at that position. I'll pound the drum again.....Boy Genuis at this point in his tenure looks much worst than our manager.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Here's the vote of confidence...

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

It's not that he's makes too many Xs and Os mistakes; it that he's demonstrated he's not really capable of inspiring better performances from his guys. Why have a manager at all?

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

Daily News changed their headline font--not a fan.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Just now, Johnny Lunchbucket said:

Daily News changed their headline font--not a fan.

Yeah, I noticed that too. And I agree.

[seawolf17]

1 hour ago, Radar said:

I really don't think the manager is the problem. Yes, as all managers do he's made mistakes but given the club he's been handed I sympathize with him. Total new coaching staff, almost total new roster, maybe over expectations on players like Benge and even Baty, too much confidence in pitching staff to rebound leaving us with three guys you really can count on for starters and first base well flip a coin at that position. I'll pound the drum again.....Boy Genuis at this point in his tenure looks much worst than our manager.

I agree with this. Stearns has handed Mendoza a limp turd to work with. You have a virtually unlimited budget, but Tommy Pham, Tyrone Taylor, and Craig Kimbrel are playing important spots? Come on.

(And I shouldn't even knock Kimbrel, because except for the 10th inning Sunday, he's been okay.)

[Frayed Knot]

Important spots?

Pham has 8 ABs and it took three injured OFs (Soto, Young, Tauchman) and a 1B/DH just to get him that many. Taylor played a significant semi-full-time role when the team was good in 2024 and 1st half of 2025 (approx 2.5 ABs/GP) but less so so far this season (30 PA in 22 G). And Kimbrell has thrown 3.2 innings.

iow, there are so many problems with what should be the Real meat of the roster, it seems beyond silly to cite the low-hanging fruit at the back of the bench as proof of poor roster construction.

[Gwreck]

I also find the personal animosity towards Stearns very odd.

[Centerfield]

14 hours ago, Benjamin Grimm said:

Here's the vote of confidence...

wtf. I’m glad the TCD never lived to see this. 

[Centerfield]

At this point Mets are just being assholes holding on to Mendoza. 

[Radar]

9 hours ago, Gwreck said:

I also find the personal animosity towards Stearns very odd.

He's probably a nice fellow but for some reason he's always come across to me as a relatively young and arrogant person. Maybe that's not the case but it's the feeling I've had since he arrived here.

[metsmarathon]

Nobody likes smart guys. They seem like know it alls and people like to root for know it alls to be wrong, even when they are actually smart people who know a lot. 
 

me I want my gm and pobo to be dumb as rocks. 

[metsmarathon]

I also wonder how Mendoza still has the job. 
 

not that he’s necessarily a bad manager or has the wrong messaging, because I think he’s exuding a message of calmness and what not. But goddamn it is not resonating with this group of overly-pressing try-hards. 

[Gwreck]

It’s time.

It may not do anything but if he’s not likely to return in 2027 (and he isn’t) there’s no sense keeping him if there’s any chance a change can turn things around.

[Centerfield]

On 4/21/2026 at 8:15 AM, Johnny Lunchbucket said:

It's not that he's makes too many Xs and Os mistakes; it that he's demonstrated he's not really capable of inspiring better performances from his guys. Why have a manager at all?

I mean. How can anyone legitimately argue against this.