Three rumored front-runners

[Benjamin Grimm]

We don't know if these guys really are the front-runners, but if they are (as Adam Rubin is reporting), which one would you prefer?

[metirish]

Collins

[Ceetar]

David Wright.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Melvin, but I'm tepid on all of them, really. Hurdle seems okay, but I'm pretty sure I'd have to reuse a few of my Jerry-era "happy place" mantras, owing to all the bunting (his teams led or were close to leading the NL in sacs for his entire tenure as Rockies jefe).

[sIDE NOTE: The more I read about DeMarlo Hale, the more I like about DeMarlo Hale. Tons of experience managing in the upper-level minors/coaching at the major-league level, seems open-minded about advanced stats, has been quoted in a few places as emphasizing stolen-base percentage over plain ol' green-lights.]

[TransMonk]

Hurdle.

Though they all seem like used up ass-bags to me.

[Zvon]

Melvin.
He just seems to me to be more of a Sandy man.

[Ceetar]

Zvon wrote: Melvin. He just seems to me to be more of a Sandy man.

The Sandy Man Can!

[G-Fafif]

TransMonk wrote: Hurdle. Though they all seem like used up ass-bags to me.

Monk expresses my thoughts as if setting them to music.

[soupcan]

Collins only because I've read a bit more about him but honestly I'm with everybody else - 6 of one, half dozen of the other at this point.

[MFS62]

Ceetar wrote: Melvin. He just seems to me to be more of a Sandy man. The Sandy Man Can!

Ceetar, you asked for it:

Who can change a roster, along with his new crew
Get some good new players, maybe get rid of one or two
The Sandy Man, oh the Sandy Man can
The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good

Who can take a roster, make some dealings sly
Make the Mets so good it makes Yankee rooters cry
The Sandy Man, the Sandy Man can
The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good

The Sandy Man makes every step he takes planned out and judicious
Now you talk about your Mets-based wishes, high OPS and fewer swishes

Oh, who can start tomorrow, fulfill our every dream
Put behind the sorrows and improve our fav�rite team
The Sandy Man, oh the Sandy Man can
The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good

The Sandy Man makes every step he takes planned out and judicious
Now you talk about your Mets-based wishes, high OPS and fewer swishes


Yeah, yeah, yeah
Who can start tomorrow, his new front office team
Put behind the sorrows and improve our fav�rite team
The Sandy Man, oh the Sandy Man can
The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good
The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good



Later

[dgwphotography]

MFS62 wrote: Melvin. He just seems to me to be more of a Sandy man. The Sandy Man Can! Ceetar, you asked for it: Who can change a roster, along with his new crew Get some good new players, maybe get rid of one or two The Sandy Man, oh the Sandy Man can The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good Who can take a roster, make some dealings sly Make the Mets so good it makes Yankee rooters cry The Sandy Man, the Sandy Man can The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good The Sandy Man makes every step he takes planned out and judicious Now you talk about your Mets-based wishes, high OPS and fewer swishes Oh, who can start tomorrow, fulfill our every dream Put behind the sorrows and improve our fav�rite team The Sandy Man, oh the Sandy Man can The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good The Sandy Man makes every step he takes planned out and judicious Now you talk about your Mets-based wishes, high OPS and fewer swishes Yeah, yeah, yeah Who can start tomorrow, his new front office team Put behind the sorrows and improve our fav�rite team The Sandy Man, oh the Sandy Man can The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good The Sandy Man can 'cause he�ll make the needed deals to make the team play good Later

This is just brilliant. There are no other words...

[metirish]

Excellent

[MFS62]

Thanks,
Later

[ashie62]

Wes Westrum.

[MFS62]

Now that they're supposedly down to the "final two", why were they going to interview Jose Oqendo? Is it because neither of those two really excited them that much?

Later

[Guest Edgy DC]

Because maybe they weren't down to the final two. If another opportunity opened up, it seems perfectly reasonable to explore it.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Yeah, the "two finalists" thing is speculation from Mets beat writers and bloggers. The Mets never made any such statement.

It all seems to be based on Sandy's statement that he values prior big league experience. In his interview with Kevin Burkhardt, in which he made that statement, he made it clear that that wasn't an absolute requirement. But it's being interpreted as if it was.

[HahnSolo]

Edgy DC wrote: Because maybe they weren't down to the final two.

This. With a new regime in place, I'm really not sure how much the sources for all the local scribes really know.

[MFS62]

Here's a reporter who doesn't know anything except Mets-bashing, our old friend Madden:
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/2010/11/13/2010-11-13_new_mets_gm_sandy_alderson_should_be_leery_of_hiring_a_recycled_manager_to_take_.html

If you hire an "experienced" manager, it means he has managed someplace else and probably has been fired by that team.
But you just know that if the Mets hired someone who had never managed in the bigs before, (i.e.- never fired) you know he'd be jumping all over them for trusting a big market team to someone with no experience.

Later

[Benjamin Grimm]

On Mets Hot Stove, Kevin Burkhardt pointed out that Dallas Green, Art Howe, and Jeff Torborg all joined the Mets as experienced big league managers, and Davey Johnson didn't.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Madden was advocating Mazzilli initially. He certainly lost the team in a small market.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: On Mets Hot Stove, Kevin Burkhardt pointed out that Dallas Green, Art Howe, and Jeff Torborg all joined the Mets as experienced big league managers, and Davey Johnson didn't.

Davey Johnson gets a lot of work as a sample size of one. Randolph and Harrelson and Torre and Frazier and Westrum were also blessedly free of the burden of experience.