Benjamin Grimm

Voting for Thursday's 4-2 loss in Atlanta will close on Wednesday morning.

metirish wrote: About the last thing Reyes needed that inning was an error. I know. It's brutal. I ask myself why I even watch these guys.

The drama will just continue as before. It's like the Obama-Hillary race, it just goes on and on. If the Mets lose the next four out of five, the drumbeat will continue.

Oberkfell managed an afternoon game in New Orleans against Albuquerque. I read the game notes to see if there was any reference to him not being there, but apparently he was. He won't be managing the Mets in Queens tonight, but there's always tomorrow...

I wonder what time that meeting with the Wilpons was/is going to happen? The Mets are going to have to release some kind of statement, I'd think, even if Willie is staying. I wouldn't think he'd just show up at Shea and go about his normal routine as if all this speculation hasn't been flying around. Or maybe he will. Who knows? (What time would Willie normally show up and first encounter the press on the day of a 7 p.m. game? I'd have to think it would be pretty soon now. If there's going to be a replacement for tonight's game, I guess it will come from the current coaching staff, if only on an interim basis.) My current hunch is that Willie gets a warning, and continues for a while.

Huh! He's the third Met to die outside the United States, the second to do so in Venezuela. And one of the youngest, too. He was 33 years old. (Danny Frisella was 30 when he died. I can't think offhand of any others who died younger than 33.)

SNY isn't televising the Randolph-Wilpon meeting, are they? That would be worth tuning in to!

I'm not sure why, but I find that I'm rooting for it to be Oberkfell.

Willie, by the way, needs just two wins to pass Yogi Berra and move into fourth place all-time in wins by Mets managers. I don't think he'll get the chance. http://leaptoad.com/mets/managers.php

I agree. I think there will be a new manager in place for tomorrow's game. Almost surely someone from within the organization. I think it will be Manuel, although I'd be keeping an eye on Ken Oberkfell. See if he's buying any plane tickets, etc.

Adam Rubin handicaps the candidates: Jerry Manuel ODDS: 8-5 Current position: Mets bench coach Knock would be he's a Willie Randolph clone, but insiders suggest that's far from the case. He and Randolph have disagreed on strategy. And Manuel, a former AL Manager of the Year with the White Sox, with whom he went 500-471, has the fire many say Randolph lacks. He did get ejected at Yankee Stadium. Manuel proudly noted afterward that he led the AL in ejections one season in Chicago. Lee Mazzilli ODDS: 3-1 Current position: SNY analyst A Wilpon family favorite and former Met, he's certainly kept tabs on the organization from the network's studio at the corner of 51st and Sixth. Mazzilli, a former Orioles manager, did pass up a chance to join Joe Torre's staff in L.A. to remain with the Mets' family. Tony Pena ODDS: 4-1 Current position: Yankees coach The one-time Royals skipper would command the respect of the clubhouse and was a finalist for the Yankees' managerial job that went to Joe Girardi. One question: Would Hank Steinbrenner let him walk? Second question: How'd the last hire of a Yankees coach go? Ken Oberkfell ODDS: 6-1 Current position: New Orleans Zephyrs manager A likeable guy and longtime infielder with the Braves and Cardinals, Oberkfell has managed the Mets' Triple-A team the past four seasons. He was named Baseball America's Minor League Manager of the Year when the Mets were still affiliated with Norfolk. If Howard Johnson is David Wright's �baseball father,� Oberkfell is probably a close uncle. Felipe Alou ODDS: 20-1 Current position: Giants special assistant He was signed by the New York Giants in 1955. How's that for a counterbalance to all the emphasis on the Brooklyn Dodgers' at Citi Field? And who would mess with Moises Alou's 73-year-old dad? Bobby Valentine ODDS: 80-1 Current position: Chiba Lotte Marines manager He certainly has his allies in the media, but the Wilpons have been there, done that. The only place you'll catch the Zen of Bobby V is on TV. Or he's managing the Mariners by the time they come to Flushing next month. Manny Acta ODDS: 1,000-1 Current position: Nationals manager Omar Minaya can wish, but Acta is under contract to a division rival, which has team options on him for two more seasons. Maybe the Mets could trade, say, Jose Reyes to D.C. for him. Gary Carter ODDS: 1,000,000,000-1 Current position: Orange County (Calif.) Flyers manager/Loudmouth jerk Lobbied for Willie Randolph's job on the radio before the position was even vacant. Did the same thing when Art Howe was in trouble. Hall of Famer? Yes. Crackpot? Double yes.

Box score Maine 3 Schoeneweis 1 Wise 0.5 Reyes 0.25 Chavez 0.75

AG/DC wrote: Meet Fernando Tatis, #832: Meet Nick Evans, #833: Tatis was 830. Vargas was 831 and Evans is 832.

Vargas 4 Beltran 3 Evans 2 Castro 1

VOTING FOR THIS GAME IS NOW CLOSED Totals for May 21, 2008 (11 votes) Atlanta Braves 11, New York Mets 4 NameTotal PointsPoints AwardedPlayer PerformanceJos� Reyes11.551.052-4, R, BB, 2 SB.David Wright7.600.692-4, R, RBI.Carlos Beltran7.600.692-4, R, 2B, RBI.Billy Wagner1.300.121.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO.Carlos Delgado0.750.070-3, RBI, BB.Luis Castillo0.500.051-4, R, SO.

That's great! I hope he plays so well that they never send him back down.

I don't have any opinion on the current version of Tim McCarver, but the guy who did the Mets games in the 1980's was the best thing since bacon in a box. You'll never hear me say a harsh word about Tim McCarver. After the doldrums of Lorn Brown, he made Mets telecasts fun again, and he brought Ralph Kiner out of his coma.

I really wish he'd go away. If he gets the Mets manager's job, I'm going to move out of the country.

Schoeneweis 1.5 Sanchez 1 Perez 1 Delgado 2.5 Tatis 1.5 Chavez 1.5 Reyes 0.5

I hate to point this out, but last year they had a lock on the playoffs in mid-September, and we all know what happened.

Buster Olney thinks firing is imminent. From http://www.bleacherreport.com/articles/25034-Buster-Olney-This-May-be-Willie-Randolph-s-Last-Weekend-with-the-New-York-Mets Dan Siegel wrote: When Steiner asked Olney if he would bet the family farm that Randolph would be gone as Mets' manager by the time next week rolled around, Olney cited the above silent treatment given by management as his justification for an affirmative response. Although Olney seemed to indicate that a strong series in Colorado may help elongate Willie's tenure, the main reason he has not yet been let go is that the Mets do not have a good replacement in mind. Bench coach Jerry Manuel's name has been tossed around, but the feeling in Met-land is that Manuel's personality is too similar to that of Randolph and that when a team is looking to change their manager, they tend to look for somebody that has the opposite (or at least a different) style. Olney claims that the Mets have been considering Jim Fregosi as a potential replacement for Randolph. Fregosi last Major League gig was with the Toronto Blue Jays in 1999 and 2000 when he managed them to two straight third place finishes and a .515 winning percentage. He has previously managed the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago White Sox, and California Angels. His best season came in 1993 when he led the Phillies to a 97-win season and the World Series, only to fall to his future employer, the Blue Jays. Despite some success with the Phillies, Fregosi has a career .484 winning percentage as manager during the regular season, and a .412 winning percentage during the postseason. Olney claims that Fregosi would be a welcome change from Randolph in that he is good with the media and that he could be helpful in helping get Jose Reyes back on track after four months worth of up-and-down baseball. It is said that Randolph and Reyes do not have a great relationship. Shocking! However, the always reliable Wikipedia claims that, "One general criticism of Fregosi was that he was a manager who relied on veteran players and was unable to develop younger players." Is this the direction that the Mets are going in? In the words of Willie Randolph, "Huh? It smells a little bit." I think it would be hilarious if, 36 years later, the Mets were to have a press conference introducing Jim Fregosi as their manager! You never know when a chance at redemption might come. Would we think differently about Jim Fregosi if he won a couple of pennants for us? I know I would.

Thought I'd bump this, since the vultures are circling. This surprised me: The thread had drifted all the way back to Page 4, and it had its last post only ten days ago. We've really been churning out the threads lately, haven't we?

The Death Watch does seem to be kicked into high gear. If the Rockies sweep the Mets this weekend, Willie is doomed. He won't make it back to Shea (except to pack his stuff). That's my fearless prediction. I'll go further to say that Jerry Manuel will finish out the season, and a full search will occur after October. (Unless Jerry wins the pennant for the Mets, then he'll be retained.) On the other hand, if the Mets win two, and perhaps one, of the games in Denver, then there's a stay of execution. But unless there's some really sustained winning, it's just a matter of time before Willie is gone.

He'd have to be with the team for all 162 games, wouldn't he? Or would he just manage the home games and let Ron Darling cover for him on the road trips?

I think he'd be a terrific choice. He's smart. He's intense. And he knows how to win. (I didn't just say that, did I?)