The long expected became reality yesterday. Fans will have someone new to blame soon enough.
The Mets said goodbye to general manager Omar Minaya and manager Jerry Manuel. Minaya declined the opportunity to stay on board in essentially a minimal role under the supervision of a new GM.
Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon said the organization needed “a new perspective.”
“Expectations were high. [We] invested a lot of time, energy and resources of money,” added principal owner Fred Wilpon.
The Mets, who had the fifth-highest payroll, finished 18 games behind the Phillies in the NL East. In the four years following the NLCS Game 7 loss to St. Louis in 2006, the Mets are 326-322 and had two massive September collapses.
“The last four years have been the most painful. I love the New York Mets. I love this franchise,” Fred Wilpon said. “The buck stops here. I take responsibility. I look forward to 2011 and beyond. I look forward to the challenge.”
Wilpons refuse to throw Minaya under the bus
In a shocking admission, the Wilpons said they were responsible for the failings of Omar Minaya.
“We have to put people in the position to succeed. That didn’t happen,” Fred Wilpon said. “We own the bad news.”
If the owners should apologize for anything, it should be for not firing Minaya sooner. There were numerous off-field scrapes, such as coaches in the farm system attacking players, and on-field busts. The Mets spent $519 million in payroll over the last four seasons with nothing to show for it.
“Some of the free agent signings and money misspent is the biggest part of it,” Jeff Wilpon finally acknowledged.
