Mets Aren't Bucking Around
With nothing but time to make the right call, Showalter gets the nod...
The New York Mets have grown weary of the middling. One look at their offseason agenda so far would be all the evidence needed to prop that hypothesis up.
Over a half-decade since their last deep voyage into the postseason and with new ownership and overturned management at the helm, this organization finally appears to be done settling for anything less than what they think it will take.
Noteworthy roster upgrades in Starling Marte, Eduardo Escobar, and Mark Canha. The hair-on-fire addition of Max Scherzer to pair with fellow generational hurler Jacob deGrom atop the Mets’ starting rotation. All signs indicative of a new era of Mets baseball commencing.
On Saturday afternoon — in a briefing straight from the source, in fact — the Mets added another ladle of gravy to their offseason plate, hiring the manager that, reportedly, Scherzer, Mets owner Steve Cohen, as well as a large portion of the fan base were in support of, three-time Manager of the Year Buck Showalter.
Mike Puma of the New York Post reports that Showalter will receive a three-year deal with a total contract value expected to eclipse the franchise-record $9.4 million Art Howe received to manage the Mets in the early 2000s. Exciting stuff.
Showalter, 65, last managed in 2018, wrapping up a long stay in Baltimore (2010) after previous stops in Texas (2003-2006), Arizona (1998-2000), and The Bronx (1992-1995).
Despite the Yankees, Diamondbacks, and Rangers all hitting their respective next gears once Showalter was out of the picture (Yanks’ dynasty, D-Backs’ 2001 World Series win, Rangers WS appearance), the developmental steps taken during his tenures were clear precursors to the success that followed soon after. Even in Baltimore, the plan worked.
The Orioles won 274 games from 2012 through 2014 (93, 85, 96) with Adam Jones, Nick Markakis, Matt Wieters, J.J. Hardy, Chris Davis, and a very young Manny Machado as their positional core, mostly mediocre starting pitching, and an otherworldly, keep-the-train-moving bullpen (Darren O’Day, Jim Johnson, Luis Ayala, Tommy Hunter, later Zack Britton, to name a few). That’s no small task, especially considering the AL East hierarchy at the time.
Machado spoke with Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic on Saturday, sharing praise for his former manager with regard to his nuanced approach in getting his points across.
“You knew where you stood, whether you liked it or not,” Machado told The Athletic. “That’s a hard skill. And that’s something people don’t necessarily want to do nowadays, especially with social media and all these other things, just the way the game is right now. There are not too many guys who, good and bad, kind of address the situation, tell you where you stand.”
That’s something this Mets ballclub could certainly benefit from. It’s a more veteran group than it has been in recent years, but having someone in Showalter who has the advantage of dugout experience plus elite communication skills suitable for players of any level should keep the unwanted (yet unavoidable) turbulence to a minimum.
Naturally, Showalter was a bit of a hard sell to fans who were anticipating an analytically-inclined hire in the vein of the organization’s two other managerial finalists, Astros bench coach Joe Espada and Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro. And that makes sense.
If the Mets are turning a corner as an organization with respect to data analysis and application, hiring a manager who’s not necessarily well-versed in that aspect of today’s game seems a bit counterintuitive.
Fear not, though. Buck’s got his own way of crossing that bridge.
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