As free agent signings go, Francisco Rodriguez wasn’t a bad one for the Mets.

Sure, he had the incident last season with his girlfriend’s father, but even that worked out well for the club. K-Rod received the proper counseling, the Mets were off the hook for the rest of his 2010 salary and he came as a model citizen this year.

Oliver Perez, K-Rod was not.

But the fact is the Mets needed to trade their now erstwhile closer. With $17 million looming in 2012 and Scott Boras wringing his hands in the background, Sandy Alderson needed to ship his closer away for any price and as quickly as he could.

Boras could have made the Mets life miserable over the next few weeks. Already he boasted Rodriguez wasn’t going to be a set-up man and would be “unhappy” in the clubhouse if he didn’t get the ball in the ninth.

Enter Milwaukee, who is tied in the Central with the Cardinals using John Axford who is 23 out of 25 as their closer. With 23 saves on the season, manager Ron Roenicke can use both pitchers in the ninth as he sees fit or just use K-Rod in the eight. With 34 games finished so far, Rodriguez probably won’t get to the vesting option of 55 games.

So this trade needed to be made. The Mets will get back two player yet to be named, but it doesn’t matter if they are Rickie Weekes and Prince Fielder or two A-Ball relievers, as the deal is about the addition losing K-Rod brings to the Mets.

“We thank Frankie for his contributions to the Mets and wish him well with the Brewers,” Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said in a statement. “This trade allows us to develop and more fully utilize other members of our 2011 bullpen and offers some payroll relief, as well.”

Now the club can see if Bobby Parnell or even Pedro Beato are the answers at closer, or does the team have to look elsewhere next year. By giving their young pitchers a chance in the ninth this season with only an outside shot to contend, the Mets will avoid an Aaron Heilman situation where a good reliever melted as a closer when forced into the pennant race.

More importantly, though, losing Rodriguez give the Mets a much better chance of keeping Jose Reyes. Without K-Rod’s albatross option looming, the club have some cost certainty when it comes to 2012. After Carlos Beltran walks or even gets traded, Alderson will have around $55 million coming off the books, not including Reyes’s $11 million. That means there may be some wriggle room to pay the shortstop in the high teens to low $20 million range in the off-season, while dropping the payroll to a more comfortable level for the Wilpons.

This is exactly what the Wilpons hired Alderson to do. He’s cleaning up Omar Minaya’s mess. Beltran will probably be the next to go – more than likely when David Wright and/or Ike Davis come off the disabled list at the end of the month – and heck, if some insane team wants to take Jason Bay off his hands, Alderson will more than likely drive the left fielder to the airport himself.

So sure the Mets lost a closer last night, but as trade go, this is a good one.

Posted under Aaron Heilman, Bullpen, Cardinals, Clubhouse, Francisco Rodriguez, Joe Mcdonald, John Axford, Model Citizen, New York Mets, Oliver Perez, Parnell, Payroll, Pitchers, Sandy Alderson, Scott Boras, Top Story

The faces have changed but the story is still the same.

It’s no longer the Omar and Jerry Show, but the Sandy and Terry Hour, yet it plays out with the same results and the jokes are falling just as flat.

Not to mention the punch line that’s still shines right on the fans.

Yes, hope and change has turned into more of the same at Citi Field with the continual news of Ike Davis’s incredibly hurting ankle. After being examined today, it’s just not getting better, and now he may have to miss the season if the next three weeks show no improvement.

“We’re hopeful that over the next three weeks he will progress to running,” general manager Sandy Alderson said. “If that is not successful, then there may be some consideration about doing some surgery on the ankle. Right now I don’t see him coming back anytime soon. … Basically over the next three weeks he’ll progress to hopefully running. And if he can’t tolerate the running, then we go to Plan B.”

No one wants to see Plan B, as it means the Mets will lose their best power threat in the lineup until 2012, ultimately crippling any hope of a Met Wild Card this year.

All of this comes on the heels of Jose Reyes not wanted to negotiate a new contract until the season is over, almost assuredly allowing him to test the free agent market.

It’s just another day at the ballpark for these New York Mets who now should expect the worst and be surprised when something better happens. It makes you wonder if Fred Wilpon made some sort of Faustian deal with the devil for the 1986 World Series and now the franchise if paying the price.

Think about it. Almost exactly 20 years after the ball went through Buckner’s legs, Carlos Beltran looked at strike three and it went all downhill from there.

Two collapses, botched firings, mishandled injuries, K-Rod punching out an old man and let’s not forget a man named Bernie Madoff. It’s just been a litany of bad news. Heck, Billy Joel can write an updated version of “We Didn’t Start The Fire” with everything that happened in Queens.

Just when it seemed like the Mets turned the corner with the hiring of Alderson and Terry Collins, it just continues on and on. It doesn’t matter if Alderson is uber-capable, on days like today, he sounds like Omar Minaya, albeit in a fluent, lower key tone and Collins can be as fiery as Earl Weaver. With his best players on the shelf, he’s going to have as much success as Jerry Manuel.

That’s why it’s hard to buy into these Mets. No matter how much good will they inject, the other shoe is there ready to drop…

…And drop and drop.

Tomorrow, David Wright’s injured back is scheduled to be checked. Is there anyone out there expecting it to be healed? With the way things are going, you may expect another break to mysteriously show up.

And Alderson will be there delivering the news, with the same disappointment in his voice Minaya had before him.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Posted under Billy Joel, Carlos Beltran, Collapses, Deal With The Devil, Faustian Deal, Fred Wilpon, Free Agent Market, Heck, Joe Mcdonald, Jose Reyes, Litany, New York Mets, Plan B, Sandy Alderson, Top Story, Wild Card, World Series

With all the Madoff talk, lawsuits, minority buyers, and New Yorker article talk surrounding the New York Mets, it would be hard to believe the club could every do the right thing.

But now the opportunity is staring them right in the face.

Officially retire Gary Carter’s No. 8.

With the news coming out today that “The Kid” has malignant tumors in his brain, the best way of showing Carter how much everyone cares during his fight. Carter was a key cog of the 1986 club, who meant so much to Met fans during his five years in Flushing, so an on the field celebration of his career would be a way of giving back.

If Carter starts to feel well enough to get to New York, this would be the ultimate pick me up for the Hall of Fame catcher. Any type of cancer is not easy to deal with, but brain cancer is the worst.  The best way of keeping his spirits up would be keeping his mind off the disease and show him how much he is loved.

Carter was a special player for the Mets. Without him, the young pitchers, like Ron Darling, Sid Fernandez, and even Doc Gooden to an extent, don’t develop as quickly. No Carter means no World Series in 1986, even with the stacked lineup for the Mets.

And the club knows that. No. 8 has not been issued since 2002, the year before Carter when into the Hall – when Matt Galante wore it. If Carter was inducted as a Met, then the club would have retired his number, but because he went in as an Expo – and rightfully so – there was no number retirement ceremony that summer, only a ceremony to honor “The Kid.”

But No. 8 stays dormant, much like Mike Piazza’s No. 31 and even Willie Mays’s No. 24. You can probably expect the Mets to retire 31 someday – in fact I was told it is on the eventual agenda for the franchise – and 24 probably will stay dormant as long as Rickey Henderson is away from the club.

Yet, there has been no explanation about No. 8. The Mets should just retire it or reissue it, instead of keeping it in some sort of limbo.

And if they want to retire it, this year is a perfect opportunity. Being the 25^th anniversary of the 1986 club, the Mets can bring back the whole team for one last hurrah. They can retire No. 8 for Carter, while giving the whole team a day in their honor. An added bonus for the club would be a sellout crowd at Citi Field, something that’s a rarity these days, helping the Wilpon coffers as they try to pull out of the financial mess.

It would be win-win for the Mets and frankly the right thing to do.

With Mets management acting like the Gang Who Couldn’t Shoot Straight these last few years, this is an opportunity to gets some good baseball related public relations for the club.

More importantly, though, it’s the right thing to do.

Here’s Mookie Wilson’s reaction on Gary Carter.

Posted under Brain Cancer, Cog, Do The Right Thing, Doc Gooden, Hall Of Fame, Joe Mcdonald, Malignant Tumors, Matt Galante, Mike Piazza, New York Mets, Number Retirement, Pitchers, Retirement Ceremony, Rickey Henderson, Ron Darling, Sid Fernandez, Top Story, Type Of Cancer, Yorker Article

Last month Commissioner Bud Selig took an unprecedented step in taking over the Los Angeles Dodgers, because of the actions of owner Fran McCourt and released this statement:

“Pursuant to my authority as Commissioner, I informed Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt today that I will appoint a representative to oversee all aspects of the business and the day-to-day operations of the Club.  I have taken this action because of my deep concerns regarding the finances and operations of the Dodgers and to protect the best interests of the Club, its great fans and all of Major League Baseball.”

At the time, I wrote in Mets Inside Pitch Magazine that the Wilpon’s situation is different, as the Dodgers were not a liquid asset because of McCourt’s divorce with his wife Jamie and also the beating of Brian Stow on Opening Day created an unsafe environment at Dodger Stadium, because of McCourt’s negligence in replacing at head of security.

Yet, after the New Yorker article that came out yesterday, it is time for Selig to take the same actions against the Wilpons.

Sure the Wilpons are still looking for a buyer for up to 49 percent of the club and the only beatings at Citi Field come with Met losses, but after reading the 11,000 word piece by Jeffrey Toobin, it is clear that by trying to clear his name in the Madoff lawsuit, Fred Wilpon is damaging  the future of the New York Mets, on the field and in the pocketbook.

Wilpon gave Toobin unprecedented access, because he felt that this would tell his side of the story and Wilpon will look like an everyman to world – an innocent victim, instead of a conniving thief. Instead the opposite happened, as the owner of the Mets ripped his three biggest players saying Jose Reyes wasn’t worth “Carl Crawford” money, David Wright is not a superstar and that he was a “schmuck” for signing Carlos Beltran.

Nevermind the fact that Reyes, Wright and Beltran fall right behind Mike Piazza and Darryl Strawberry as the best position players in Mets history and forget the fact that there was some truth to what Wilpon said as well, because no player is worth Carl Crawford money, Wright has never carried an offense like Piazza did, and yes, he was a schmuck for paying Beltran that type of dough.

The fact is once Wilpon said it as the owner of the club, he immediately devalued the franchise. When Sandy Alderson tries to trade Reyes and Beltran, he may not find as big of returns for the two players and Wright, the face of the franchise, may just want to bolt in two years in Wilpon is still owner of the club.

Further that with Irving Picard, who is treating this case like a war against the Borg, sitting in his captain’s chair and telling his underlings to “Make it so!” every time a new piece of evidence comes across his desk. Last week, we find out Picard alleges the Wilpons look to purchase fraud insurance, there will probably be more coming out in the next few weeks. And each and every time, Wilpon digs in, making it more and more difficult for the Mets.

And as things get more difficult, decisions will be made based on the lawsuit and not baseball relation actions.

It’s that reason why Selig needs to step in, as the situation is spinning out of control. Alderson can easily move up to run the organization, taking the Wilpons totally out of the equation. Until this suit is settled with Picard, the Wilpons need to step away from the club to fight for their reputations and let the baseball professionals run things.

A month ago, Selig did it with the Dodgers, now he has to do it with the Mets.

Posted under Carlos Beltran, Commissioner Bud Selig, Darryl Strawberry, David Wright, Dodger Stadium, Frank Mccourt, Fred Wilpon, Innocent Victim, Joe Mcdonald, Jose Reyes, Liquid Asset, Los Angeles Dodgers, Major League Baseball, Mike Piazza, New York Mets, Positio, Top Story, Unprecedented Step, Word Piece, Yorker Article

Another day, another shutout by the Mets, who now have crawled back to one game under .500 before the Subway Series this weekend.

And what a great time to find their game as the club may be catching the Yankees at just the right time this year.

For those who have been under a rock or at least try to ignore what is happening north of the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge, the Yankees are a team in turmoil. Sure they won last night, but that came on the heels of a seven out of eight skid, which saw the Bombers throw their icons under the bus.

First Jorge Posada asked out of the lineup last Saturday after getting dropped to ninth in the batting order. After sitting out for a couple of days, he played on Tuesday in Tampa, but still is in Joe Girardi’s doghouse. His average is still on the Interstate at .179.

Then Derek Jeter irked Yankee officials by daring to defend his friend, instead of toting the company line and his got into the Yankee brass’s crosshairs.

Well, at least Mariano Rivera kept quiet over the past week, and there is no truth to the rumor Reggie Jackson was flown in for a tongue lashing, just for good measure.

And all of this turmoil, losing, and Bronx Zooery up there at the House that Jeter Built may be a good thing for the Mets, as the Amazins are playing their best ball of the year without the services of Ike Davis and David Wright, and relying on – of all things – strong starting pitching and solid relief.

Add to that a few rookies that just don’t know any better and things seems nice in Queens.

“We got to get to .500 and that’s all we are thinking about right now,” said pitcher Jason Irsinghausen, who was on the Mets back in 1998 and 1999 when the Subway Series was in its infancy. “It’s a May series. It’s just another baseball game for all of us. It’s nice to go to Yankee Stadium, though.”

A sweep by the Mets would be even nicer as the Yankees could be pushed over the edge. With R.A. Dickey, Chris Capuano, and Mike Pelfrey going for the Mets against Freddy Garcia, A.J. Burnett, and Ian Nova, the pitching matchup is there.

Add to that Jose Reyes being Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran playing for a contract and Frankie Rodriguez pitching like there’s $17 million dollars on the line, you have to at least give the Mets a better than average chance.

Imagine what would happen if the pass the hat Mets sweep the mighty Yankees. Posada would probably be released. Players would be demoted. Derek Jeter would be dropped down in the lineup and maybe a coach or two would get whacked.

Although George Steinbrenner is no longer with us, over the last week, we have seen the Bronx Zoo alive and well on 161^st Street.

And the Mets will get a chance to make a statement. For a team so desperate to sell tickets and so e desperate to remain relevant, this is their weekend to get back in the good graces of their disillusioned fan base and maybe change the tide of New York Baseball for both teams.

Two shutouts against the Nationals were a nice start, but now this is their chance to shine.

Posted under Baseball Game, Bombers, David Wright, Derek Jeter, Doghouse, Good Measure, Infancy, Joe Girardi, Joe Mcdonald, Jorge Posada, Kennedy Bridge, Last Saturday, Mariano Rivera, New York Mets, Reggie Jackson, Robert F Kennedy, Rookies, Shutout, Subway Series, Top Story, Yankee Brass, Yankee Stadium

The unsealed Madoff lawsuit against Sterling Equities shed some interesting light on the condition of the New York Mets.

The suit alleges the Wilpons ignored warnings from a number of financial experts that Madoff was a fraud. The rhetoric came from a number of different sources, including the hedge fund of Sterling Stamos and the wire house Merrill Lynch.

Yet, the Wilpons continued to invest with the Ponzi schemer, either because they didn’t care or they couldn’t stop, as their companies relied upon the Madoff returns to operate.

No matter what the reason, it has come clear the Wilpons need to take a step back from the New York Mets until this lawsuit is settled.

And if they will not do it by their own free will, then Commissioner Bud Selig must invoke the best interest of baseball clause to remove the Wilpon family from the day to day operation until this lawsuit is settled.

With the Wilpons in charge, the story will continue to be front page news on every paper in the New York area damaging the Mets and the game itself, and dominate the talk around Citi Field, where the players should not have the distraction of discussing their bosses’ matters.

We saw it this week after they Wilpons announced their intention of selling a minority stake in the club. Every day there were stories leaking about the Wilpons dealing with Madoff and the amount of debt the team carries. These will not go away and every move general manager Sandy Alderson makes will be scrutinized. ‘Did they make this trade to help the Mets or in order to pay the clawback due to the Madoff suit?’ will be the question asked by every reporter, blogger, and fan when the team makes a move.

Will Jose Reyes get sold off? Will David Wright? Forbes.com today reported the Mets need to cut a $30 million profit this year just to pay off the debt interest on Citi Field.

By many accounts, the club is over $1 billion in debt, not including SNY – which also holds debt – and many of the Wilpon credit lines have dried up. That’s why they are forced to put a portion of the club up for bid, rather a less public sale of one of their other assets.

The Wilpons maintain their innocence here and feel they are being “victimized” by Madoff victims’ trustee Irving Picard, and of course they are innocent until proven guilty. Yet, that doesn’t mean they should be allowed to conduct business as usual in Queens.

Commissioner Selig needs to step in, allow the Wilpons and Saul Katz to step aside, and put the club under MLB conservatorship with Alderson taking the role as president – a position he held with the San Diego Padres – with Paul DePodesta and J.P. Ricciardi running the baseball operation.

With Alderson at the helm, getting every major move blessed by Selig, the paying public will be satisfied with the knowledge that every trade or signing will be motivated by improving the club, rather than financial issues. Although the Wilpons will still own the club, with them out of sight will move the story off the front and back pages for now. MLB will set the team’s budget and the management team can be free to improve this sorrowed franchise.

This will also allow the Wilpons to worry about the future of their families, rather than trivial matters like how much they should charge for a burger at the Shake Shack.

Once the Wilpons are cleared of the allegations or lawsuit is settled, baseball does its due diligence on the Picard Lawsuit, and minority owners are in place, then the Wilpons will be free to come back to run the club.

Or if the courts or MLB’s investigation find that the Wilpons had “unclean hands” in the Madoff matter, baseball can force a sale of the club.

And if the Wilpon finances get too out of control and a full sale if voluntary, there can be a smooth transition with MLB running the club.

It has been done before. Last season, MLB put the Texas Rangers into conservatorship while the club was up at auction. The result was a World Series appearance.

And when George Steinbrenner was suspended for a few seasons back in the early 1990s, Gene Michael was able to build the franchise in to a dynasty.

Maybe the Wilpons will follow Steinbrenner’s lead and change the way they do business during their time away. And maybe the Alderson managerial team will be able to build the Mets from within without interference from Jeffrey Wilpon.

Yet, those will be just byproducts of the situation. More importantly, the Wilpons need to concentrate on the lawsuit at hand, clearing their name, and leave the running of their beloved franchise to MLB for the time being.

Posted under Best Interest, Blogger, Clawback, Commissioner Bud Selig, David Wright, Debt Interest, Financial Experts, Front Page News, Hedge Fund, Joe Mcdonald, Jose Reyes, Merrill Lynch, Mlb, New York Mets, Sandy Alderson, Schemer, Sny, Sterling Equities, Sterling Stamos, Top Story, Wire House

Flushing, NY – Put yourself in Sandy Alderson’s shoes for one moment. After being hired to resurrect the Mets, he couldn’t just write off 2011, no matter how difficult it will be with the payroll hamstrung, and the team’s best pitcher on the shelf.

And Alderson, knowing how things can turn on you in New York, knew that laying an egg next year will erase all the good will be brought to the table from just being not Omar Minaya.

That’s why he needed to get a manager to do more with less in 2011. He needed someone who could possible whip the current Mets into shape, while keeping watch for 2012 when $60 million in payroll comes off the books and the new general manager can shape the club in his image.

So Alderson went to the well and interviewed 10 candidates and came up with Terry Collins, because based on his track record, the 61 year-old will provide the short term boost to the team with his drill sergeant mentality and fiery personality.

“We can win, our goal is to win and we’re not going into spring training with the notion this is a bridge to something else,” Alderson said. “We’re going to focus hard on 2011 and do what we can to give ourselves our best shot.”

Some would say Bobby Valentine would have been the best choice for that kind of style, especially after pressing out 88 wins in 1997 with essentially the same team that quit on Dallas Green the year before. Yet, Valentine comes with baggage, such as a large salary to match his large ego. Bobby V. would have demanded a commitment from the Mets, something the club didn’t need to do with Collins.

And others – including this reporter – would have preferred Wally Backman, a strong finalist in the managerial race, but also someone who doesn’t have any prior Major League managerial experience. With that comes risk. No matter how attractive Backman looked in Brooklyn last year, no one knows if it would translate to Citi Field. Single-A players are much more eager to buy into Backman’s team philosophy than big league overpaid stars. By putting the fan favorite in that position, it could have turned ugly quickly, especially with the country club atmosphere that was present the last few years in Queens.

Frankly, Alderson probably did Backman a favor by not giving him the job. Right now, the Met job is Russian Roulette for any manager, and if Backman failed in Queens, based on his past, he would probably never get hired with another affiliated club. Even though he doesn’t know it now, he’s probably better off waiting for a few years after Alderson has a clubhouse in his image.

And that’s why Collins is the perfect man for 2011. With winning records five of his six seasons and a 444-434 record overall, the Mets got themselves someone with a track record. Although he claimed he mellowed in his old age, he still is the same fiery guy who jumpstarted the Astros and Angels, only to eventually lose both teams after three seasons. Essentially Alderson is throwing a Collins firecracker in the rook to see if there is any redeeming value to this clubhouse, and using it as an evaluation on the long term.

If Collins’s in your face style works, then the Mets could be competitive in 2011. If it doesn’t then Alderson knows that a complete facelift is needed on this club, while not spending any of the Wilpons’ money for a high priced manager or burning a dugout prospect in the process.

This is just another smart move from a smart baseball man, which may be the reason why there are a lot of skeptics, as smart baseball moves have been rare in Queens recently.

Posted under 60 Million, Best Choice, Bobby Valentine, Brooklyn, Dallas Green, Drill Sergeant, Egg, Ego, Fiery Personality, Joe Mcdonald, Keeping Watch, Managerial Experience, Mentality, New York Mets, Notion, Omar Minaya, Payroll, Right Man, Salary, Sandy Alderson, Spring Training, Top Story, Wally Backman

Sandy Alderson is proud of his Marine heritage. He enlisted in 1969 during the height of the Vietnam Conflict, and served eight months over in Southeast Asia.

But even with his distinguished service to his country, the 62 year-old new general manager of the New York Mets does not subscribe to the  “Once a Marine, Always A Marine” philosophy, rather the Marine code needs to be proven in everything they do.

And now, Alderson will need to prove it again in maybe what is his trickiest baseball job, taking reigns as the troubled franchise in Queens.

“I view the job as general manager of the New York Mets,” Alderson stated, “as the best job available in baseball. It’s an iconic franchise in a great city – a city that inspires all of us to dream big.”

The Mets are hoping that when they signed Alderson to a four-year deal to take over for Omar Minaya. The man who built the Oakland A’s into a powerhouse and also was the godfather of the Moneyball era in baseball now brings his skills to Queens where the club badly needs leadership, as well as someone with a steady hand to give the team a long term direction.

Under Minaya, the club philosophy was the band-aid approach where Minaya would go out and fill what seemed to be the biggest gaping hole in the roster, hoping that would energize the fan base, while also making the club a contender.

Unfortunately, though, those Met teams were built upon a weak foundation, and much like an old car you keep putting money into, once you fix one problem, others arise. The Mets found that out over the last two years.

In 2009, everyone swore the team would contend because the biggest problem – the bullpen – was filled with Francisco Rodriguez and J.J. Putz. Ultimately though, Minaya didn’t address the aging roster, which broke down during the season.

And then last year they did the same thing with Jason Bay, and chalked up 2009 to injuries, rather than a sign of a weak foundation.

Alderson will change that by building a club with payroll flexibility. He said he plans on being involved with the free agent market every single year, but at the same time wants to build a young roster of homegrown talent. CEO Fred Wilpon described what can be characterized as a laddered bond portfolio of contracts where only a few will come due each year, thus not hamstringing the club.

That may take a couple of years, and Alderson is not ready to throw away 2011, where he feels the club can “compete.” And the Wilpons both said they would be willing to eat the contracts of certain players (Read: Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo) if Alderson asked to do so.

But first things first, as the new head honcho needs to build his staff and of course pick the manager. Alderson is reportedly looking to bring in former Oakland executives Paul DePodesta and J.P. Ricciardi to the Mets and will begin the search for a manager next week.

As for the manager, unlike what has been published in Moneyball, Alderson took a softened approach. Instead of a just a middle manager, Alderson wants to see the field boss not only to be an extension of the front office, but also an extension of the fans.

“I do believe a manager needs to reflect the general philosophy of the organization to have some sense of consistency,” he said. “At the same time the manager is very critical of the overall leadership structure of the organization. His job is very different from mine and there are certain qualities he has to bring.

“In my years I have worked with managers ranging from Tony LaRussa to Billy Martin. I can appreciate a fiery manager. He is quite desirable. A manager is representing the fans in frustrating situations and acts as a proxy for the feeling at the time.”

With that, Wally Backman still should be considered a candidate, while also looking for any qualified candidates. Already the Mets have a short list of about eight candidates, and interviews will last in the 30 day timetable.

But as for today, it’s a good start. The Wilpons look good for going with Alderson’s experience over Josh Byrnes youth, but Alderson makes Fred and Jeff look smart because of the media suaveness of their new employee.

And it also showed Alderson still is a solid Marine, proving it every day.

Posted under Aid Approach, Band Aid, Bullpen, Club Philosophy, Contender, Distinguished Service, Eight Months, Fan Base, Francisco Rodriguez, Gaping Hole, Jason Bay, Joe Mcdonald, Marine Heritage, New York Mets, Omar Minaya, Sandy Alderson, Southeast Asia, Steady Hand, Term Direction, Top Story, Troubled Franchise, Vietnam Conflict

NYSD’s Publisher Joe McDonald was at Citi Field for Omar’s final goodbye after he was “relieved of duties” by Mets ownership.

“We are extremely disappointed in this year’s results and the failures of the past four seasons,” said Jeff Wilpon, Mets Chief Operating Officer in a statement. “We need to hire a new General Manager with a fresh perspective who will transform this club into a winner that we want and our fans deserve.

“We appreciate all that Omar and Jerry have done for the Organization and thank them for their time and effort,” Wilpon said. “Changes like these are never easy, especially when you are dealing with people you like and respect.”

Posted under Chief Operating Officer, Citi, Final Goodbye, Four Seasons, Jeff Wilpon, Joe Mcdonald, Mp3, New York Mets, Nysd, Perspective, Publisher, Respect, Top Story

FLUSHING MEADOWS, NY – If she was a football team, she would be the 49ers of the 1980s and in basketball, she would be the Celtics of the 1960s.

If she was a baseball team, she would be the Yankees of the 1950s.

But Kim Clijsters is a tennis player, and a good one, especially on the hard courts in Flushing Meadows, the surface she loves the most. And after tonight, she became a dynasty with her third US Open with a dismantling of Vera Zvonareva, 6-2 6-1, in the shortest Women’s Final since they started keeping time back in 1980 and the most lopsided final since 1976, when Chris Everett took out Evonne Goolagong, 6-3 6-0 in Forest Hills.

The match was so lopsided that the capacity crowd was trying to egg on Zvonareva just to get their money’s worth.

But the world’s favorite working mom would have none of that as she wanted to get revenge of her Quarterfinal loss at Wimbledon by Zvonareva keeping her shutout of the other three majors.

“I knew getting into the match which things were that I didn’t do well in the matches I lost,” Clijsters said. “Obviously the one at Wimbledon was, to me one of the most disappointing losses that I’ve dealt with so far in my career.”

The reason why Clijsters was so disappointed back in July was that Wimbledon was her chance to make everyone believe she was more than just a hard court specialist. Winning the US Open every year is nice and the $2.2 million payday she received will pay for young Jada’s college tuition, but to be considered one of the greats, she needs to claim the crown elsewhere, be it in Melbourne, Paris, or London.

“I mean, they all motivate you in a different way, obviously,” she said.  “Tactic‑wise you always have to adjust a little bit to each and every single one of them.

“But I think the one where I’ve felt I can do better than I have is obviously at the Australian Open.  Similar surface.  They’ve gone away from I think the Rebound Ace in the last couple years.  So I’ve always enjoyed playing there.  That’s obviously a Grand Slam I want to do well.  I want to do well in all of them, of course.

“But, um, again, you have the two European Grand Slams, which, you know, obviously Wimbledon is the one where, you know, I’m close to because I have the connection with my dad there because he enjoyed it there.  I always want to do well there, as well.

“The French Open, yeah, feels like playing in Belgium because we have so many Belgian people supporting us.  We have the history of a lot of past Belgians who have won there.  They all have a different impact on the way you feel and a positive impact, and I think that’s something I want to use when I go back there next year.”

It’s funny, though, Clijsters also has a connection with each of the Grand Slams. Australia adopted her calling the Belgian “Aussie Kim” because of her engagement to Lleyton Hewitt. Wimbledon and Roland Garros love her because she is a Belgian and almost an adoptive daughter.

And she is loved here in New York, because she is a part time New Jersey resident, as her husband Brian Lynch hails from the Garden State.

Yet, she’s only found championships by the Unisphere, because the hard courts excel her skills raising her record to 21-0 in her last three Opens.

“The surface has always been one of my favorite surfaces to play on,” Clijsters said. “I also like the blue courts, which, you know, make it a lot easier for me to see on.

“But I’ve always ‑‑ not just here in New York, but I’ve always had a very good run on the American hard courts, even when I was younger, you know, the whole US Open Series, Stanford, San Diego, LA, those kind of tournaments.

“I’ve always had a pretty good record going there.  I have a natural instinct of just adapting really well to, you know, the hard courts, which doesn’t come that easily for me when I go on different surfaces.”

Now, though, the 27 year-old needs to raise her game if she wants to be considered one of the greats. In the next year, Clijsters needs to she can win one of the other three Grand Slams. She said she wants to play through the Olympics in 2012, but after that it’s up in the air. Jada will be going to school and her priorities will change.

The clock is ticking and as with all dynasties they will come to an end someday.

Posted under Australian Open, Baseball Team, Capacity Crowd, Celtics, Chris Everett, College Tuition, Evonne Goolagong, Football Team, Forest Hills, Jada, Joe Mcdonald, Keeping Time, Kim Clijsters, New York Mets, Rebound Ace, S College, Shutout, Single One, Tennis Player, Top Story, Vera Zvonareva, Wimbledon, Working Mom