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Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

HahnSolo Sep 09 2010 09:28 AM

Beltran, Castillo, and Ollie skip the Mets visit to Walter Reed Hospital. [url]http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/2010/09/09/2010-09-09_awol_mets_irk_brass.html Beltran seems to have an excuse; Castillo gets the willies; and Ollie's not talking. Also absent from the article: any real evidence from McCarron that the front office is in fact upset. I must say that reading the comments on the article are, shall we say, eye-opening.

Benjamin Grimm Sep 09 2010 09:36 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Beltran's excuse may be legit, or it may be a copout. (I suspect it's legit.) Perez's no-comment seems like what we'd expect from him. Castillo's excuse? Cowardly! "I appreciate what they've done, but I can't bear to look at them." WTF?

Edgy DC Sep 09 2010 09:37 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

If it's non-mandatory, it's non-mandatory. If the News cares so much about the wounded at Walter Reed, they can spend more time writing about them and advocating for them, instead of using them as an excuse to beat up on players. I read about a wounded vet yesterday who was visited by 14 Mets. Met after Met tromping through his room. He didn't say anything about the Perez slight leaving a sore spot.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Sep 09 2010 09:40 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I don't have a problem with what Castillo said. Disfigurations can give some people the Willies. Poor Ollie P is just getting killed, but he's not doing himself any favors.

Benjamin Grimm Sep 09 2010 09:41 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Are these guys even Mets fans? If I was in the hospital, and a bunch of unfamiliar Kansas City Royals came to visit me, I'm not sure what I'd think. I mean, I'd appreciate that they took the time, but I'd probably be more impressed to be visited by celebrities that I had heard of.

HahnSolo Sep 09 2010 09:44 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

And now Track Suit chimes in: [url]http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/mets/2010/09/walter-reed-controversy-sure-d.html Wonder who the young Met who tried to speak up was, and the veteran who shot him down?

metsguyinmichigan Sep 09 2010 09:49 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

How about what he says about Castillo and ethnicity? "Castillo was a terrific illustration of the ethnicity point before this happened. A guy without a ton of ability who smartly scratches out hits and gets on base, who plays through injuries to help his team…hmmm…are we talking about David Eckstein? No, we’re talking about Castillo, who would probably be called a “grinder” and a “gamer” if he were white. That reality led to a tarnished image of Castillo before the Walter Reed issue, and has not helped him this week." I think fans were plenty hard on Frenchy, and he seemed to be kind of white.

Ceetar Sep 09 2010 09:53 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

metsguyinmichigan wrote: How about what he says about Castillo and ethnicity? "Castillo was a terrific illustration of the ethnicity point before this happened. A guy without a ton of ability who smartly scratches out hits and gets on base, who plays through injuries to help his team…hmmm…are we talking about David Eckstein? No, we’re talking about Castillo, who would probably be called a “grinder” and a “gamer” if he were white. That reality led to a tarnished image of Castillo before the Walter Reed issue, and has not helped him this week." I think fans were plenty hard on Frenchy, and he seemed to be kind of white. There was a poll when Frenchy was traded on the broadcast that 90% of fans said they thought he was treated unfairly or something. I don't really care about what fans think anyway, as long as the front office doesn't make decisions based on them/us. I do (did) worry that Jerry Manuel feels that way about Castillo, and Beltran, though.

Edgy DC Sep 09 2010 10:02 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Tracksuit had a lot of useful points to make, but was all over the place. Wait, you say some Met players were also angry with the trio? Another shocker—peer pressure in the locker room. It is dangerous to automatically assume that, when someone bothers his teammates, he is wrong and the teammates right. To illustrate: a young Met recently tried to address the others, speak from the heart and say that the team wasn’t playing to its potential and should try harder. Many veterans did not approve of a less experienced player speaking the truth, and one confronted him with something to the effect of, “What makes you think you have the right to say these things, kid? How long have you been here?” Why does he have to hide the names here? Does he have this second-hand? I think it's as obvious as the morning sun that it's generally easier for folks to rip the effort and ethics of an ethnic minority.

TransMonk Sep 09 2010 10:03 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

This story is such a waste of ink and bandwidth.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Sep 09 2010 10:04 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

And now Track Suit chimes in: [url]http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/mets/2010/09/walter-reed-controversy-sure-d.html Wonder who the young Met who tried to speak up was, and the veteran who shot him down? Tracksuit is 100% right and of course is getting whalloped in the comments section. I'm sure it was Chris Carter who spoke up and RA Dickey who told him to STFU. Just kidding. Of course it was that sneaky firey Hispanic bastard Oliver Perez.

Willets Point Sep 09 2010 10:09 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

TransMonk wrote: This story is such a waste of ink and bandwidth. Agreed. It's second to the "Ground Zero Mosque" as a media-generated non-story.

Edgy DC Sep 09 2010 10:13 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Agreed that this is a non-story very much like the "Ground Zero Mosque," but Martino touches on some other illuminating things. Each of them could and perhaps should make their own essay. Tracksuit's comment section is always a red-light district. I always love the comments along the lines of "I'm not racist --- I'm just a hateful misanthrope who will use racially linked issues when necessary to leverage my hate on a case-by-case basis. But I've got a lot of other tools in my case, you stupid faggot." This internet thing is going to make belligerent morons of us all.

dgwphotography Sep 09 2010 10:28 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I've made it a habit to try to avoid the comments section after most articles like that - they just make me too damned angry. Beltran certainly gets a pass here, because he's working on something that will benefit thousands of kids from his home. Castillo and Perez I already have no use for, so getting angry with them over this is just piling on. This is as much of a non-story as the one about no Yankees showing for Bob Shepard's funeral...

Ceetar Sep 09 2010 10:38 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

dgwphotography wrote: This is as much of a non-story as the one about no Yankees showing for Bob Shepard's funeral... at least the excuses were better than "the bus got stuck in traffic"

smg58 Sep 09 2010 10:40 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

The irony is that if the Mets don't go and visit wounded soldiers, nobody gets mad at anybody, and nobody makes nasty comments.

metsguyinmichigan Sep 09 2010 10:44 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

The comment sections after articles are very frustrating, especially because we allow people to hide behind fake names and pretty much say what they want. I get hammered routinely by a group of people with an obvious agenda, and I know some of them are staffers of groups I cover. One of my buddies worked for a city's convention and visitors bureau. One of his jobs was to sign up for a million Google alerts, and any time the city was mentioned in a bad light, he was to sign on and post positive things, without saying, of course, that he was paid to do so. So if a convention and visitors bureau is savvy enough to do that, you know the unions/political groups/companies have people on payroll doing the same. Most of it is an intimidation tactic. They figure if they call me a "union-hater" often enough, or pound on me every time I quote this group or that, I'll stop writing stories that they think are critical of their group. Our paper's web team wants us to get into the comments and answer questions and move the discussion along. They want the hits on the paper's site. But some of these people scare me. One was actually threatening me. We banned him, but there's nothing to prevent him from re-registering with another name.

metirish Sep 09 2010 10:48 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Willets Point wrote: TransMonk wrote: This story is such a waste of ink and bandwidth. Agreed. It's second to the "Ground Zero Mosque" as a media-generated non-story. this a thousand times. I'll be busy tomorrow......I'm going to a Koran burning.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 09 2010 12:36 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Castillo's probably doubly unnerved by the prospect of getting crapped on for "dos manos" by a guy without any hands. Yeah, this is really kind of stupid. Well, except for fueling my ever-burning Real American fanlust: When R.A. Dickey was asked Wednesday if he had an opinion on some teammates not going, he said, "I do have thoughts on that. I don't want to make them public." He said he had not talked to any of the players who did not attend, but noted that he found the experience worthwhile. "To be able to look a guy in the eye who doesn't have arms or legs and say, 'Thank you,' that's a big deal," Dickey said. "I take it personally." At which point, he gently placed down the basket of puppies he was personally nursing back to health, adjusted his katana blade in its back-scabbard, and flew off into the sky toward Adams Morgan, because he had heard an old woman crying for help there.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Sep 09 2010 12:59 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Castillo's probably doubly unnerved by the prospect of getting crapped on for "dos manos" by a guy without any hands. Line of the year.

metsmarathon Sep 09 2010 01:08 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: I don't have a problem with what Castillo said. Disfigurations can give some people the Willies. i have absolutely no problem with luis castillo's position on this. none. it comes across as weak and cowardly, sure, but you don't know what's going on in a guy's own head sometimes. phobias, fears, willies. its just plain unfair to judge a person on such a basis. if luis is truly and deeply affected by this, as he says that he is, then i have no problem with his not going. i trust that he is telling the truth here. (has he been cowardly in his time with the mets?? i forget? how did he address the media after dropping the popup? does he stand up, or weasel and hide?) ollie? well. he's just dumb for non-commenting. granted, his teammates probably told him not to fucking come.

metirish Sep 09 2010 01:12 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Fuck you Castillo, fuck you Beltran and fuck you Ollie...fuck you gay people too http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruNrdmjcNTc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q65KZIqay4E

Edgy DC Sep 09 2010 01:20 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I don't think he's particularly dumb for not commenting. Sheesh, if they've got evidence that he was at an anti-wounded vets event, let them show it.

Willets Point Sep 09 2010 01:25 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

metsmarathon wrote: ollie? well. he's just dumb for non-commenting. granted, his teammates probably told him not to fucking come. They gave him the address and told him to meet them there. Turns out, it was really the Blue Oyster Bar, and Ollie doesn't really want to talk about what happened there.

G-Fafif Sep 09 2010 01:32 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

metirish wrote: Fuck you Castillo, fuck you Beltran and fuck you Ollie...fuck you gay people too http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ruNrdmjcNTc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q65KZIqay4E I can feel a boot in my ass just watching those.

batmagadanleadoff Sep 09 2010 01:33 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

He's still my favorite Met this season, but fuck R.A. Dickey on this one.

G-Fafif Sep 09 2010 01:35 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

So 15 Mets visited Walter Reed two years ago (link courtesy of Mets Police) and everything is fine. 30 Mets visit this year and it's a scandal. Is this like ERA where lower is better?

Edgy DC Sep 09 2010 01:39 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

What, are you supposed to be? Some kind of comedian? Somebody needs another boot in his ass. Where's Charlie Daniels?

HahnSolo Sep 09 2010 01:48 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

batmagadanleadoff wrote: He's still my favorite Met this season, but fuck R.A. Dickey on this one. What did he do or say that was so bad?

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 09 2010 01:50 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Sep 09 2010 02:10 PM

Edgy DC wrote: I don't think he's particularly dumb for not commenting. Sheesh, if they've got evidence that he was at an anti-wounded vets event, let them show it. Hmm. So, it does seem like Ollie is whatever he is at this point; that is, it seems increasingly like he ain't making any changes/improvements, or at least that they're not bloody likely. At this point, were I a Wilpon, I'd seriously consider pulling Boras aside and pitching him the idea of turning Ollie "heel." Like, he starts being openly villanous-- flipping sick kids the bird, chopping his crotch when he retires batters, and, YES, founding and presiding over anti-wounded vets rallies (perhaps making out with simulated "army wives" as he does so). Worst case scenario? The Mets and Perez (the organization) tried something funky and failed, and they're in roughly the same place they're in now. Potential upside? A regional/national pop-culture phenomenon, perhaps? The Mets get their money's worth and get to try a partially different marketing tack-- call it "anti-mystique"-- that punctures the pomposity of the hermetic-nostalgia/Vertical-Swastika crowd across town and makes guys like Reyes, Wright, Pagan and Dickey all the more salable for their "face" personas. Perez gets a useful second career as Mexican Kenny Powers/New John Rocker that'll pay his bills a lot longer than that shitty fastball will.

Edgy DC Sep 09 2010 02:05 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Gary: "Ollie sure doesn't want to get behind on Pujols here, does he Ronnie?" Ron: "No he doesn't but, ohhh, there's ball three. That could have gone either way and Ollie is not happy about it." Gary: "No he's not and he's letting Laz Diaz know about it! He's got to get back on the mound and pitch here!" Keith: "...get back, Ollie..." Ron: "It's too late! Diaz has tossed him! And what's he doing now?" Gary: "He's burning a picture of Julia Roberts! He's provoking the crowd and Diaz by burning her publicity picture from Erin Brokovich!" Keith: "... loved that movie..." Ron: "Where did that come from?!" Gary: "Trust me, Ronnie, you don't want to know. Bob Watson from the commissioner's office is now on the field trying to calm the sit... and OHHH! Ollie has taken him down with a flying scissor kick!"

metirish Sep 09 2010 02:12 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Dying over here.....not that Ollie would care

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 09 2010 02:13 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

"And now he's putting ball four... through the ESPNDeportes announcers' table! HOW DID THAT GET OUT THERE?"

John Cougar Lunchbucket Sep 09 2010 02:19 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

He has to start arriving at the park in a luchadore mask. Or better, the Mets "say" they've released Perez at the same time a masked lefty arrives...

Ceetar Sep 09 2010 02:21 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: He has to start arriving at the park in a luchadore mask. Or better, the Mets "say" they've released Perez at the same time a masked lefty arrives... Just have him legally change his name to Johan Santana. That should keep fans suitably confused.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 09 2010 02:25 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Gary: "He's burning a picture of Julia Roberts! He's provoking the crowd and Diaz by burning her publicity picture from Erin Brokovich!" Keith: "... loved that movie..." My favorite part. John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: He has to start arriving at the park in a luchadore mask. Or better, the Mets "say" they've released Perez at the same time a masked lefty arrives... I'm not in favor of premeditated murder. In fact, I've come out against it on a number of occasions. Sometimes verbally, even. I'd just like to point out that if one were so inclined to resolve the Ollie situation in a violent way, "pretend-releasing" him then having "him" come back in a mask-- only it's actually, say, Jamie Moyer-- until his contract's expiration would be an excellent way to facilitate such a resolution.

Benjamin Grimm Sep 09 2010 02:43 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I wonder... are there any rules against a player playing in disguise? I would assume that the mask would have to be a color from the team's uniform. (I'm thinking of Shinjo and his orange armbands; he couldn't wear the red he preferred.) So Ollie would be allowed to pitch in a blue, orange, or black mask, but not a yellow or green one, for example. They might as well try it. These last 22 games are shaping up to be absolutely dreary. If everyone's level of interest is as low as mine currently is, the Masked Met will go virtually unnoticed..

G-Fafif Sep 09 2010 03:39 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I wonder... are there any rules against a player playing in disguise? Fans will be coming to Citi Field dressed as empty seats.

G-Fafif Sep 09 2010 03:49 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Also courtesy of Mets Police, Carlos Beltran's visit, with Fred Wilpon, to a veterans hospital last November. "These are the guys I will think of every time they play the 'Star Spangled Banner' before every game," said Beltran. "This place is a real Hall of Fame..." Why wasn't David Wright part of this visit? And why does he hate America? Somebody needs another boot in his ass. Where's Charlie Daniels? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtZ5YsvREi4

Ashie62 Sep 09 2010 05:44 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Edgy DC wrote: If it's non-mandatory, it's non-mandatory. If the News cares so much about the wounded at Walter Reed, they can spend more time writing about them and advocating for them, instead of using them as an excuse to beat up on players. I read about a wounded vet yesterday who was visited by 14 Mets. Met after Met tromping through his room. He didn't say anything about the Perez slight leaving a sore spot. Thank you.

Ashie62 Sep 09 2010 05:50 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

IMHO, Simply please keep wounded vets in our prayers. Amen.

Rockin' Doc Sep 09 2010 06:37 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

batmagadanleadoff wrote: He's still my favorite Met this season, but fuck R.A. Dickey on this one. Somewhere, I must have missed something in this thread. I don't see where RA Dickey did or said anything inappropriate regarding the visit.

batmagadanleadoff Sep 09 2010 07:19 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Dickey didn't say nuthin'. But I know what he wanted to say but kept to himself. So fuck him. Fuck you too. And Charlie Daniels.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 09 2010 09:34 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I'm not sure that his being annoyed with, say, Ollie blowing off this stuff to jack off to hotel porn would put him in the same area solar system as Charlie Daniels. AND GET OUT OF MY HEAD!

Frayed Knot Sep 10 2010 06:53 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Lupica now chimes in on this topic, saying that it's time for 'the gang of three' to go because the fact that they didn't go on the hospital trip means they obviously want no part of being on the team. Don't bother beyond the first paragraph, it doesn't get any better.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Sep 10 2010 07:02 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

If I weren't such a pajama-wearing naive pollyanna fan, I'd suspect the Mets themselves of whispering this story into Lupica's ear. Otherwise I'd find it odd that the three alleged malingerers (plus a fourth guilty party) happen to be the same four players whose contracts are most onerous for 2012 and who seemingly cannot be traded.

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 07:39 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Holycrapfindarealstory!

bmfc1 Sep 10 2010 07:46 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Sep 10 2010 07:47 AM

Three Mets (Gee, Parnell, Thole) visited Ground Zero yesterday: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/10/sport ... f=baseball It might have helped stop the "controversy" if Beltran, Perez and/or Castillo also went. Gee didn't go to Walter Reed--he was excused as that night's starter--and he went yesterday.

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 07:47 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Or it might have been seen as the insincere baldfaced attempt to suckup for good publicity that it actually would have been.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Sep 10 2010 07:51 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

The Mets make me want to puke.

Ceetar Sep 10 2010 07:55 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

bmfc1 wrote: Three Mets (Gee, Parnell, Thole) visited Ground Zero yesterday: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/10/sport ... f=baseball It might have helped stop the "controversy" if Beltran, Perez and/or Castillo also went. Gee didn't go to Walter Reed--he was excused as that night's starter--and he went yesterday. Interesting how that story throws in the big about them going to Ground Zero, then rants for a couple of paragraphs about the Walter Reed thing, specifically Beltran.

G-Fafif Sep 10 2010 08:00 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Dave Lennon in Newsday says the Mets are at fault for having Castillo and Perez around and all. Give him a few more grafs and he'd blame Bill Shea for facilitating the birth of the franchise. The Mets, by Lennon's reckoning, made this an embarrassing story, not those who reported a non-event as something So Much More. Also, note description of hospital and soldiers. I would have thought their critical importance and respect were implicit. But when you want to pound a nail, get the heaviest hammer you can find. Lennon: Soldiers at Walter Reed deserved better September 9, 2010 by DAVID LENNON The Mets have stumbled through some embarrassing moments this season. But they reached a new low this week in the wake of a team-organized trip to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. That's right. Think about that for a second. The Mets transformed something as positive as an afternoon visit with wounded soldiers into a controversial standoff between the team and the three players who did not attend the event - Carlos Beltran, Luis Castillo and Oliver Perez. Given the trio involved, it's not surprising that this became the mess that it did. Castillo and Perez have felt alienated for a while now, and Beltran to a lesser degree after his public scuffle with the Wilpons over his January knee surgery. It's also understandable that the Wilpons were furious at these three players for their actions. The team's chief operating officer, Jeff Wilpon, traveled to D.C. specifically for the Walter Reed visit, and his presence served to emphasize the importance of the annual event. The Mets also had a clubhouse meeting the previous day to urge everyone to attend. The message obviously got through. The Mets had an unprecedented turnout - 29 of the 33 players on the roster made the trip, with that night's starting pitcher, Dillon Gee, the only one who was told not to go. The team had so many players show up, in fact, that the chartered bus was not big enough and the overflow had to drive to the hospital. But instead of the focus being on the large Mets contingent - the highest attendance for any of the team's charitable endeavors - anger was directed at Beltran, Castillo and Perez, from the higher levels of the organization to some corners of the clubhouse. That's as much the fault of the Mets as those three players, who were cornered by reporters the following day and grilled about their decisions to skip the hospital visit. Beltran explained that he had a meeting that morning for the baseball academy he is building in Puerto Rico, but privately, he was fuming about being called out on his decision. The other two didn't provide much of an explanation. Castillo suggested he was uncomfortable with the idea and said, "Sometimes when you see people with no legs, no arms, [from] when they fight, and to also be in the hospital like that, I don't like to see that." Perez declined to discuss it, and really, he didn't have to. As manager Jerry Manuel said, in trying to put the matter in perspective, "That's an individual thing." Which is why the Mets, at least officially, told the players that attendance was not mandatory. Even so, the whole episode turned into a witch hunt, with the most isolated players on the Mets - Beltran, Castillo and Perez - ostracized even further. Ultimately, they had to understand the consequences of their decisions. Fred Wilpon, the team's principal owner, is a co-founder of Welcome Back Veterans, a charitable organization for veterans and their families, so this was a particularly sensitive issue. The Mets, as a team, could claim the moral high ground here, but both sides look terrible. In their difficult relationship with at least two of the three players - Castillo and Perez - they allowed the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, a critically important hospital and its respected soldiers, to be dragged into the muck of their own team's infighting. The Mets reached the point of no return with Castillo and Perez months ago. The only reason that neither has been released by now is prohibitive contracts. Castillo is due another $6 million next season in the last year of his four-year, $25-million deal; Perez has another $12 million coming in 2011, also the final season of his contract. The lesson here is that the Mets needed to jettison both players as soon as they realized they were done in New York, which was a while back. As one Met asked Wednesday, "If they don't want someone, why are they still here?" A team official said Castillo and Perez are expected to be Mets through this season. That could mean some nasty treatment at Citi Field if they ever venture from the dugout. What the Mets and their fans think of Castillo and Perez is one thing. But both sides should leave the Walter Reed Army Medical Center out of those messy divorce proceedings. The hospital and the soldiers deserve to be treated with more dignity than that.

G-Fafif Sep 10 2010 08:05 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

More media self-examination on NothingGate. Adam Rubin says it couldn't help but be blown up since there was evidence of an internal snit and, well, that's a story. Unless the Mets were slicker, and it wouldn't be. Until then, Adam and the other Tweeting magpies carry a professional obligation to be used by the Wilpons. Reviewing Walter Reed no-show episode September, 10, 2010 By Adam Rubin By now, you know Carlos Beltran, Luis Castillo and Oliver Perez did not attend a team-sponsored trip to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center to visit wounded servicemen. And because it involved skipping a visit to amputees who serve the country, it inevitably will create backlash and make those players look particularly bad. They deserve that, too. Still, there are certain points that need to be made: I suspect that if the Mets had a team-sponsored bowling event, the same three players would have blown off the event. Let’s face it, the Mets publicly feuded with Beltran over his right to have surgery, clashed with Perez over whether to go to the minors, and buried the southpaw and Castillo on the bench. Strip aside the charged aspect of it being a hospital for servicemen and the three players likely felt, “Why should we go out of our way to do something optional that’s important to the team’s ownership?” (Yes, Fred and Jeff Wilpon are paying them a combined $180 million under their current contracts. And, again, yes it looks really bad to skip out on a team function given the venue. I’m not suggesting it’s a valid reason, if it’s their reason at all.) The fact that it was three disgruntled players that did not go strongly suggests it mostly has to do with an axe to grind with the organization. But, in fairness, two of the three offered alternative reasons: Beltran, after the no-show received scrutiny, said he had business to attend to regarding a start-up high school he’s spearheading in Puerto Rico. Castillo said he was too squeamish. Believe the excuses? Well, that brings us to the next point: While it can be argued it’s relevant that those three players did not participate in a team event, it’s generally distasteful to scrutinize other people’s moral compasses. These are not Washington politicians. They are ballplayers who happened to be in Washington during the course of a season. Isn’t it better to leave alone what Johan Santana thinks about Hugo Chavez? Do you really want to know Rod Barajas’ stance on Arizona’s immigration law or what Carlos Delgado thinks about the war in Iraq? No one asks you how much you donate to charity. It’s a private matter. So why didn’t this just slide by? Well, here’s the chronology: Reporters are allowed into the clubhouse 3½ hours before the first pitch. When the New York media contingent entered Tuesday in Washington, there was only one Met in the visitors’ clubhouse -- Dillon Gee, who was excused from the visit because he was making his major league debut that night as a starting pitcher. Not long afterward, Beltran, Castillo and Perez walked in together. A good deal of time later, the rest of the team entered en masse, some still wearing name tags from the visit. It didn’t take a CIA operative to figure out who did not attend. As I mentioned, scrutinizing someone’s charitable nature is distasteful. And reporters didn’t Tweet right away that those three did not attend, even though it quickly had been confirmed. So how does such a story make it into print? Well, No. 1 it’s New York, and once one media outlet goes ahead with it, the floodgates open. The first people to report it felt it was responsible because people in the organization began griping about the no-shows to a team function. David Wright was on the record with at least a veiled statement saying he wished the attendance had been better. And given that only four of 33 players did not attend, it again didn’t leave much wiggle room as far as what he was implying. Word also filtered that the Wilpons were particularly perturbed. It became obvious they didn’t mind the no-shows being publicly exposed. And there it started. (Really, the only media issue in this case, in my view, is that the initial reports proceeded before the scrutinized players were given a chance to respond. But because the initial reports were about others in the organization being upset, it was hardly a big deal, since the other side was presented hours later.) Which brings us to the final issue: If the Mets did a better job of presenting themselves to the public, these types of stories would be minimized if not outright quashed. If the Wilpons or other players were incensed with the trio, why not just air them out privately? There are strong parallels to the surgery issue with Beltran back in January. If Beltran had surgery without the team’s permission, call up agent Scott Boras and scream at him. Call up Beltran at scream at him. By encouraging a star player to be lambasted by the media, you may look better than him in public opinion in the short term. But that comes at the expense of fracturing a relationship that you need. If Beltran remains with the Mets next season -- and only his $18.5 million contract is making that foreseeable -- how can they now possibly broach the topic of right field with him given the erosion in goodwill? It makes it tougher. And makes this week’s whole episode and how it played out more regrettable.

Ceetar Sep 10 2010 08:12 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I'm considering unfollowing on Twitter all the beat writers. I actually think my feed/knowledge/info would be better for it. I unfollowed Rubin the other day anyway for his cruel interview with Wright, and i'm just not sure they're providing much value to me. Why are we still talking about this 2 days later? Steve Popper questioned the cruelty/hatred of Manuel countdowns and wishing people to lose their jobs yesterday, and he may have a point about people maybe taking it too far, but even though the Mets are out of it, stories about Towers possibly getting a GM job elsewhere, the rookies the Mets are playing and how they fit into offseason plans, and possible managerial replacements are much bigger stories and they're all sitting there for the writing.

MFS62 Sep 10 2010 08:15 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

As has been noted, Beltran had visited the GIs with Wilpon at an earlier date. Beltran was absent this time because of a scheduling conflict. He was at a meeting for a high school he's building, THAT SCUMBAG!!!!! For Lennon to say Given the trio involved, it's not surprising that this became the mess that it did. is a cheap shot from a writer who apparently didn't do any research as to why Beltran couldn't attend. Later

dgwphotography Sep 10 2010 08:18 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: If I weren't such a pajama-wearing naive pollyanna fan, I'd suspect the Mets themselves of whispering this story into Lupica's ear. Of course they are. I can see Jeffrey still being pissed over Beltran's surgery in January, thinking that he basically gave up this season in order to be 100% next season for his contract run.

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 08:28 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I don't know how we get from suspicion to "Of course they are." Anyhow, if this campaign were being fed by the Mets or being merely fed by hate, it's just as shameful for the beat writers who got caught up in it. If it was a bowling event, he suspects the same three players would have blown it off? Can you elaborate or are you just going to take a shit swipe and allow the hatred to fill in the blanks? Here's some weed for David Lennon's pipe.

Vic Sage Sep 10 2010 08:29 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

how can they now possibly broach the topic of right field with him given the erosion in goodwill? uh, you start by hiring a GM who hires a manager who says: "Carlos, you're in RF now." Good will doesn't enter into the equation. He gets $18.5m, and he'll play where the manager tells him to play. It's not like they're asking him to pitch.

HahnSolo Sep 10 2010 08:30 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Missing from just about every article linked in this thread is actual evidence that Met hierarchy is in fact angry about what happened. Are there any quotes (attributed or unattributed) that I missed? All I see things are like Rubin says "word filtered that the Wilpons were particularly perturbed".

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 08:34 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

We also get this from Lennon: "It's also understandable that the Wilpons were furious at these three players for their actions." Not only is it not paritucarly understandable, but the only thing we have from you suggesting it's true is innuendo. Then he finishes with this: "What the Mets and their fans think of Castillo and Perez is one thing. But both sides should leave the Walter Reed Army Medical Center out of those messy divorce proceedings. The hospital and the soldiers deserve to be treated with more dignity than that." You're jiving here, right?

dgwphotography Sep 10 2010 08:37 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Edgy DC wrote: I don't know how we get from suspicion to "Of course they are." Ok - full disclosure time (as much as I can). My company's CEO doesn't know Jeffrey directly, but they have many of the same business contacts. Basically, he's a mean-spirited little shit who is not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer.

G-Fafif Sep 10 2010 08:44 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

dgwphotography wrote: Basically, he's a mean-spirited little shit who is not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer. Can't speak for the knife sharpness, but from my slightly (and I mean slightly) informed perspective, that other part strikes me as not altogether inaccurate.

metirish Sep 10 2010 08:46 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Ceetar wrote: I'm considering unfollowing on Twitter all the beat writers. . Me too, Lennon has become a proper dick on everything, dumping him right now.

metsmarathon Sep 10 2010 09:09 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

"And because it involved skipping a visit to amputees who serve the country, it inevitably will create backlash and make those players look particularly bad. They deserve that, too." well, shit. now i'm really curious as to who all goes on these trips each and every year. do other teams visit walter reed? who attends those visits? who sits out? if other teams don't elect to visit the wounded veterans, why not? when did jeter last visit a wounded vet? and arod? get the pitchforks and torches, folks, we're going a-mobbing!

Ceetar Sep 10 2010 09:19 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

metsmarathon wrote: "And because it involved skipping a visit to amputees who serve the country, it inevitably will create backlash and make those players look particularly bad. They deserve that, too." well, shit. now i'm really curious as to who all goes on these trips each and every year. do other teams visit walter reed? who attends those visits? who sits out? if other teams don't elect to visit the wounded veterans, why not? when did jeter last visit a wounded vet? and arod? get the pitchforks and torches, folks, we're going a-mobbing! I did five minutes of searching on the Phillies and Yankees (after all, Baltimore is not far) yesterday just for the 'fun' of it. Was tough because it kept returning the recent Mets visit with all sorts of scrolling division stats or whatever that hit my 'Yankees' key word. The entire Yankee team went to the hospital this year. But it's hardly fair since the event was planned in advance (probably as far back as when the schedules for finalized) and they did it on the way to the White House. There wasn't any way to skip it. Plus, April and September are two different times in the baseball season. I'm not sure when or how the Mets visit was planned or announced (hey, why not research _that_ information for us beat writers? no?) I did find other examples of teams visiting (and various 'not all of them'). Every single major league teams visits that area though.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 10 2010 09:22 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

bmfc1 wrote: Three Mets (Gee, Parnell, Thole) visited Ground Zero yesterday: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/10/sport ... f=baseball It might have helped stop the "controversy" if Beltran, Perez and/or Castillo also went. Gee didn't go to Walter Reed--he was excused as that night's starter--and he went yesterday. It's also entirely possible that three of the newest Mets haven't yet been to Ground Zero since joining the major-league squad, whereas the Three Who Hate America have lived in/around the city for several years and have likely been before. This says a lot more to me about the people writing than it does about the TWHA. By all reports-- online scuttlebutt, reports from friends and acquaintances who've had the "pleasure" of working with him-- Lupica's a miserable, cynical SOB with the biggest Napoleon complex since Elba, so, yeah, no big surprise he's waving the flag (no doubt with help from some taller spotters). Lennon, on the other hand... man, this year's been a real eye-opener.

Ceetar Sep 10 2010 09:28 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

On Saturday, July 10, 2010 San Francisco Giants catchers Buster Posey and Eli Whiteside spent a couple hours of their afternoon giving back to the Washington, D.C community. In town for their series against the Washington Nationals, the two baseball players visited the Walter Reed Army Medical Center (Roberto) Hernandez chilled as he recalled the experience he had shared with Mike Piazza, David Wright and Danny Graves. Two hours of saying thank you didn't seem to be enough. The four Mets were struck by what they saw -- young men missing arms and legs, a man missing a chunk of his skull, another missing the skin on the back of his neck and his head stapled together. 2005: Many..didn't name names. A good visit: Many of the Phillies players and coaches went to Walter Reed Hospital and the Naval Medical Center on Friday. They talked, took pictures and signed autographs with patients, many of whom were wounded in the war in Iraq.

G-Fafif Sep 10 2010 09:30 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

metsmarathon wrote: when did jeter last visit a wounded vet? and arod? get the pitchforks and torches, folks, we're going a-mobbing! I imagine a response to your query is being posted by some local columnists at this hour. Most of the Mets visited wounded veterans at Walter Reed Hospital the other day. A few didn't. Meanwhile, their won-loss record remains in critical condition. While the Mets indulge in PR stunts gone bad, the Yankees keep their eyes on the prize. Do the defending world champion care about our veterans? Only enough so that they made the United States worth fighting for last November by winning yet another title within its borders. A nation is only as good as its national pastime, and when the Yankees win, it's better for all involved. The soldiers understand if nobody in pinstripes comes to visit them for the duration of American League hostilities. The Yankees have a battle to win. That is to be admired. In fact, it is to be preferred to what the all-but-eliminated Mets are doing. And of course it is to be respected. If you want to consider respect, you report on the double to the source. "We avoid distractions here," said Captain Derek Jeter, who takes his rank as seriously as any officer who served in Fallujah would. Jeter did not have to specify that "here" was a place that stands in contrast to "there" on the other side of the Triborough Bridge -- on the other side of the yawning competitive divide that separates the men from the boys. No need, either, to explain who the men are in this city. When the Yankees capture their 28th medal of championship valor this fall, the fallen at Walter Reed -- and at military hospitals everywhere (except, perhaps, Boston) -- will rise. If they cannot walk again immediately, surely their spirits will soar and they will instinctively salute Captain Jeter and all his courageous troops. A Yankee victory is the greatest remedy any wounded warrior can receive. The Mets have yet to learn that lesson. It's becoming painfully doubtful they ever will.

Ceetar Sep 10 2010 09:32 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

2009: Because the Astros have only a two-day series, in Washington, the club made it voluntary for players to attend what has become an annual trip to Walter Reed Army Hospital. Nineteen members of the 25-man roster joined Cecil Cooper, the entire coaching staff, general manager Ed Wade and Astros owner Drayton McLane on the visit. Stars Lance Berkman, Carlos Lee and Roy Oswalt were part of the group, which awoke early to make the trip after arriving late Sunday night in Washington. “We had a great turnout,” Wade said.

bmfc1 Sep 10 2010 09:38 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I unfollowed Lennon months ago. He's way too nasty. The Newark Star-Ledger guy may be next. Nice work Ceetar.

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 09:39 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Six missing Astros. I want names. I want heads.

Ashie62 Sep 10 2010 09:42 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

If my boss is going to Walter Reed and I am invited to go, I am going, whether I want to or not. The fact that this trip and story has taken on a life of its' own is quite simply sick.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 10 2010 09:47 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

G-Fafif wrote: Basically, he's a mean-spirited little shit who is not exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer. Can't speak for the knife sharpness, but from my slightly (and I mean slightly) informed perspective, that other part strikes me as not altogether inaccurate. Full disclosure here, too: A current, very trustworthy workmate of mine/former longtime midlevel employee for the organization (untill about 2006) concurs, albeit very diplomatically. ("He's not someone who you want to annoy, or whise bad side you want to get on.")

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 10:03 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Great, we've got second- and third-hand hand reliable information that he's Snidely Whiplash. But we're still just doubling down on the innuendo. If every beat writer is covering this, it shouldn't be that hard to come up with a fact supporting the notions that (a) the Wilpons are mad, and (b) they're behind this nonsense.

G-Fafif Sep 10 2010 10:10 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Edgy DC wrote: Great, we've got second- and third-hand hand reliable information that he's Snidely Whiplash. But we're still just doubling down on the innuendo. If every beat writer is covering this, it shouldn't be that hard to come up with a fact supporting the notions that (a) the Wilpons are mad, and (b) they're behind this nonsense. Yes, but we're just us talking to each other. That said, the beat guys pulled a clumsy no comment out of Perez. They can't do the same for Wilpon? Not even the old "a spokesman for the Mets declined comment"? Or is it enough that they saw Jeff fuming or that somebody said "Jeff is mad."

metirish Sep 10 2010 10:10 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Ceetar wrote: (Roberto) Hernandez chilled as he recalled the experience he had shared with Mike Piazza, David Wright and Danny Graves. Two hours of saying thank you didn't seem to be enough. The four Mets were struck by what they saw -- young men missing arms and legs, a man missing a chunk of his skull, another missing the skin on the back of his neck and his head stapled together. . Danny Graves... a real Met and a Vietnam Vet ...take that beat writers..

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 10:19 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

G-Fafif wrote: Edgy DC wrote: Great, we've got sedond- and third-hand hand reliable information that he's Snidely Whiplash. But we're still just doubling down on the innuendo. If every beat writer is covering this, it shouldn't be that hard to come up with a fact supporting the noitons that (a) the Wilpons are mad, and (b) they're behind this nonsense. Yes, but we're just us talking to each other. That said, the beat guys pulled a clumsy no comment out of Perez. They can't do the same for Wilpon? Not even the old "a spokesman for the Mets declined comment"? Or is it enough that they saw Jeff fuming or that somebody said "Jeff is mad." Lord knows he could have just been mad about the breakfast cereal again. Danny Graves... a real Met and a Vietnam Vet ...take that beat writers.. Well, a son of Vietnam vet and a Vietnam national, anyhoo.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 10 2010 10:34 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Edgy DC wrote: Edgy DC wrote: Great, we've got sedond- and third-hand hand reliable information that he's Snidely Whiplash. But we're still just doubling down on the innuendo. If every beat writer is covering this, it shouldn't be that hard to come up with a fact supporting the noitons that (a) the Wilpons are mad, and (b) they're behind this nonsense. Yes, but we're just us talking to each other. Lord knows he could have just been mad about the breakfast cereal again. "I HATE it when my Penny-Os taste all zinc-y!"

Chad Ochoseis Sep 10 2010 10:59 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

The player who annoys me the most in this whole non-story is Big Pelf. Who the hell gave him the authority to tell the team that the trip was mandatory?

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 10 2010 11:05 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Get this ranty man a Forum invite. (Oh, wait-- I did!)

Centerfield Sep 10 2010 11:21 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I put this on the Wilpons. If they're going to be pissy, make it mandatory. If you didn't make it mandatory, fume in a way it won't be public. If it does become public, come out and say you're not mad. Even if you are. Staying silent has allowed this story to fester. Sure, the beat writers suck too, but an argument could be made that this is part of their job.

metirish Sep 10 2010 11:27 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Get this ranty man a Forum invite. (Oh, wait-- I did!) A passionate defense of Beltran, pretty good read. I'll admit to thinking at times that Beltran wishes he never came to the Mets.

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 11:33 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Until a Statement of Pissiness is released, I put this on the press by about 96%, with about 2% each on the players and the Wilpons. Maybe the 2% has grown to 10% in the last 24 hours with the Wilpons, who at least have had that time to get out in front of this, but (1) I've gotten used to the idea that they're committed laying low come what may until the offseason, and (2) I think Jay Horwitz has long since stopped serving their interests.

G-Fafif Sep 10 2010 04:00 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Haste that beats the others cold, Klapisch pours it on. (A figurative nickel to whoever gets that reference.) Anyway, Klap calls Ollie a militant and says the Mets, when you factor in K-Rod, are, you know it, doomed. Gosh, I had no idea a columnist of Klap's soft rain stature was following the Mets on their recent road trip...or is this just the same Klaptrap anybody with a keyboard and a high-speed connetion could have posted? Is Oliver Perez playing a game of chicken with the Mets, daring ownership to release him so he can walk away with next year’s $12 million salary? That’s just one of the questions the Wilpon family is asking after yet another PR fiasco for baseball’s most troubled franchise. Perez, Luis Castillo and Carlos Beltran all missed a team-sponsored trip to visit wounded veterans at Washington’s Walter Reed Hospital this week – ignoring Jeff Wilpon’s personal appeal for the players’ cooperation. Two of the Mets at least tried to defend themselves. Beltran said he had a meeting regarding the high school his foundation is building in Puerto Rico. Castillo said he simply didn’t have the stomach to be in the presence of amputees. Neither excuse softened ownership’s anger, but it was Perez’s reaction that drew the most heated response from above. The left-hander didn’t even bother with an alibi, saying he wouldn’t talk about anything “outside the stadium.” Senior officials resisted the temptation to respond publicly, but one person familiar with the mood in the front office said Jeff Wilpon was “livid” with Perez. That could very well be the reaction he’s seeking. Last month, Perez told WFAN he was being treated “unfairly” by the Mets, a comment that was met with derision, both in the clubhouse and upstairs at Citi Field. With a 6.65 ERA and a three-year, $36 million contract that runs through 2011, Perez has become the billboard of the Mets’ ineptitude. A bad pitcher with an absurd contract and a defiant attitude, to boot. If the blow-off of the soldiers was the tipping point, the next move is now the Wilpons. Do they have the stomach, or the financial insulation, to fire Perez? No one believes the left-hander can be resurrected, at least not in New York, but the Mets are already at war with Francisco Rodriguez, trying to void his guaranteed contract after he allegedly assaulted his daughter’s grandfather at the ballpark last month. One rival executive said the Mets would’ve had an “air-tight” case against K-Rod had they sought to merely recoup the remainder of his 2010 salary. It would’ve been impossible for the union to defend a player who’d injured himself in the commission of a crime and was subsequently unable to compete. But Mets ownership is seeking the maximum penalty, looking to get out from the $11.5 million K-Rod is owed in 2011 so he can be released in spring training. An executive from another team said, “(the Mets) have zero chance of getting an arbitrator to agree to that much. It’s so outrageous that they might not even get the (partial penalty) that’s rightfully theirs. An arbitrator might just say, “you’re asking for too much” and rule entirely in Rodriguez’ favor.” Clearly, there’s no way the Mets could eat the contracts of Perez and K-Rod; no team, not even the Yankees, can burn that kind of cash. A more modest option would be to trade both players, although with their emotional baggage and respective salaries it’s impossible to imagine any team willing to take them. Perez is as close to poison as any player in baseball, especially if his blow-off of the soldiers was as selfish and mean-spirited as it appeared. K-Rod’s for-sale sign might not be quite as tainted, especially if the Mets portray him as a man working his way back to the community. Rodriguez will have completed anger management therapy by spring training, which, coupled with his embarrassment and remorse over his arrest, might be enough to at least get another GM to pick up the phone. But the rest of the list goes on and on. Beltran, going into his age-34 season, is the oldest centerfielder in the majors. Forced to wear a brace to protect a fragile knee, he’s lost his defensive mobility and looks just as helpless at the plate, almost 50 points under his career average at .235. Beltran might not be as volatile as K-Rod or as militant as Perez, but he’s nevertheless just as disconnected. No need for a look-at-me display to let teammates know how Beltran feels about being a Met. He’ll be a free agent after 2011 and is already counting the days. Castillo? He’s hated by fans simply because he’s in his decline phase, pulling down $6 million to hit .236. Like Perez, Castillo represents the era of big contracts to under-performing players, creating a roster that’s expensive ($128 million) and practically frozen. Rebuilding the franchise will be the mandate of whoever follows Jerry Manuel and Omar Minaya. There’s been talk lately, generated by Peter Gammons, that Bobby Valentine will be the Mets’ next manager. But that comes as news to both Valentine and the Wilpons. It’s far more likely that Wally Backman, successfully running the Mets’ Class-A team in Brooklyn, will replace Manuel. The process of toppling Minaya might not be so simple. While most everyone assumes the GM will take the fall for the summer’s catastrophes, Minaya isn’t necessarily willing to be re-assigned, as has been widely presumed. His contractual tie to the Mets is strictly as their general manager, meaning he’s not obligated to take any other job in the organization. If the Mets want to turn Minaya into a super-scout and hire, say, Kevin Towers, they have two choices: They either re-work Minaya’s contract, or else fire him and eat the last two years of his pact. That’s no small dilemma for an organization that’s looking to clean house, devise a new business plan and rise from the ashes by 2012. No team in the majors is bleeding attendance faster than the Mets, so it’s essential they act forcefully. The obvious question is whether they can afford it. The better question is can they afford not to.

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 04:43 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Jeez, feed me poison, whydoncha?

metsguyinmichigan Sep 10 2010 05:14 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

[url]http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/jeff_pearlman/09/10/mets/index.html Pearlman, who aspires to be Klapisch, chimed in. Missing is the praise that 22 Mets DID visit the hospital....

Ashie62 Sep 10 2010 07:22 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Castillo is hated? Geez..

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 10 2010 07:25 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

English is Klapisch's first language, is it? Pity.

Rockin' Doc Sep 10 2010 08:42 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

metirish wrote: LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Get this ranty man a Forum invite. (Oh, wait-- I did!) A passionate defense of Beltran, pretty good read. I'll admit to thinking at times that Beltran wishes he never came to the Mets. Nice find LWFS. Who could blame Beltran if he rued the day he chose to join the Mets? I can't say I would. The Mets organization seems to be a chaotic mess and Beltran has become a scapegoat to many looking to place blame. I'm sure there are individuals that would say he has millions of reasons to be content as a Met, but he could have had millions from other teams as well. Beltran likely wouldn't have been subjected to the level of scorn he has endured in New York had he gone elsewhere.

Ashie62 Sep 10 2010 08:55 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Solid piece. Scratchbomb rocks.

Edgy DC Sep 10 2010 09:47 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Why in the world should Beltran rue anything? They made him fabulously wealthy. They did because we made them fabulously wealthy. He's had a chance to play, and has played excellently when healthy, and has gotten a chance at a championship. Why exactly should he pity himself? I don't get this. This is a press feeding frenzy of nothing. And in nearly all news stories/blog posts about the incident, it was Beltran's name who led the pack. This means one of two things: Either the Mets were too stupid to check with Beltran and ask why he was absent (entirely possible), or they didn't care and decided to hang him out to dry with the press. Or the press full well knew --- as it does now --- but still smells blood. Or any number of things. But most of the press outlets reported the situation with Beltran, and Beltran's doing relatively fine compared to his teammates.

G-Fafif Sep 11 2010 04:19 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Jeff Wilpon speaks! Or is asked to by the Times and doesn't say much. SEPTEMBER 10, 2010, 6:21 PM Wilpon Leaves Hospital Flap to the Players By KEN BELSON Days after three Mets skipped a team trip to visit wounded war veterans at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Jeff Wilpon, the team’s chief operating officer, declined to rebuke the players, saying that any discontent that stemmed from their absence should be worked out in the clubhouse. “It’s nothing for me to deal with; it’s for them to deal with amongst their teammates,” said Wilpon, who spoke after David Wright and Mike Pelfrey met with firefighters at Ladder Company 10 near ground zero as part of a Sept. 11 commemoration. “It wasn’t mandatory. You can’t get upset.” Carlos Beltran, Luis Castillo and Oliver Perez did not visit the hospital with the rest of the team Tuesday, when the Mets were in Washington to play the Nationals. The absences raised eyebrows because the players have underperformed on the field. Castillo and Perez have expressed unhappiness with their diminished roles, and the Mets have been at odds with Beltran since he elected to have surgery in January, apparently against the team’s wishes. Several teammates have expressed disappointment that the entire team did not make the trip. Pelfrey had posted a sign in the clubhouse declaring that the trip was mandatory even though the club did not deem it so. “That should be stuff that you shouldn’t have to have a meeting about and to remind people,” Pelfrey said Friday, referring to a team meeting in which players were urged to visit the hospital. “It should be, ‘Hey, I want to go do that and give thanks and show my appreciation.’ ” Still, Pelfrey said he was happy 27 players made the trip, which he said was twice as many as in past visits. “It would have been great to have all of them, but having 27 there was pretty good,” he said. Wilpon addressed the issue publicly for the first time Friday on what was an otherwise solemn event with firefighters to commemorate their efforts after the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. Wilpon said he would consider making the event mandatory next season so “it takes out any of the controversy.” The controversy was the latest in a string of public relations disasters for the team this year that have included Johan Santana being accused of sexual assault in a civil lawsuit and the arraignment of Francisco Rodriguez on charges that he attacked the grandfather of his children. The flap in Washington partly obscured the Mets’ efforts Friday to thank the public service workers for their work after the terrorist attacks nine years ago. In 2001, the Mets helped store food and other supplies in the parking lots at Shea Stadium in the days after the attacks, and they were the first to wear caps honoring the police and firefighters in the games that followed. Mike Piazza’s game-winning home run during the first game in New York after baseball resumed play has become a signature moment for the team. “When you see that home run, it made us feel like we were back,” said Salvatore Cassano, the New York City Fire Commissioner. “They kept us going.”

G-Fafif Sep 11 2010 04:50 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I was hoping we could hear from Scott Boras. One interesting tidibit I hadn't seen before, however, about advance notice for visit. Boras upset with Mets for treatment of Beltran September 10, 2010 by DAVID LENNON Carlos Beltran kept his feelings in check this week after hearing that Mets ownership was angry with him for failing to attend the team-organized trip to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. But his agent, Scott Boras, is livid at the Mets for what he believes was unfair treatment of Beltran, who had arranged a meeting for his own charitable foundation that same morning in Washington. Boras questioned why the Mets would single out Beltran, who visited a veterans hospital with principal owner Fred Wilpon last winter, and publicly attempt to smear him. "What they've done is the equivalent of Campbell's soup taking one of their cans, kicking it down the aisle, tarnishing the can, and then trying to sell you the soup," Boras said in a telephone interview. "Why is management doing that? There seems to be a serious problem there." Boras also pointed out that the Mets told their players and staff about the non-mandatory trip only 24 hours before they were expected to attend. As Beltran explained, he already had set up the meeting for his foundation, which is building a high school/baseball academy in his native Puerto Rico. Boras said that Mets ownership didn't bother to ask Beltran why he couldn't make the trip - but criticized him anyway, along with Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo. Beltran, who homered Friday night, has one year worth $18.5 million left on his $119-million contract, and given his recent clashes with the Mets, it could make for an interesting winter. On Friday, when asked again about the incident, Beltran shrugged. "I'm confident that I know to do the right thing," he said. "That's how I live my life. The only thing is if somebody had a problem with me, I wish they would come to me and talk to me about it. To do it through the newspapers, that's not how I do business."

bmfc1 Sep 11 2010 05:17 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

[url]http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/jeff_pearlman/09/10/mets/index.html Pearlman, who aspires to be Klapisch, chimed in. Missing is the praise that 22 Mets DID visit the hospital.... Pearlman says he was wrong: http://networkedblogs.com/7JnhQ

G-Fafif Sep 11 2010 05:50 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

[url]http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/jeff_pearlman/09/10/mets/index.html Pearlman, who aspires to be Klapisch, chimed in. Missing is the praise that 22 Mets DID visit the hospital.... Pearlman says he was wrong: http://networkedblogs.com/7JnhQ Compelling, engaging and provocative as a reporter...yet everything on his blog essentially reads as such: Pearlman Has Thought, Shares It Immediately Writer thinks of things, thinks everything he thinks needs to be expressed without regard to thinking Later expresses regret he didn't think things through

Ceetar Sep 11 2010 05:50 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I wonder about Boras sometimes. (I'd suspected that about the notification too. Sounds like they arrived in Washington, someone mentioned that they'd arranged a visit to Walter Reed and all were welcome to come. Pelfrey made it 'mandatory' in the sense that he thought they should all go because it was important and they're a team. Lost of course is that 27 Mets went, well more than usually go, as part of the 'team' exercise. ) Does he not realize the media over dramatizes things, that maybe the Wilpons weren't taking shots at Beltran through the media? Or does he know better as he's actually dealt with them more than us (and probably more closely than the writers)? Or is it all a bargaining ploy for Beltran (he didn't mention Perez at all..)

Edgy DC Sep 11 2010 06:04 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Good on Pearlman. He's been a depressed malcontent for a while now. It's nice to see somebody backtrack when the lights go on. As for Pelfrey, he's got the zealotry of youth going.

Frayed Knot Sep 11 2010 07:18 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Jeff Wilpon speaks! Or is asked to by the Times and doesn't say much. No he doesn't say much. But what he does say is almost at complete odds to what previous claims said he said. Suddenly the man who "was livid" according to - and this one is always my favorite source of bullshit - "a person familiar with the mood in the front office" is leaving this as an in-clubhouse matter while saying; "It wasn't mandatory. You can't get that upset" Not that any of that stops the article from labeling an event where twice as many showed as usual "a public relations disaster" but, hey, once you call it that in print I guess it becomes one whether it deserves to or not.

Ashie62 Sep 11 2010 10:05 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Is anyone suggesting the three are being singled out for being hispanic? I doubt it, but give the tweeters time.

Gwreck Sep 11 2010 12:03 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Probably not, but then again, there are people out there who still genuinely believe that the Mets have too many Latino players, so I guess anything's possible...

Edgy DC Sep 11 2010 01:38 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I certainly think it's highly relevant.

Zvon Sep 11 2010 02:29 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

To me this is just another example of how dysfunctional this organization has become. Jeff Wilpon saying: “It’s nothing for me to deal with; it’s for them to deal with amongst their teammates” is typical. Why even add that last part?

Rockin' Doc Sep 11 2010 07:17 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Edgy DC wrote: Why in the world should Beltran rue anything? They made him fabulously wealthy. They did because we made them fabulously wealthy. He's had a chance to play, and has played excellently when healthy, and has gotten a chance at a championship. It's not as if Beltran didn't have other teams willing to make him quite wealthy. The Mets may have been the highest bidder, but I feel confident that he would have had other teams willing to shower millions of dollars on him had he decided to spurn the Mets. Had Beltran chosen to sign elsewhere, he almost certainly would not have been subjected to the same level of fan and media scrutiny that he has endured as a Met. He had options and I think in retrospect he has reason to possibly regret the choice he made. For instance, he was frequently booed in 2005, he caught a lot of grief for watching Wainwright's curve in 2006, the Mets (Minaya) second guessed him for having knee surgery this off season, and now he is being scapegoated for missing the visit to Walter Reed Army Hospital. Carlos Beltran is one of my favorite Mets, but I think he has ample reason to possibly second guess his decision to sign with the Mets. Apparently, you feel differently. It won't be the first time we have disagreed and it almost assuredly won't be the last.

Edgy DC Sep 11 2010 09:59 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

You makes me out like I'm some sort of Disagreeing Danny. I just think virtually none of this is the Mets' fault. As for tabloid journalists in New York behavng horribly, and Met fans having among them an unhealthy quotient of abusive fools, none of that is news, or should be to Carlos or any other high-end free agent. But I think all top-paying teams (outside of maybe the Dodgers) have legions of abusive fans. Heck, ask Chuck Knoblauch about the sweet gentle Morman fans in Minnesota. I doubt this wave wouldn't have happened had he still been an Astro and everything else shook out the same way. The only thing to regret is living in a culture that allows this stupid I-love-America-more-than-you nonsense to persist. Or that swallows the deliberate nonsense they're fed (every season!) that suggests teams and players failing on the field are moral failures. In the meantime, signing with the Mets has brought him an unthinkable amount of opportunity --- including the opportuntiy to build the high school he's working on. If a cool person keeps his or her head, he or she lets this pass, and tomorrow the tabloids will find somebody else to tell people to hate.

Ashie62 Sep 11 2010 11:15 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

You stereotype Mormans but complain about I love America nonsense. You can't have it both ways.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Sep 12 2010 09:23 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

? Quotes?

Edgy DC Sep 12 2010 10:57 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Ashie, to what, please, are you referring?

Ashie62 Sep 12 2010 11:05 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Edgy DC wrote: Ashie of all the weird things... what the hell? You characterize and in effect stereotype abusive Twins fans as sweet gentle Mormans which seems wacky and cruel to me and then strongly opine that defining levels of patriotism is nonsense (which I do agree). It just seems like two very at odd points of view in the same argument.

Edgy DC Sep 12 2010 11:15 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Actaully, I was tired and meant to refer to Lutherans. (Mormans in Minnesota? Did I really say that?) More to the point, I thought it was clear that I was being ironic, referring to fan abuse that actually isn't as distinctly characteristic of New York as might be suggested. My case in point was a three-day hatefest Twins fans threw for Chuck Knobloauch that strangely came years after he was traded to New York. I was actually trying to ironically explode a stereotype. Fan abuse is virtually everywhere. And it can and has been inflamed by self-serving journalists virtually everywhere.

Ashie62 Sep 12 2010 11:56 AM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I understand.

Zvon Sep 12 2010 12:23 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Edgy DC wrote: Fan abuse is virtually everywhere. And it can and has been inflamed by self-serving journalists virtually everywhere. (this question is not specifically meant for you Ed, but everyone) Which do you think comes first? The fan reaction or the spin? Do the fans tell the journalists what to write or do the writers tell the fans what to think?

Ashie62 Sep 12 2010 12:47 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

The spinners enflame the masses.

Rockin' Doc Sep 12 2010 01:00 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Ashie62 wrote: The spinners enflame the masses. The masses are crazy, the Spinners were cool. [url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CR2T1fXP9NI

G-Fafif Sep 12 2010 04:53 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

I adore the Spinners -- explosively and definitely not ironically.

Ashie62 Sep 12 2010 04:56 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

G-Fafif wrote: I adore the Spinners -- explosively and definitely not ironically. And f.a.f.i.f is one of the spinners contributing to this mess..yuck yuck

G-Fafif Sep 12 2010 05:04 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Ashie62 wrote: G-Fafif wrote: I adore the Spinners -- explosively and definitely not ironically. And f.a.f.i.f is one of the spinners contributing to this mess..yuck yuck Not anymore. Too busy preparing myself for the Rubberband Man.

Edgy DC Sep 15 2010 02:57 PM Re: Met Front Office angry at 3 Mets who hate America

Remember, when people try and stick this in your face as a fan, the Phillies tore down a whole stadium dedicated to veterans.