Ever since Sandy Alderson has said that he is looking for a fiery manager, Wally Backman’s name has been mentioned everywhere in the Mets world. Backman, a former player of the Mets, is in the running for the Mets new manager.
Last year, Backman managed the Mets A affiliate, the Brooklyn Cyclones. The Cyclones were successful in 2010, and they played Wally Backman baseball. Wally Backman baseball is pretty much small ball. Backman utilized speed and bunting in his way of managing the Cyclones. He also toughened up the players, and they would run through a wall for him.
Seems like Backman should be hired as the Mets manager as soon as possible, right?
No.
Despite Backman’s success with several minor league teams, he is not the right guy for the Mets open position at manager. Mets fans love Backman just as much as the Wilpons do.
I don’t blame them for liking Backman. He has an impressive resume, and he’s a fiery manager. However, I think very differently about him.
He is too fiery. Yes, a manager can be too fiery. Backman draws the line between fiery and stupidity. A couple years ago, he landed the Diamondbacks managerial job. He was fired before he even boarded the plane to Arizona.
Backman got caught up with the law and was arrested. When the D-Backs front office got the news they cut Backman on the spot. He screwed up his chance to live one of his biggest dreams: to be a major league manager.
Last year, the Mets gave Wally the manager job with the Cyclones, and here we are now. The Mets are seriously considering Backman to be their next manager.
He would not be a good fit at all for the Mets. The last thing the Mets need is a crazy manager. The Mets have had plenty of off-the-field issues in the past three years. These off field issues are what made the team the laughing stock of the MLB.
The team hasn’t been performing well on the field, but they performed even worse off the field. Incidents such as the Tony Bernazard situation and Francisco Rodriguez’s tussle with his father-in-law are just a few examples of how dysfunctional the Mets have been off the field.
All they need is to have their manager get arrested. That would push the team and its fans over the edge. No matter how much upside Wally Backman has, his downside will always outweigh his upside. The Mets can’t afford to hand the job to him.
The team has just given their fans renewed hope with the signing of Sandy Alderson, and a new era of Mets baseball has begun. A new era that is going to make Mets fans proud to be Mets fans. A new era that is going to make the Mets a model franchise.
I respect Wally Backman so much for what he did for the Mets when he played with them, but his time with the Mets should be over. There are plenty of other candidates for the open manager job, and the Mets should recognize that Backman is not their guy.
I have a great amount of trust in this organization, and I believe they will make the right decision for their new manager. I am just a fan with the hopes that my favorite team can be great once again, and make all the right moves. Right now, I’m proud to be a Met fan, and I hope it stays that way for a long time.
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