Someone Help the Mets

If Machiavelli ever penned a manual on how to operate as a general manager he would have undoubtedly included a chapter on how to extinguish the proverbial hot seat. Way number one: Win. Way number two: Win more. Way number three: Win even more. And so on until the options become more about shifting the responsibility of burden and the actions include firing personnel or trading players.

Fortunately for Omar Minaya, Jerry Manuel is giving him all kinds of signs that he’s ready for a post-managerial career. Unfortunately for Minaya, it would be the second manager he’s axed during his Mets’ tenure, and would place the heavily glowing spotlight over his own head. The way things are going, Minaya may not have a choice. He can cut Manuel loose and save his own job for the time being, or allow Manuel to drive the team into the wall and have them both dismissed at once.

Ignore the extra innings mismanagement of Francisco Rodriguez. That’s merely another bullet point on Manuel’s pink slip. Consider the horrendous handling of Jenrry Mejia to date. Manuel has instructed him to focus on his fastball – presumably the pitch that needs the least work for Mejia to become a good starter. If telling the organization’s best pitching prospect to disregard developing his secondary stuff isn’t enough, then how about then using that pitcher in lower leverage situations than just about everyone else in the bullpen? Manuel is actually using Mejia in the perfect developmental situations, yet he’s capping that development by disallowing him to throw his curve and change-up as often as he wants. Meanwhile, Mejia’s service clock continues to tick.

As for the other act of ridiculousness, it was an in-game maneuver that Manuel pulled earlier this afternoon. After allowing Fernando Tatis to pinch hit, Manuel elected to keep him in the ballgame … by removing David Wright. This decision came after Jason Bay had been removed, leaving Gary Matthews Jr. and Jeff Francoeur as the Mets’ corner outfielders. Rather than replace one of those with Tatis – the Mets’ emergency catcher, which is only important because that’s Manuel’s stated reason for keeping him in the game – Manuel decided it would help the team to replace his best player. You know, just in case Rod Barajas suffered an injury.

The Mets fittingly lost on a walkoff home run by Orlando Cabrera. This team is too big of a mess for one with so many excellent and enjoyable players like Jose Reyes, Wright, Carlos Beltran, and Johan Santana. It’s not just Manuel or just Minaya. It’s a combination. I’m not sure a great manager can overcome a poor general manager, and I don’t believe a great general manager would endure a poor manager. But when you get a pair of the same quality it leads either to beautiful fireworks or a bunch of self-inflicted burns. The Mets currently employ the latter. Truthfully, it’s hard to find an uglier design than what the Mets have in place with these two.