The New York Mets will not be making the playoffs this season, and the team now has a big decision on what to do with manager Mickey Callaway.
The Mets were eliminated from playoff contention on Wednesday after a big second-half run failed to get them back into the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Many have pointed fingers at Callaway and his sometimes questionable in-game moves and bullpen management, and now SNY is reporting that the team plans to take some time after the season ends to ponder the manager’s fate.
“According to people with direct knowledge of the process, team brass plans to meet early next week to discuss their decision. Those people insist that nothing is final,” the report noted.
The report went on to add that the Mets’ front office believed that the team had enough talent to reach the playoffs, so anything short of that would be a disappointment. But two of the team’s top offseason acquisitions turned out to be busts, as closer Edwin Diaz struggled and eventually lost his role, and infielder Jed Lowrie missed nearly all of the season with injuries.
Though Callaway’s job is most definitely in jeopardy, there is a chance that he earned his way back for 2020 with the team’s second-half surge. The SNY report noted that there was widespread belief that Callaway would lose his job mid-season as the team failed to build off a strong start and came out of the All-Star break with a 40-51 record, but Callaway helped lead the team on a torrid stretch that now has them at 83-76. The Mets were in the NL Wild Card race until the final week of the season, when the even hotter Milwaukee Brewers finally eliminated the Mets from playoff contention.
The Mets seem to be leaning toward bringing in a new manager, as SNY reported that multiple people close to the team said after the team was eliminated that they would be surprised if Callaway stays. The report seems to carry more weight coming from SNY, a network that is 65 percent owned by the Mets franchise itself.
“Never give up…that’s all this team knows how to do” – Mickey Callaway pic.twitter.com/ca9tVsGEW3
— SNY (@SNYtv) September 24, 2019
Callaway has been publicly making his case for why he should stay, pointing out how he kept the team together through difficult times.
“I think a manager’s job is to get guys going in a direction and I think these guys never wavered from that, so I am definitely proud about that,” Callaway said, via the New York Post . “I come to work as hard as I can every single day, I understand the rigors of the job and I try to deal with it the best I can and try to stay even-keeled for the organization’s sake and for our players’ sake.”
Any decision on Callaway’s fate is not expected until after the season ends.