By Jordan Long
MLB is in the midst of a lockout but that hasn’t stopped the New York Mets from interviewing for their managerial vacancy. They are down to 3 finalists, Matt Quatraro, Joe Espada, and Buck Showalter. Showalter should be the favorite to land the job.
The Mets job had been opened since the Mets declined the option on Luis Rojas’s contract following this past season. Rojas was only in New York for 2 seasons. The Mets weren’t competitive his first year, ending at 26-34. This past year, the Mets had hopes of the postseason. Unfortunately, they stumbled at the end, finishing the year with a record of 20-31. Overall that put them at a record of 77-85, missing the postseason for the 5th year in a row. Rojas’ record with the Mets was a disappointing 103-119, a winning percentage of .464.
The Mets search is now down to 3 names. Matt Quatraro has never been a manager in MLB. He has tons of knowledge of the game being a bench coach for the Tampa Bay Rays for the past two years. He knows the game of baseball. He may still need to learn how to manage at the MLB level. Quatraro has never had to make the tough decision to take a pitcher out when they don’t have it that day or inning. If hired, he will gain that experience during the first few weeks of the season.
Joe Espada is another guy who doesn’t have managerial experience but is familiar with New York. He was with the New York Yankees as third base and infield coach for the 2015 season. He would stay in New York until 2018 where he became the Houston Astros bench coach. If the Mets want a guy who knows the pressure of being in New York, Espada makes a lot of sense. Espada knows the expectations of New York even though he has never been a manager. Maybe this is his time to show the experience he has gained being a bench coach. Espada might even turn the Mets into a winning ball club.
The only person the Mets are going to talk to that has any managerial experience is Buck Showalter. He brings in 20 years of managerial experience. In his history, Buck Showalter managed the New York Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks, Texas Rangers, and Baltimore Orioles. During his time as manager, his teams went 1,551-1517, a winning percentage of .506. His teams earned a playoff spot 5 times but he has never won a World Series. The furthest he has gone was the American League Championship series in 2014 when he was managing Baltimore. They were swept by the Kansas City Royals.
Showalter is the best man for the job. He has the most experience at the MLB level. Showalter hasn’t managed since he was let go by Baltimore following a 47-115 season in 2018.
The Mets will take their time with these interviews this week. They may announce their next manager soon. Whoever it is must be able to turn them into a consistent playoff team which might take a year or two. The goal is to win the World Series. The Mets haven’t won the World Series since 1986. They would like to end that drought.
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