Minaya Gives Randolph Vote of Confidence
By David Lennon, Newsday, Melville, N.Y.
May 24–DENVER — It was general manager Omar Minaya who spared Willie Randolph in the wake of last September’s historic collapse. But with the underachieving Mets in another tailspin, Minaya’s rushed visit to Coors Field was an ominous sign for a manager under siege.
Or at least it appeared that way. When Minaya held an impromptu news conference Friday in the back of the press box here, with the Mets trailing 2-1 after the second inning, the GM delivered a vote of confidence for Randolph that also was supposed to represent the Wilpons.
When asked specifically if Randolph was in any imminent danger of being fired, Minaya did not actually say no.
“He has my support,” Minaya said. “He has our ownership’s support. And that’s what it is. I am here to support Willie. Ownership is supporting Willie.
“Hopefully, one of the reasons I’m here is to let him know my support and encourage him and let him know that we believe he can get this team on track, to get this team playing to the capabilities it can play. I know Willie’s totally dedicated to doing that and I believe Willie will do that.”
Minaya said he booked his flight to Denver shortly before Thursday’s 4-2 loss to the Braves and that the travel plans were spurred by more than just the Mets getting swept in Atlanta. As Minaya described it, Randolph had a “tough week” dealing with the fallout from his inflammatory comments to The Record of Hackensack (N.J.), and the Mets are still seeking closure to that fiasco.
Randolph, who made a belated apology Wednesday, will meet with Minaya, principal owner Fred Wilpon and his COO son, Jeff, early next week to discuss the manager’s complaints of his portrayal on SNY, the team’s TV network, and his claims of racial bias in the media’s criticism of him.
Minaya said those talks were not directly tied into Randolph’s future, but if and when the team does decide to make a switch, the GM will be involved with that decision.
“Whenever someday I decide — I haven’t decided — to fire a manager, it’s going to be with the consultation of the ownership,” Minaya said.
Before Minaya’s arrival, the Mets went about their usual routines. Some played cards, chess or Connect Four. A few others camped on the couches and watched “Seinfeld.”
As for Randolph, he was a little more visible in the clubhouse, straying outside the manager’s office to interact with a few players. Maybe Randolph was trying to burn off some nervous energy as he awaited the arrival of Minaya, but when asked about his future in his daily briefing with reporters, he was pretty relaxed.
“I’m still here,” Randolph said. “I’m just hellbent on getting a win, just winning some games. That’s really my focus. I can’t control anything outside of that. I love to win. We have not played up to our capabilities yet, so today in my mind, all I’m concerned about is these guys going out there and playing a good, solid, all-around game so we can get kick-started in the right direction.
“All the other stuff, I have no control over — who calls me, Omar comes into town or the fact that it may seem like I’m on the hot seat. That’s really irrelevant to me. It really is. I’m here to help win. I understand that if we start doing that, all that other stuff goes away a little bit. It never goes away. But it kind of ceases a little bit.”
David Wright said: “We’ve got to band together to win so we’re not embarrassing ourselves. I don’t want to see Willie get fired. I don’t want anyone to be blamed for something that I’m responsible for. We feel for Willie. But what’s going to help Willie out is winning, plain and simple.”
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