Randolph's Decision Made...Too Late

Everyone knew that Willie Randolph was going to get the boot from Mets management, it was just a matter of when it was going to happen.

Many people think Randolph should have been fired after last seasons collapse. A matter of fact, the chances are, Randolph's job was probably on the line and always was on the line since the Mets' disgraceful finish last season.

The only way Randolph was keeping his job this season or further on down the road was if the Mets came out of the gate on absolute fire.

With Johan Santana and Pedro Martinez leading the staff, the Mets probably didn't feel too bad about their chances at a great start - considered by some, just like last season, to be the team to beat.

However, 69 starts into the season Randolph's team was grossly under-achieving. The team of course had been ravaged by injuries and many players were performing quite short of the stats on the back of their baseball cards.

So, with a team filled with all-stars and the best pitcher in baseball in Santana and their record still under .500, Randolph's tenure as Mets manager, which had really run out at the end of last season, became official.

Early in the morning after a second consecutive win and a six hour trip from New York to Los Angeles the General Manager, Omar Minaya confronted Randolph and told him he was being relieved of his position.

Like I said, the only question there was when it came to Randolph was when he was going to be fired. Minaya denied this of course in his news conference.

He said he fired Randolph when he did because it would have been unfair to him to keep him on any longer as he had made his decision and wasn't going to keep Randolph waiting in the limbo he was in.

Problem is, this decision was made after last season. If the Mets didn't come out dominating the division immediately Randolph was gone.

The problem most have about the Randolph firing just is about when it took place. It would have been much easier to fire him after last season. He could have fired him after the slow start this season. But no, Randolph traveled with the team to face a tough Los Angeles Angels team after winning a game in New York and then winning the first game in Los Angeles.

Why fire him after a few wins? Obviously Minaya knew he was going to fire him before the wins - a manager obviously doesn't get fired for winning.

Why didn't he fire Randolph in New York? Why make him travel and win before releasing him? Why fire him around three in the morning? The Mets had a rain out in New York that forced a double header against the Texas Rangers one day before the travel to Los Angeles - why not meet him that day and fire him? Why not give him at least until the All-Star break to see if they could get on a roll - especially with Martinez back in the rotation, a trade for Trot Nixon that could help them with their outfield woes as well as the return of Marlon Anderson?

It was an extra slap in the face as Randolph was going to be a coach in the All-Star game at Yankee Stadium, in Yankee Stadium's final season, where he played many games as a Yankee and as Yankee captain?

Minaya of course gave no clear cut explanation to why he did what he did what he did dodging the questions that reporters threw at him. All he seemed to say was that it was a difficult decision, that he formed a close relationship with Randolph and he wanted Randolph to do the job but it wasn't working and he knew what his decision was and had too much respect for Randolph to keep him when he knew he was going to fire Randolph.

That seems like a load, and what is and isn't true is only known by Minaya himself but doesn't really is not really the point. The point is that Minaya's decision was just horribly timed and done very unceremoniously, surely making it hard for Randolph to swallow not to mention an embarrassment for him.

What makes things even that much worse is that the new manager is just Randolph's bench coach Jerry Manuel. Manuel is very similar to Randolph with a laid back personality like him as well.

Manuel is not what the Mets need. The Mets need someone to light a fire under the bellies. Maybe Joey Cora or Tony Pena, both who are under contracts this season. The Mets are not going to be able to hire anyone who can really spark the team this season. The chance to do that won't come until next season, so why not keep Randolph? If they wanted a laid back manager with a pedigree, Joe Torre was also available if they had fired Randolph when they should have - after last season.

Minaya just can't make a right decision. Managers get blamed for pulling a pitcher too late in a ball game or not keeping him in long enough. In this case, Minaya couldn't pull the plug for some reason last season on Randolph and didn't keep him around long enough this season.

While the reasons behind his decisions are foggy and will probably never be cleared, he made the decision everyone knew was coming. Now that Randolph is gone Minaya is running out of excuses as of to why the team is under performing. Unless the Mets make a miraculous turn around, Minaya may is next to go. After all, just like he kept Randolph longer then he should have, Mets owner Fred Wilpon has kept Minaya around much longer than he has deserved to be. Minaya had just better hope he goes in a less humiliating manner than he did with Randolph.