THE LOST CITI
Claims by ex-coach support worst fears of Amazin’ fans
AFEW days ago Dave Hudge n s could h ave slipped through New York with the anonymity of a Queens substitute teacher. Perhaps, a diehard could point him out, but for the most part he was hiding in plain sight in the Mets dugout.
Now, the former hitting coach has turned into the Mets’ Deep Throat. He still might not be picked out of a crowd, but he is now an organizational insider who has put voice to the worst fears about this organization:
That it cares too much about the negativity in the stands. That it is cowed by hitting in Citi Field. That it is overly sensitive to the words of the media and even its own broadcasters. That it contin- ues to emit the perception ownership is more and more dictating policy to Sandy Alderson.
Hudgens was fired Monday and suddenly was doing an interview parade to make a Kardashian jealous, using his newfound exposure to explain all that ails these Mets. It would fit neatly into disgruntled employee territory — kind of Vex in the Citi. And Alderson — despite being a Hudgens loyalist — said, “I don’t think Dave has full information. He has information from the clubhouse and dugout, and that is a limited perspective.”
Nevertheless, the clubhouse and dugout a re vital incuba - tors of Met dissent, plus there is enough anecdotal information to suggest there is — at minimum — some fire to the smoke offered by Hudgens. After all, in the past few weeks, Curtis Granderson was quoted being critical of the booing of the home side at Citi Field. Multiple players and manager Terry Collins have been on the record that Citi’s dimensions are winning a battle of will and nerves against Mets hitters.
To cover the Mets is to know they overreact to what is in the media more than any other New York franchise — it was just four weeks ago, for example, that the players boycotted our beat writer because of a joke lead about Bartolo Colon’s weight.
And let’s put it this way: It is hard to f ind a baseball off icial outside this organization who does not believe a Wilpon or two is impacting day-to-day baseball decisions. For the record, Alderson said, both the firing of Hudgens and release of Jose Valverde were his decisions and his alone.
But you get the point. The Mets are distracted by bogeymen — or bogey places. If they really see
the enemy in the stands or in the dimensions or in the leads of Mike Puma or in the commentary of Keith Hernandez, then their priorities are skewed. Memo to the Mets: The enemies are the Braves, Nationals, etc. Worrying about anything else is, at best, a distraction, and, at worst, excuse making.
Nevertheless, Alderson f ired Hudgens mainly because the team could not hit at home. Yet when asked about that shortcoming, new hitting coach Lamar Johnson said, “I don’t know anything about that.”
Really? You don’t know why you were hired?
Of course, Johnson is not responsible for the real problem. Among those with 400 plate appearances for the Mets since Citi opened in 2009, the best OPS belong to Jose Reyes (.863), Carlos Beltran (.848) and David Wright (.839). In other words, put good players in the Mets lineup and they will hit here. Groundbreaking stuff, right?
Hudgens suggested if ownership didn’t financially hamstring Alderson, the GM would find the right players and construct a consistent winner. But Alderson continues to say that revenues will rise with attendance, which, like that silly loyalty oath earlier this season, puts the onus on the fans rather than where it should be — build it and they will come.
With this organization, it is too often about you or me or some bad apple no longer employed by this franchise. The Mets have this belief that, for example, the negative coverage has an ulterior motive beyond the reality, which is this: They have been a very bad team for six straight years now. How was the coverage in 2006, when the Mets had the best record in the NL?
I won’t speak for Hernandez or others, but for myself I will say the most enjoyable time to cover baseball in this town was 1998-2000 and 2006-08 when both teams were contenders, when there was a meaningful game in one of the stadiums every day. Selfishly, more newspapers are sold when both teams are good than when Citi Field becomes a ghost town after the All-Star break.
Too many Mets officials think this is personal, that they are targeted. But keep in mind the Yankees were lambasted in the media last year and they had 85 wins. The Mets would be hailed for 85 wins, such is the low bar under which they are operating.
That is why Hudgens’ 15 minutes of fame should be so distressing to all those who still care so deeply about this team. It was an insider going public with the worst fears — that the Mets are consumed with so much that has absolutely nothing to do with actually winning major league games.