NO ONE'S SAFE!
Wilpon says Mets’ next GM will have full power to fix team
The theme of Jeff Wilpon’s session with reporters Sunday — his first extensive public comments about the Mets since last winter — was the new general manager will decide the organization’s course.
To that end, the Mets COO said he and assistant GM John Ricco will begin contacting candidates this week to arrange initial interviews. Ricco and special assistants Omar Minaya and J.P. Ricciardi have led the front office since late June, when GM Sandy Alderson stepped aside to battle his recurring cancer. Wilpon said he and Ricco will conduct the first round of interviews.
It’s clear to Wilpon the Mets, who finished 77-85 and fourth in the NL East, need better players.
“I think the effort was there, but I don’t think we got out from them what we should have gotten out,” Wilpon said. “Even though the effort was there, the talent wasn’t, and that is something the new GM is going to have to work on.”
Wilpon said “nontraditional” candidates will be considered for the job. Another issue is whether the Mets should hire a more old-school GM, one well-versed in analytics or something in between.
Though Wilpon ruled out the possibility Ricco, Minaya or Ricciardi would be promoted to full-time GM, he said the triumvirate still could lead the organization into the offseason, if a new hire isn’t in place when MLB’s general manager’s meetings begin on Nov. 5. The winter meetings are the following month.
But Wilpon insisted the new GM will have the power to replace Ricco, Minaya and Ricciardi.
“They are not here no matter what and I have spoken to all three of them and they understand that with somebody new coming in, they might fit into that mix and they might not fit into that mix,” Wilpon said. “They are part of the failure we had this year, the same as I am, and the rest of the front office. It’s only fair to give somebody coming in an open book to bring in who they want.”
Wilpon said the same holds true for manager Mickey Callaway, who has two years remaining on his contract. Wilpon added he hopes the new GM retains Callaway, Ricco, Ricciardi and Minaya.
The team’s payroll is always an issue. Wilpon was asked if the organization’s reluctance to chase higher end free agents in recent years was his decision or Alderson’s recommendation.
“I think it was a total recommendation,” Wilpon said.
The Mets began the season with a payroll in the $150 million neighborhood. Already, they are locked in for a projected $140 million for 2019, which includes raises to arbitration eligible players and those with backloaded contracts.
“We have always set a goal in terms of what the payroll is going to be,” Wilpon said. “It always starts out at a number and we always exceed that number. I can’t give you an exact answer on [the number], but when we have a new GM in place, we will have a plan that we will come back here with and lay that out.”
Wilpon declined to elaborate on the insurance policies the Mets hold on David Wright and Yoenis Cespedes. The Mets are expected to reach an insurance settlement on the $27 million remaining on Wright’s contract and release the third baseman, who played his final game on Saturday. The Mets also hold an insurance policy on Cespedes, but it’s unclear if the calcifications in his heels qualify as a pre-existing condition that might preclude the team from recouping a portion of his salary.
Wilpon termed the season a disappointment.
“I can promise you ownership is very disappointed,” he said. “The front office is disappointed and I think the players are disappointed. The staff is disappointed on the way this all came out on what we did and didn’t produce this year. I think there is a lot more in the tank for these guys.”