Wide GM search to narrow list of candidates soon
THE METS’ rough timeline for naming a general-manager successor to Sandy Alderson is to have a list of roughly 10-12 candidates by the end of this month, then pare that further to perhaps a half-dozen to be interviewed and have someone in place before the Nov. 4-8 GM meetings.
At the moment, you can believe the Mets are searching wide to make sure they unearth and consider every viable candidate. Or you can believe a dysfunctional group is casting about in multiple directions without a clear vision of what they want in the job or a disciplined way to find that person.
As of Tuesday, the Mets had yet to ask for permission to speak to a candidate as they wait until closer to the end of the season to set up formal talks, since the majority — if not all — of their current possibilities are under contract and working, some for contenders.
Both Fred Wilpon and Jeff Wilpon are assembling lists or pushing forward favorites and — at the very least — so is Omar Minaya, who is currently serving as part of the threeperson interim unit that replaced Alderson. Those close to Minaya insist he does not want the GM job, but it is clear whoever does get the position is going to inherit Minaya as an executive with — at the very least — significant say in player personnel, and someone who has the ear and trust of ownership.
Within that lies some of the hurdles with the ongoing search. There are executives who might be enticed to be part of the process, but are concerned about the current dynamics within the Mets — such as inheriting Minaya in a position of authority, plus perhaps the other two members of the current leadership, John Ricco and J.P. Ricciardi.
Cubs GM Jed Hoyer, Indians GM Mike Chernoff and Brewers GM David Stearns all have had buzz around them, but there are questions whether any would leave good situations. Of the group, perhaps Stearns — from New York and in his early professional years a Mets front-office employee — would be most interested, but there is strong belief Brewers owner Mark Attanasio would not let him out of his contract to pursue the opportunity.
Blue Jays president and CEO Mark Shapiro was mentioned by multiple executives as a potential candidate, coming as president of baseball operations and in one scenario bringing fellow Toronto executive and former Red Sox GM Ben Cherington to be the GM. Last month, powerful Canadian radio host Bob McGowan reported tension existed between Shapiro and his bosses at Rogers Communications. Blue Jays chairman Edward Rogers tweeted that he was “very con- fident with the leadership and vision for the future” with Shapiro.
Shapiro has two years remaining on a contract that pays him about $4 million annually, and multiple executives said they believe enough tension exists between Shapiro and his bosses that he could want to find the exit. But a few officials thought it was unlikely because Mets ownership might not want to pay what was necessary to land someone with Shapiro’s credentials and/or does not want to put someone with Shapiro’s credentials in place and potentially fully cede day-to-day operating power of baseball operations.
As for Cherington, he probably was mentioned by more executives than any other candidate. But the Orioles job also could come open, as could that of the Giants, and Cherington very likely would be in play in either situation. Cherington’s home base is Connecticut and, thus, the New York area would have appeal, but as a friend of his told me, “He worked for difficult people in Boston, and I think who he works for is more important than where he works, and he won’t take the GM job just to be a GM without strong assurances about how things will be run.”
Cherington has drawn a lot of attention because of the belief a compromise candidate will have to be found between Fred Wilpon’s desire to bring in a hire from a more traditional player development background and Jeff Wilpon’s belief the Mets need to keep pace with what is going on in the analytic world.
Cherington, Royals assistant GM Scott Sharp, Diamondbacks assistant GM Jared Porter and Dodgers vice president of baseball operations Josh Byrnes are seen more in the compromise arena. As with Shapiro, Minaya is known to have a strong relationship with Byrnes. Byrnes was the runner-up to Alderson the last time the Mets hired for this job, and a few people close to him believe he is less interested in the position this time around.
It remains possible, though, that Fred Wilpon could be insistent on a candidate who fits his desires, and he is known to be fond of Cardinals director of player development Gary Larocque. Rays special assistant Bobby Heck, Blue Jays assistant GM Tony LaCava and Brewers assistant GM Ray Montgomery also fall in the more traditional mode.
If the Mets end up with a more analytically inclined candidate, Astros assistant GM Mike Elias and Brewers assistant GM Matt Arnold were both mentioned by executives.
But like with this whole search right now, there are a lot of names floating about because the Mets are in such wide hunting-and-gathering mode. So, for example, many scouts have lost jobs in recent years as the game has pushed more toward analytics, and I sense any time veteran scouts get even a hint that one of their own has a shot at a job, they are inflating the candidacy. Thus, there was a lot of buzz at one point on Heck and LaCava that I have not seen validated by true Mets interest.
Over the next few weeks, however, the Mets will have to pare their list, and we will gain a better view of what they truly value. joel.sherman@nypost.com