Alderson, succession planning and Selig retiring in 2012.

This is the article that I didn’t get the chance to write prior to Bud Selig re-assigning close confidant, Sandy Alderson to manage day-to-day operations with the NY METS!  Not sure where to start, but Sandy Alderson’s career has been well documented.  Sandy was the A’s GM and succeeded by “Mr. MoneyBall” Billy Beane.  The PED era became popular with the Bash Brothers (Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco) on his watch with the A’s.  I guess you could consider him the Godfather of Sabermetrics and mentoring Billy Beane.  After successful stints with the San Diego Padres as their CEO and Exec VP for Major League baseball addressing corruption in the Dominican Republic, you wondered why become a GM again. Especially, when you haven’t done it in 14 years. It’s definitely not because you missed the role, but a favor to Bud Selig, because a big market franchise was in a world of trouble.

Don’t think for one minute, Selig, the Wilpons and Uncle Saul Katz didn’t thoroughly discuss who would be the “chosen one” to guide the Mets through managing their books, slashing payroll, and  respected advisor and voice for the organization.  Enter his chief lieutenants and former GM’s Paul DePodesta (VP-Player Development and Scouting) and J.P. Ricciardi (Special Asst to the GM) to help with the front office duties.  Folks, any way you look at it – short term planning is Alderson cleans up the mess and long term solution is Paul DePodesta is the future GM of the Mets (as early as the end of 2012 season).  It’s a game of musical chairs – Bud Selig is planning to retire (at the young age of 78) at the close of the 2012 season, which will open his top spot for Alderson (always touted as future commissioner) and DePodesta (sabermetrics guru) slides into the Mets Exec VP/GM position.  I know – it sounds like a conspiracy theory, but all the critics commented that Alderson was over-qualified for the position.  The Madoff scandal and Trustee Irving Picard proposed settlement goes public and who else would you want in that hot seat – none other than Sandy Alderson.

This upcoming off-season, you can expect more from Team Alderson as they continue to clear the books, re-build the farm system and address Omar Minaya’s spend thrift habits during his reign as top banana.  I will admit Minaya has always been a great talent scout.  DePodesta (former Dodgers GM) currently has a great gig (VP, Player Development) which allows him totally to remotely re-work the organization (while still living in San Diego – where his family resides) as he prepares for his next assignment as General Manager.  If the DePodesta hiring doesn’t happen, then you can always fall back on J.P. Ricciardi (former Blue Jays GM), as he represents another able body and believer of Alderson’s way of doing business.

To simply put it – the Mets were too important to MLB and TOO BIG TO FAIL!  From the MLB 25MIL loans, to Citi Field construction, to Selig shutting down the Mets from wearing the 9/11 FDNY/NYPD caps on the 10^th anniversary.  A winning product in NY means too much, so now it’s time to right the ship.  The 2010/2011 Mets team share an almost identical record, but it wasn’t about making Minaya and former manager Jerry Manuel scapegoats, but they wouldn’t have been equipped to handle the storm and / or volume that was destined to face the organization.  So, what happened – Minaya and Manuel are still being compensated for sitting on the sidelines.  Talk about a NO-SHOW job.

This off-season, Team Alderson will continue to make some tough decisions, (IE: K-ROD salary dump, Betran trade) but the target is an 115MIL payroll, while addressing Jose Reyes as your catalyst for the organization for the next four to five years.  Johan Santana, Ike Davis and other will be returning from injuries, a strong young nucleus with David Wright, and slightly re-configuring Citi Field to jump start the (Jason Bay’s) offense.  Thank goodness, dancing with the stars with folks like David Einhorn, didn’t work out.  This organization requires all the help it can get and that’s the real reason some of the great baseball minds have gravitated toward New York.  Oh, how we think about 1986 and Bill Buckner, (please don’t Curb your Enthusiasm) GM Frank Cashen, Strawberry, Carter, Gooden and Hernandez.

The latest Madoff ruling is a step in the right direction for a team as the 1BIL bounty could ultimately be reduced to just 83MIL in profits made over the last two Madoff investment years.

Very interested to see if this turns out to be fact or fiction.