Many of you know that Stamos is a Mets fan. His dad’s family grew up in Roslyn, NY as Mets fans, and it was bestowed upon him at a young age. Then, his step-brother’s father played in the Mets minor league system, so he had a partner in crime amongst all these Bravos supporters in North Cackalack. And, as with most teams that Stamos backs (NC State everything), those teams stink- which had been the case with the Mets for a number of years following their 1986 title run. However, they are now in a position where they have the 3rd highest payroll in baseball. They’ve got 4 bonified (yes- we know it’s bona fide, but you can’t argue that bonified looks good) All-Stars in Reyes, Wright, Beltran, and Santana, and a slew of high level role players. Yet, they somehow find themselves 3 games under .500 on the season and fighting for air in last place in the NL East. And, last weekend, they decided to keep their manager around…
What exactly does a manager do in baseball? In basketball you know the coach is calling plays from the sidelines and is trying to exploit matchups. In football they call almost every formation and play based on what they learned in film study. In baseball? They decide when to pull the starter for the bullpen, and occasionally put in a right handed pinch hitter if the other skipper puts a southpaw on the mound. Maybe get sexy and call a squeeze bunt or something. But, for the most part, the game of baseball is played by the guys between the stripes. So what seperates a good baseball manager from a bad one? How about the ability to manage a clubhouse? To motivate talent to meet or exceed expectations? How about not be 4 games under .500 in your last 162? How about do friggin anything? 
Have you ever seen Willie Randolph in the dugout during a Mets game? Just hanging out. Even yesterday, after the weekend meeting with the Wilpons saving his job for at least another series, when he found himself on the business end of a beating at the hands of the $20MM payroll Marlins, he was stoic. And now you’ve got Mets hero and HOFer Gary Carter openly campaigning for the job. Omar Minaya, the Mets’ GM, was quoted as saying “I think we have championship talent. There’s a difference between championship talent and a championship team.” My difference has a first name, it’s W-I-L-L-I-E. My difference has a second name it’s R-A-N-D-O-L-P-H…
