The Mets made Omar Minaya’s return official yesterday, but Jerry Manuel figures to take a little longer.
The club formally announced the expected – and somewhat controversial – decision to retain Minaya as GM at least through the 2012 season, with team options for 2013 and 2014. The initial three-year extension is worth nearly $4 million.
But Minaya admitted talks are going slowly with Manuel on lifting the interim tag as manager. The Mets have offered the popular skipper a two-year contract worth roughly $2 million, but he has yet to sign it. Minaya said the Mets, at least for the moment, don’t have anyone other than Manuel in mind as manager and remain optimistic the two sides will come to terms.
Although the Mets fell short on the final day for the second year in a row, Manuel got high marks from everyone involved for producing a 55-38 record (.591) and second-half turnaround after taking over June 17 after the firing of Willie Randolph.
“Right now, we’re focusing on hopefully getting Jerry on board,” Minaya said in a conference call. “We’ll continue to work with that. My hope is that we’re able to get that done.”
Manuel was not available for comment, but Minaya seemed confident a deal would get done.
“We’ll see how it ends up, but I always think of good things and good endings,” Minaya said.
Manuel does not have a contract for next season, and the contracts of all of his coaches expire at the end of this month. Minaya indicated there could be changes in the coaching staff in 2009 because Manuel will get to pick his aides.
“My policy is that the manager and general manager get together and select the coaches, but the reality is, the manager picks his staff,” Minaya said.
Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon defended the decision to retain Minaya in the face of consecutive September collapses and final-day eliminations. Minaya, who took over as GM in 2005, has come under fan fire for several of his personnel moves the past two seasons and for the Mets’ inability to reach the playoffs this year despite a franchise-record $143 million payroll.
The Mets are 357-291 (.551) with just one postseason appearance in Minaya’s tenure, but the team pointed to record ticket sales and greatly improved TV ratings under Minaya’s watch for bringing him back.
“Omar’s our guy,” said Wilpon, owner Fred Wilpon’s son. “We believe in Omar and we believe that he has a plan that he wants to take forward and get us to where we need to be.”
Jeff Wilpon, though, admitted he and his father consider the repeated collapses unacceptable and said the failures already have prompted several “candid” meetings with Minaya and his staff this week. One outcome of those meetings was the decision to pick up first baseman Carlos Delgado’s 2009 option at a cost of $12 million.
“After some intense review this offseason, we’re going to find out why we fell short the last two seasons,” Jeff Wilpon said. “It’s up to Omar and his staff to correct that.”
Asked how that review might end up being reflected in the Mets’ roster next season, Jeff Wilpon was blunt.
“There might be some addition by subtraction,” he said.