Indeed, I once believed the New York Mets were a potential Cinderella team for the upcoming 2020 MLB season. Remember, they pushed things to the wire in 2019 under Mickey Callaway; almost in vein before being eliminated in the final days of the season from a Wildcard Spot.
Now, they were forced to divorce from new manager hire Carlos Beltran for his involvement in the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal. Per Anythony DiComo, the Mets have a replacement at manager as of Wednesday. His name is Luis Rojas, and former Mets minor leaguers say he’s the most approachable manager they have had in their lives. Still, I haven’t heard of the guy before; which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
BREAKING: The Mets are finalizing a multi-year deal to make Luis Rojas their next manager.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) January 22, 2020
This is what Mets general manager Brody Van Wagenen says about his new skipper:
“I think it’s the fit,” Van Wagenen told reporters. “It’s where the team is. I think it’s the culture we’re trying to create.”
Perhaps nice and quiet after all the Beltran hysteria is what the Mets need. Last season, Rojas was the first quality control coach in the team’s history. Now he steps atop the managerial post, and will try to lead a team that is ready to compete now to taking down a tough division.
It wouldn’t be the first time that a manager arrived with little fanfare out of relative obscurity and had some success. For instance, look what Aaron Boone has done across the same city.
Rojas certainly has the roster at the MLB level to do some damage. And that is what it will come down to – other than motivating them a little bit – at the end of the day it comes down to how the players perform. Maybe Rojas will end up a better fit for the culture in the Mets’ clubhouse like the general manager seems to infer.
