1. Omar Minaya said that after Monday he did not want to talk about Willie Randolph’s firing any more and really that is good, since he only sounds foolish and disingenuous when he does revisit his inelegant and indecisive handling of this decision. Every time he speaks on this subject he only sounds more foolish and disingenuous. Before Monday night’s game at Shea, he again tried to explain that he didn’t fire Randolph at 3 a.m., but did so at 11 p.m. in California. Hey, Omar, you are employed by the “New York” Mets. You are forever going on — whenever you need to establish your credentials — that you are a kid from “New York.” So understand this: Wherever you fire a man in the future — whether it is L.A. or Timbuktu — that the only time that really matters is New York time. And if you thought it was such an appropriate time to do the firing then why didn’t you just hold a press conference to explain it all then rather than the next day? Again, this has nothing to do with whether Randolph should have been fired. There certainly was enough evidence that a dismissal was necessary. But the Mets’ bungling suggested an organization that was poorly thought out or cruel or both. And that is not the message you want to send to the rest of the sport and your fan base.
2. Fred Wilpon came out of the witness protection program to say that he thinks Minaya is “doing a great job.” He also said that Randolph’s firing was justified. Minaya’s first decision as Mets’ GM was to hire Randolph. So whatever Randolph’s record was, Minaya’s record is. So how can one man deserved to be fired and the other be “doing a great job?”
3. The Yankees have received strong work in their transition of Joba Chamberlain from reliever to starter and — more surprisingly — how well Dan Giese has taken to the job, first in Triple-A and now in the majors, after a minor league career as a reliever. But maybe just this is the season for success in this area. Consider that Oakland’s Justin Duchscherer has gone from the pen to lead the AL in ERA (1.99) to go along with a 1.99 ERA. The Cubs’ Ryan Dempster, who served as a closer last year, is 9-2 with a 2.63 ERA, third best in the NL. Jorge Campillo has come out of the pen to help stabilize the Atlanta rotation by going 2-2 with a 3.26 ERA in seven starts. Seth McClung has done the same for the Brewers, going 4-2 with a 3.93 ERA in six start.
