The New York Mets have fired manager Mickey Callaway, the team announced on Thursday morning:
BREAKING: The Mets have fired manager Mickey Callaway.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) October 3, 2019
Callaway went 163-161 in two years at the helm in New York. Although the Mets went 46-26 in the second half and finished the 2019 season with 86 wins, Callaway has been repeatedly criticized for his questionable bullpen management and overuse with respect to his starting pitchers.
The former pitcher also had to answer for an ugly media incident where both he and former Mets starter Jason Vargas confronted Newsday reporter Tim Healey following a loss to the Chicago Cubs in June.
Though the Mets certainly improved under Callaway following a 2017 where they won 70 games under Terry Collins, his unabashed and blunt nature often got him into trouble. Strategically, he often came across as a novice during press conferences, and his analytical insight never seemed to support some of the decisions that he made as manager.
New York will certainly be one of the more attractive jobs on the market. Rookie Pete Alonso and utility man Jeff McNeil had massive seasons, and the Mets still possess one of the most talented rotations in all of baseball (though they could lose Zack Wheeler in free agency).
There have been a number of names that have been floated around in terms of the likely candidates to succeed Callaway, and general manager Brodie Van Wagenen said that the team is likely to explore a number of options.
One such person of interest could be former Cubs manager Joe Maddon, who has experience in nurturing young talent. Another is Carlos Beltran, who played seven seasons with the Mets.
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