New York Mets were right to ‘get rid’ of Carlos Beltran

It only took three months before dark clouds and looming questions descended on the New York Mets front office. The Amazins suffered another black eye when they announced that they parted ways with new manager Carlos Beltran, a key figure in the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred’s report named former Houston bench coach and current Boston Red Sox skipper Alex Cora as well as New York Mets manager Carlos Beltran, who retired after playing in 2017 for the ‘Stros, as the duo who came up with a better plan to decode opponents signs and communicate them to their batters.

This is what Beltran had to say:

A year-long suspension was handed down to both Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and field manager AJ Hinch. Both of whom were subsequently fired by team owner Jim Crane. Before sanctions were imposed on Cora, Boston cut him loose, the second domino. New York Mets management deliberated for three days before they ultimately rendered their decision on Beltran’s fate.

I’ve gone back and forth on it, but Beltran deserved his pink slip, as he was the only player directly named by Manfred. However it is important to note since he retired, Beltran was no longer protected by the Player’s Association.

Beltran had the chance to clear his name when he spoke to Joel Sherman of the New York Post shortly after he was named the Mets 22nd manager in team history.

"“We took a lot of pride studying pitchers [on] the computer. That is the only technology that I use and understand,” he said. “It was fun seeing guys get to the ballpark to look for little details.“The game of baseball for years, guys have given location and if the catchers get lazy and the pitcher doesn’t cover the signs from second base [then] of course players are going to take advantage. I don’t call that cheating. I call that using small details to take advantage. I think baseball is doing a great job adding new technology to make sure the game is even for both teams. It’s easy to blame someone when they win.”"

This quote actually looks worse. Beltran didn’t directly say we stole signs, but if you read between the lines, he admitted to the allegations that were ultimately deemed to be true. Diving back into the report, Beltran who in my opinion had a Hall of Fame-worthy career is now labeled the worst seven letter word in all of sports… CHEATER.

EWB’s Andrew Elderbaum wrote, “Beltran is not just a cheater, but one of the leaders of the cheating,” I agree. How could the New York Mets be fine with a guy who devised a scheme to willingly and knowingly cheat to manage a playoff hungry team? They couldn’t. Secondly, the report brings into question Beltran’s morals and quite honestly his career.

Over the span of his 20-year Major League career, Beltran was .279 hitter with 2725 hits, 435 home runs. and 312 stolen bases. Among his many accolades include:

• 9 All-Star selections,
• 3 Gold Glove awards
• 2 Silver Slugger awards
• 1999 American League Rookie of the Year

While the cheating occurred during his last season, it’s still fair to ask how much of his stats are legit?

Sadly, it seemed like Beltran’s leadership was already paying dividends before the freshman skipper even before managed his first game. During his introductory press conference, relief pitcher Dellin Betances cited Beltran’s (his former teammate in the Bronx) involvement in the free-agent process.

"“As soon as he got the managerial job, I think he kind of pushed the name Dellin Betances, as far as management, so he definitely played a big part,” Betances said. “I got the chance to eat with him a couple times in the offseason, just to celebrate with him as a manager, celebrate his wife for her birthday and we spoke about different things. Always, one of the topics was, ‘We would love to have you. And I’ve told them all, the management, that we want you. So hopefully we get to have you.’ And now it happened.”"

In an offseason that started so promising, the Mets find themselves short a manager with less than a month to go before pitchers and catchers report.

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The Amazins should have hired Joe Girardi. But they can’t look at the past. It’s time for New York Mets fans to pack up their retro black Beltran #15 jersey and hide it in the deep depths of the closet, behind that ugly sweater.

Here are some of my favorite tweets from the Beltran fallout:

What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below or on social media.