Top News:
Associated Press:
Mets fire Randolph; Manuel to lead team in interim — ANAHEIM, Calif. — Willie Randolph is out as manager of the New York Mets, fired in the middle of the night 2½ months into a disappointing season that has followed the team's colossal collapse last September.
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Matthew Cerrone / MetsBlog.com:
Opinion: I Feel Dirty — As a Mets fan, I'm embarrassed this morning, and I feel a little dirty. — I understand why Willie Randolph was fired. In fact, due to the time I spend talking to people connected to the team, I am probably aware of why he was fired better than most people.
Anthony DiComo / MLB.com:
Mets name Manuel interim manager — Randolph, two coaches let go after win over Angels — ANAHEIM — What took months to develop and weeks to transpire has now become official. The Mets dismissed Willie Randolph and two coaches early Tuesday morning, bringing an abrupt end to the speculation that had enveloped the team all month.
Adam Rubin / NY Daily News:
Mets fire Willie Randolph — ANAHEIM - The Mets have fired manager Willie Randolph, pitching coach Rick Peterson and first base coach Tom Nieto, the team announced shortly after 3 a.m. Eastern time Tuesday. — Bench coach Jerry Manuel has been named the team's interim manager …
Ben Shpigel / New York Times:
Mets Fire Manager Willie Randolph — ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Mets announced early Tuesday morning that they have fired Willie Randolph and replaced him with the bench coach Jerry Manuel. They also fired two of Randolph's coaches, the pitching coach Rick Peterson and the first-base coach Tom Nieto …
Discussion:
Bats, SPORTSbyBROOKS, Deadspin, Baseball Time in Arlington, Faith and Fear in Flushing, Walkoff Walk and iYankees
Mike Vaccaro / New York Post:
MIDNIGHT MASSACRE AN AMAZIN' ACT OF COWARDICE — The e-mail was time-stamped 3:14 a.m., Eastern time. In a simpler time, in a different world, maybe the Mets would have succeeded completely in this cowardly purge of their baseball team. Maybe then they would have been able to hold off …
Discussion:
MetsBlog.com, New Jersey Online, Ketchup On Your Ice Cream, YFSF, Blastings! Thrilledge and NY Daily News
Jim Baumbach / Newsday:
Mets' handling of Willie cowardly — Cowards. — That's what the Mets upper management has become. Huge cowards who care more about appearance, public relations and their own personal reputations than the performance of their team. — Fire your manager via a mass e-mail to the media at 3:11 a.m.?
ESPN:
Randolph victim of Mets' circus — The personnel meetings the Mets hold are said by participants to run on for hours, the discussion often turning circular and pointless. And maybe that's when it starts to happen in their organization when they get to the point where the staff members …
William C. Rhoden / New York Times:
After Months of Wavering, Resolution — Hurry, hurry. Step right up. See the saddest show in town. — The stunning news came a little after midnight Pacific time: Willie Randolph, the Mets' 18th manager, had been fired. After months of guessing, of engineering winning streaks and losing streaks, the deed was finally done.
MLB.com:
Jerry Manuel named interim manager — ANAHEIM — The New York Mets today named Jerry Manuel interim manager, replacing Willie Randolph. Manuel, in his fourth season with the Mets, had been bench coach since 2006. The Mets also named Ken Oberkfell, Luis Aguayo and Dan Warthen to the coaching staff.
Anthony DiComo / MLB.com:Mets sign, seal, deliver win for Pelfrey
Discussion:
You can't script baseball
Will Leitch / Deadspin:Naked People Are Stridently Anti-Willie Randolph
Discussion:
The Biz of Baseball, Unfiltered, the metropolitans, Amazin' Avenue, ShysterBall, MetsBlog.com, EPIC CARNIVAL, New York Post, Lone Star Ball, Mets Geek and Hot Foot
Associated Press:
Hank Steinbrenner Blames N.L. Rules — The Yankees' loss of their ace, Chien-Ming Wang, for up to 10 weeks prompted the team co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner to chastise the National League for playing without a designated hitter. — “My only message is simple,” Steinbrenner said in Tampa …
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Anthony McCarron / NY Daily News:
A-Rod & Pete Rose are text pals! — Alex Rodriguez, needy superstar, wanted another baseball mentor. Pete Rose, hit king and pariah, needed a baseball outlet and a path to baseball legitimacy. Through the magic of text-messaging, the game's best active player and its all-time hit leader/controversy magnet have become e-confidantes.
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Joshua Robinson / New York Times:
A Knuckleballer Is Waiting to Rise — PAWTUCKET, R.I. — Six years after throwing his first knuckleball as a professional — the first of several to hit a batter in the head — Charlie Zink has come to terms with his rare and maddening skill. He accepts that all he can do is aim at his catcher's face mask …
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Willie Bans / MLB.com:
Cashman looks in-house to help staff — Yankees GM sees Giese as potential replacement for Wang — NEW YORK — Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said he will look within the organization to find a starter to replace injured right-hander Chien-Ming Wang.
Discussion:
Bombers Beat
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DMZ / U.S.S. Mariner:
Our pitch to Antonetti … I'd like to encourage you to interview for the Mariner job, if you're contacted. It's a great gig, one of the best in baseball, and here's why. — First, Seattle. It's a great place to live. And unlike, say, New York, no one is going to throw rotten vegetables …
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Mel Antonen / USA Today:
Phillies' Howard goes deep twice in blasting of Red Sox — PHILADELPHIA — Ryan Howard hit two home runs and then legged out a triple to lead the Philadelphia Phillies' 8-2 victory against the Boston Red Sox Monday at Citizens Bank Park. — Howard was coming off his best three-game series of the season …
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