Wally Backman has sights set on major-league job

It's only 23 miles from Citi Field to KeySpan Park. But now that Wally Backman is the new manager of the Class-A Brooklyn Cyclones, it's going to feel uncomfortably close for Jerry Manuel should things get sticky in Flushing next season.

Backman, a beloved Met from the '86 championship team, lasted only four days as manager of the Diamondbacks in November 2004, when he was fired because of two previously undisclosed arrests and serious financial issues.

The Mets kept steering the conversation Tuesday back to Brooklyn, where Backman was introduced, but he has his sights on the majors again, whether it is in New York or somewhere else.

"I'm starting over, absolutely," said Backman, who wore his World Series ring to the news conference. "But there's no bones about it that my ultimate goal is to manage in the major leagues someday again."

The Diamondbacks obviously believed that Backman was ready for a manager's job five years ago and the Mets even briefly considered him at that time after the firing of Art Howe. So it was no surprise to hear him say Tuesday that he could handle a major-league position right now.

"Do I think I have the knowledge to be successful?" Backman said. "Absolutely."

What Backman needed first was a second chance, and that's what the Mets offered him in Brooklyn. After spending the last three seasons managing in an independent league, a desperate Backman decided to dial up Jeff Wilpon last month for some advice.

As Backman explains it, Wilpon returned his call in five minutes, and the club's COO talked to him about returning to the Mets' organization - pending a background check, of course. Backman has been haunted by a 2001 misdemeanor harassment charge involving his wife and a DUI arrest in 1999, but the Mets are satisfied that he has put those incidents behind him.

With neither Wilpon nor Omar Minaya at yesterday's news conference, it was Dave Howard, the team's executive vice president of business operations, who handled the questions about Backman's legal issues. Howard said that Wilpon did his own "due diligence" investigating Backman before turning the final decision over to Minaya and his staff.

"There's been a substantial period of time and Wally's paid a very significant price for these issues," Howard said. "He's learned his lesson. I know that he's appreciative of the opportunity and we're confident he'll make the most of the opportunity."

Still, the Mets made sure to include a "zero-tolerance" clause into his contract that would end his employment for a recurrence of problems.

"Part of the discussion was, 'Hey Wally, we're giving you a shot, but you have to understand if there's any hiccup along the way, we would have the right to terminate the relationship,' ' Howard said. "He understood that, and he was more than happy with that because he's confident there's not going to be any issues."

Backman, 50, has crafted his managing style from playing under some of the great ones - Davey Johnson, Joe Torre, Jim Leyland and Lou Piniella. Perhaps his biggest asset, however, is a competitive fire that has never cooled since his days with the Mets.

"When I was in New York, we took winning and losing personally," Backman said. "I still do that. That might be why I'm still too high-strung at times."

Notes & quotes: The Mets lost Sandy Alomar Jr. to the Indians when their former catching instructor accepted a job to be the first-base coach under Manny Acta . . . The team also announced that Tim Teufel has been promoted to manager at Double-A Binghamton.