Mickey Callaway still in honeymoon phase compared to first-year peers
Mets manager Mickey Callaway walks back from the mound against the St. Louis Cardinals at Citi Field on March 31, 2018. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
With Aaron Boone getting roasted on the back pages in New York on Monday and Gabe Kapler getting absolutely phlogged in Philly, it’s a nice time to be Mickey Callaway.
The Mets’ new dugout boss is one of five first-time managers this season in Major League Baseball. Aside from some quizzical looks involving his second-day lineup, Callaway enjoyed a first series that was free of second-guessing, mostly because none of the games against the Cardinals was close or particularly exciting.
The Mets won on Opening Day, 9-4, and took a 6-2 decision in the next game. St. Louis won on Sunday, 5-1. No white-knucklers in the bunch.
Monday’s series opener against the Phillies was snowed out at Citi Field, so Callaway’s biggest decision was where and with whom to have lunch.
Once the game was postponed, Callaway did make the call to skip Seth Lugo during this turn through the rotation in favor of Noah Syndergaard. That decision could cause second-guessing only in the Lugo household. And even they probably understood.
Compare Callaway’s first series with that of Boone, who won his first two games in Toronto and then raised eyebrows Saturday when he asked Dellin Betances to pitch a second inning in a tie game. Betances allowed a home run and a steal of home and the Yankees lost, 5-3.
Those raised eyebrows hit the Rogers Centre roof Sunday when Boone ordered David Robertson to intentionally walk Josh Donaldson to get to Justin Smoak and then watched Smoak hit a go-ahead grand slam. The Yankees lost, 7-4, and returned to New York with a 2-2 record. Their home opener Monday was snowed out and will be played Tuesday afternoon.
About three hours later, Kapler will lead the 1-2 Phillies against the Mets at Citi Field. No new manager has faced as much fallout from his debut series as Kapler, who in three days did the following:
• Removed Opening Day starter Aaron Nola — who was pitching a shutout — after 5 1⁄3 innings and 68 pitches. The Phillies, who were leading 5-0, lost to the Braves, 8-5.
• Set a major-league record by using 15 pitchers in the Phillies’ first two games.
• Called in a reliever who had not thrown a warm-up pitch in the bullpen, which Kapler later blamed on a “miscommunication.” The reliever, Hoby Milner, was allowed to throw only five instead of eight warm-up pitches by umpires because Kapler tried to stall once he realized the blunder.
• Followed up his gaffe by saying he believes the Phillies are going to make the playoffs.
The good news for Kapler is that Villanova won the NCAA Tournament on Monday night and Philadelphia is still on a high after the Eagles’ Super Bowl victory.
Plus, Philadelphia fans are known for being warm and forgiving and probably will be very kind and positive when Kapler is introduced during the team’s home opener on Thursday.
And if you believe that last part, we’ve got a deed to the Ben Franklin Bridge to sell you.
Philly’s a tough town, and so is Boston, where new Red Sox manager Alex Cora won three of his first four games.
The best debut series by a rookie manager was by Washington’s Dave Martinez, who won all three games against the Reds.
Martinez and Callaway will match wits for the first time Thursday afternoon, when the Mets visit our nation’s capital for the Nationals’ home opener.
It’s waaaaaay too early to tell if Callaway’s cerebral approach will spur the Mets to great heights this season.
Callaway clearly is ready for the X’s and O’s of the job. But is he ready for the first true firestorm of second-guessing that inevitably will come his way?
Before his first Opening Day, Callaway said: “I’m humbled by what managers have to go through.”
Oh, he has no idea. Yet.
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
