An interesting point was made by Ken Davidoff, and echoed by James Kannengieser at Amazin Avenue, about Jerry Manuel getting a pass from the media.

Kannengieser writes:

This is the column the mainstream media has resisted writing. Per Davidoff:

Contemplate whether you’re giving your team its optimal chance to win with Manuel running the clubhouse, writing out the lineup card and making in-game, on-the-fly decisions.

For based on what we’ve seen for the past baseball season and a half, I’m not sure how you come up with “Yes” as the answers to those questions.

This isn’t a fun column to write, because we media folk are mostly human, and Jerry Manuel comes off as an eminently likable man.

Davidoff recognizes that Manuel’s strong relationship with the media has earned him some goodwill. Imagine if Manuel had the personality of Joe Girardi or Willie Randolph. He would be the target of daily tabloid headlines calling for his head. A good read, click through for the full version.

I have to say “guilty as charged” about giving Manuel the benefit of the doubt. Handling the media is an important part of the job here in New York. It’s something that Willie Randolph was terrible at during his tenure. I believe you can understand how a manager deals with people from how they interact with the media. Managing personalities was not a strength of Randolph and that clearly came out in his press conferences. Individuals can only hide who they are for short periods of time. Over the course of 162 postgame interviews you will eventually see the true side of the person. Jerry has shown to be quite charming, but not consistent with his message. More importantly, he has been less than impressive with his in game management.

I gave Jerry Manuel the benefit of the doubt because of how he took over mess in 2008 and nearly brought the team into the playoffs. This was with suspect corner outfielders and a porous pen. I believe that he was using the media as a tool to challenge and motivate his players. One of his first acts as manager was to put a petulant Jose Reyes in his place. The “anti-Randolph” worked last season, but 2009 has shown us the real Jerry Manuel. Just like performance on the field, he regressed to his mean.

Jerry has shown an inability to think on his feet during the game. He never established consistent roles with this year’s bullpen and has overused individuals at various points of the season (see Pedro Feliciano). He tends to fall in love with players, and out of favor with others. The way he handled Ryan Church was an abomination. The injuries were something that no manager could overcome, but was it smart to say in early June how the team wasn’t good enough to win? Manuel basically gave them a pass on the season and the players took it. I am not saying it wasn’t true, but it’s not the best way to maximize whatever talent you have left. All along I trusted Manuel because I figured he had a plan to achieve an end result. Obviously I was wrong.

I was told that Jerry Manuel wouldn’t come out of his office by the end of his Chicago tenure. Basically he stopped communicating with the team. He is not at that point yet with the Mets, but you have to ask what the upside is with Manuel. I have to say that Kannengieser is spot on when saying that “Joe Girardi and Willie Randolph wouldn’t get the same pass.” As I said earlier this week it’s time to cut the cord and move on in 2010. Hopefully those that cover the team see the same thing and don’t allow the affable Manuel to cloud their judgment.

Tags: Jerry Manuel, New York Mets