Backman is Managerial Version of #1 Draft Pick
By Mike Silva ~ November 17th, 2009. Filed under: Mets Minors.
Today the Mets will finally announce that Wally Backman will be the manager of the Brooklyn Cyclones. This marks a new beginning for the former Mets second baseman that saw him get hired, fired, land in obscurity, and then spend three years managing independent baseball. Some in the media will focus on his past transgressions, but even the harshest critics know that Wally is a quality baseball man. After talking to John Fitzgerald of Playing for Peanuts, hearing former players, and speaking to Wally I have full confidence the Mets have a rising managerial star in the organization. That is why it’s my belief, and this is just my opinion, that Wally Backman will manage the Mets someday.
In 2008 I said that Wally Backman is the managerial version of a #1 draft pick. Former players such as Carlos Quentin, Conor Jackson, Aaron Rowand, and Dan Uggla all were impacted by Backman’s work with them in the minors. When I spoke to some of his South Georgia players they raved about how he is one of the few managers that knows how to maximize a solid working relationship in the clubhouse and maximize talents on the field. It’s often either the former or the latter. The aforementioned John Fitzgerald, who spent the summer of 2007 with Wally, told me “he could make any team compete for a playoff spot- even the Kansas City Royals.”
If the question about Backman’s managerial aspirations is brought up today don’t expect him to talk about the Mets job. Backman has too much class and respect for the organization to go down the route a former teammate of his once did. There will be sanctimonious critics of the move who want to indefinitely punish the man for personal transgressions that happened a decade ago. It amazes me how dubious managerial candidates such as Jeff Torborg, Don Baylor, and Art Howe could have multiple jobs on their resume but Backman is still explaining himself. That’s fine because I will put my money where my mouth is and say he will prove the critics wrong. It may not be in 2010, or even in the very near term, but Wally Backman will become the rising managerial star of the organization and lead the Mets one day. When that comes to fruition it will be a new era of Mets baseball that will make all the fans very proud.
To hear me talk with Wally Backman about his career in NY, managerial style, and journey back from the independent league in 2008 you can download the interview here. Just an FYI this is an old recording so you might have to contend with some minor quality issues.
