The New York Mets just crashed out completely to miss the playoffs, but it apparently will not cost their manager Carlos Mendoza his job.
New York has no plans of firing Mendoza in spite of their disastrous failure to qualify for the postseason, Andy Martino of SportsNet New York reported on Sunday. Martino does note though that widespread changes may potentially be coming to Mendoza’s coaching staff.
The Mets were officially eliminated from the playoffs in Game No. 162 on Sunday with a 4-0 loss to the Miami Marlins. They were 76-65 on Sept. 5 but went a brutal 7-14 to close out the MLB regular season. As a result, the Cincinnati Reds, who were a sub-.500 team as late as Sept. 16, leapfrogged them and took the third and final NL Wild Card spot instead.
Expectations were very high for the Mets this season, especially after they signed Juan Soto to a record-breaking $765 million contract last December. With other handsomely-paid stars on the roster as well, including Francisco Lindor, Edwin Diaz, and Pete Alonso, the Mets had the second-highest payroll in Major League Baseball this year and should have been a lock to make the postseason.
As for Mendoza, 45, he took over for the Mets before the 2024 season, leading the team to an 89-73 record that year and a run to the NLCS. This season was obviously much more disappointing though and has led to questions about the long-term tenability of having Mendoza in charge.
But the Mets did have some other whiffs this year that reflected more so on the front office than on Mendoza. Thus, it sounds like Mendoza, who initially signed a three-year contract along with a club option for Year 4, has a little bit more wiggle room to work with here.
