It is all pretty much scripted; I will not bore you to show how similar what Eppler said Friday was to what he offered upon taking the Angels job; just know it was. .
What follows the wedding, though, is the ad-lib portion of the program, and Eppler was not good at it with the Angels.The Mets — from executive to executive and owner to owner — have failed as well.
Said one rival executive: “Billy is a good baseball guy who was in a no-win situation [with the Angels].” .
When the Mets officially announced Eppler’s hiring in a release Thursday evening, team president Sandy Alderson’s canned quote began, “Over the past two decades Billy has been a scout and an assistant GM.” Noticeably lacking was Eppler’s time with the Angels.Alderson said this was “not a linear” search and that Eppler was the only one who was offered a contract
If Billy Beane, Theo Epstein or David Stearns expressed interest and/or were available, the Mets would have made an offer.
But this too does not mean Eppler can’t do the jobCan Eppler be the leading man of a baseball department, or does he have those skills but really is best suited to be a lieutenant, like he was successfully for Yankees GM Brian Cashman?
If he does so, then the Mets will have an orderly, successful search for a manager and coaching staff