Philadelphians loathe the New York Mets, and the same holds true for the Mets ownership. You read that correctly, the Mets are feuding in-house, and it’s led by owner Fred Wilpon.
Wilpon took parting shots at his own club in a recent article in “The New Yorker”, throwing guys like Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes, and even David Wright, under the bus. It’s been a trying time for Wilpon as he deals with the ongoing lawsuits stemming from the Bernie Madoff ponzi scheme. Wilpon is being sued for $1 billion by Irving H. Picard, the trustee for the victims of Madoff’s fraud.
The latest quotes from The New Yorker seem like a Steinbrenneresque bitchslap on his own – perhaps as a way to push them, but also as a way to voice his displeasure with an underachieving club. *If you want to learn why Madoff is in hot water with the trustee for the Madoff victims, the article in the New Yorker talks about it.
It was once thought that the Phillies/Mets rivalry would become one of the best in baseball, especially a few seasons ago when the Mets were still a near playoff club, while the Phillies were burgeoning into a major player.That never really occurred as the Mets plummeted into baseball hell, while the Phillies became an annual contender. A sad day for Mets fans everywhere, although you won’t hear Phillies fans complaining. They’ve seen enough of this during the Phillies 128 years in existence.
Here are some of the quotes:
On Jose Reyes, the often-injured shortstop with an expiring contract: “He thinks he’s going to get Carl Crawford money (7 years/$142 MM). He’s had everything wrong with him. He won’t get it.”
On David Wright, the centerpiece third baseman: “A really good kid. A very good player. Not a superstar.”
On Carlos Beltran, who starred for Houston in the 2004 playoffs before signing a seven-year, $119 million deal with the Mets: We had some dummy in New York, Wilpon says, referring to himself, “who paid him based on that one series. He’s 65 to 70 percent of what he was.”
