Terry Collins Steps Down as New York Mets Manager

Posted on October 1, 2017, by Bryan Zarpentine

Image via cbssports.com

After several days of speculation, Terry Collins is officially out as manager of the New York Mets. Following New York’s season finale against the Phillies on Sunday, Collins made it official. He will step down as manager after seven years and move into a role with the team’s front office.

“I wouldn’t say I’m resigning. I’m stepping down for sure,” Collins told reporters after Sunday’s game. “It’s been a blast. But it’s time.”

Collins was not under contract beyond this season. However, he spoke last week about his desire to remain with the team. The 68-year old baseball lifer has previously stated that he wants to continue working at least until age 70.

With Collins agreeing to move into a front office role, both sides appear to get what they want. Collins gets to stay in baseball and remain with the Mets. Meanwhile, the Mets are able to move on from Collins as manager, which appeared inevitable following a 92-loss season.

“This is a sour taste, there’s no question about it,” Collins said about ending his tenure with a losing season. “We certainly had bigger plans than what occurred. … right now, I think this is what’s best for the organization.”

With seven years on the job, Collins was the longest tenured manager in Mets history. He finishes his time with a record 551-583. He is second among Mets managers in wins. Collins spent much of his time as New York’s manager guiding the team through a long rebuilding process. But the Mets emerged out of that rebuild and went to the World Series in 2015. Collins then led the Mets to the Wild Card Game in 2016 despite a barrage of injuries. However, the Mets could not overcome the injuries that hit them this season.

“It was getting tough,” an emotional Collins said of the team’s injuries. “They kept falling down and so did I. That’s it.”

Mets GM Sandy Alderson said Collins approached him a few weeks ago about moving on from the manager’s after the season.

“We decided that it was not just in his best interest but the organization’s best interest. I agreed with him that this was a time for change,” explained Alderson. “From our standpoint, I think we’re at the end of a seven-year run. We need to make a change in direction.”

Collins’ time as Mets manager may be over, but Alderson said he was hopeful that Collins would remain with the organization in some capacity moving forward. The GM also expressed his gratitude for the job Collins did over the last seven years.

“He took us from a situation where there were real questions about the organization, the team, and took us to the apex of the World Series,” Alderson said. “I think Terry had a great run. It took us a while to get there. But we kept at it, he kept at it.”

With Collins out, where the Mets go for their new manager is anybody’s guess. Several names have already emerged, including current hitting coach Kevin Long, as well as former coaches Bob Geren and Chip Hale. However, there will likely be a long list of candidates considered, with a decision likely several weeks away. Alderson himself is at the end of his contract, although he remains confident that he will stay with the team and lead the search for a new Mets manager.