Metropolis

From an article from the NYT about the 1990 Mets.

What if Gil Hodges were managing these Mets?

''I'm not sure a lot of stuff that happened to us in those years would apply now,'' Harrelson said. ''But I'm not saying his style wouldn't work. I've always thought his style was about 20 years ahead of his time.''

Hodges's time was too short. In 1972, two days before his 48th birthday, he died of a heart attack shortly before he would have begun his fifth season as the Mets' manager.

''Gil used a lot of psychology,'' Harrelson said. ''He would call you in for a one-on-one and get into your mind. Why you did certain things. Not to reprimand you, but to let you grow. He once told me, 'You're the strongest 147-pound ballplayer I ever saw.' He was just blowing my horn, but he made me feel like Charles Atlas.''

Husky and handsome, Hodges was really baseball's Charles Atlas, a quiet strongman whose size was silently intimidating.

''I was afraid of him; so was everybody else,'' Harrelson recalled. ''He knew who he had to coddle. He knew who he had to kick. If he were managing this team, I'm sure he would have confronted the guys who were saying things he wouldn't have liked.''

Joe Pignatano, the Mets' bullpen coach under Hodges, had a theory on how Hodges would deal with Darryl Strawberry's moods.

''Gil would just stare at Darryl; that would be enough,'' Pignatano said. ''I only heard Gil raise his voice once. The day after the Cleon Jones incident, he and Cleon were in his office with the door closed and we could hear Gil yelling, 'Look in that mirror and tell me if Cleon Jones is giving me 100 percent.' The way Cleon was yelling, I thought sure they were going to fight, but then the door opened and Cleon walked out.''

According to Tom Seaver, then the Mets' ace, several other players heard Gil Hodges raise his voice.

''I don't think there's any doubt there'd be more discipline on these Mets if Gil were the manager,'' Seaver said. ''His physical presence made you listen.''

Hodges's confrontation with Jones in 1969 occurred after the Mets' left fielder nonchalantly retrieved a two-base hit.

''Gil once told me that he was just going to the mound to take out the pitcher,'' recalled Frank Slocum, one of Hodges's best friends, then a National League executive and now the Baseball Alumni Team executive director. ''He told me he was walking with his head down and when he looked up, he realized he was almost at third base. He didn't want to turn back to the mound, so he kept walking. All he said to Cleon was, 'Are you hurt?' Cleon said, 'No.' Gil said, 'Come with me.' ''

Hodges had other problems with Jones, who once left the field during batting practice without telling any of the coaches.

''I was standing at the batting cage with Gil when he said, 'One of my chicks is missing,' '' Slocum said. ''He went inside and told Cleon, 'That'll cost you $1,000.' When Cleon said, 'That doesn't bother me,' Gil said: 'Now it's $2,000. Let me know when I get to a number that impresses you.' But after Gil died, I remember Cleon saying he never realized how much Gil had done for him until Gil was gone. The softer Gil spoke, the more threatening he was.''

Paulie Cee

The biggest thing I learned from this was that Cleon Jones was Darryl Strawberry, without the talent.

Bay Ridge Dave

I do think of what a guy like Hodges would have had to say to someone like Crappo, especially on not diving for any balls...

Paulie Cee

Well, it's not really not an answerable question. If Minaya is the GM, does he even hire a Gil Hodges? And then does Hodges assent to the trade for Delgado, a player whose attitude would be at least partially known to him?

Bay Ridge Dave

Maybe if Gil applied for the job as Gilberto Hodgez....

As I mentioned yesterday, M&MD made a great point about how Omar would prefer NOT to hire someone who could become "bigger" in terms of popularity with fans and the organization. Omar basically wants someone he can subject his bullsh!t (putting cronies on the roster, the errand boy having clubhouse access, for examples) to without resistance. Willie was the perfect choice in that sense. You think a Jim Leyland would allow this bullsh!t? Davey Johnson? Hell, even Torre?

We can say what we want about "Steamboat", and he should be fired. That Omar is going to get away with this virtually unscathed, is totally unfair.

KingOlerud

Omar's time will come.

Gregory Gewirtz

I'm not sure if I'm following this right. Is he saying that Hodges pulled Cleon Jones only because Hodges accidentally passed the pitcher's mound and he was trying to save face? Or is he saying that Hodges was so angry that even though he intended to just pull the pitcher he couldn't get Cleon's lack of hustle out of his mind, so he made a spur-of-the-moment decision on the field?

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Paulie Cee

It is and it pisses me off no end. As bad as the 'boat may be, this is Omar's mess, not his.