On the Mets beat

Sure Willie deserves a contract extension with a raise...because it's hard to make ends meet on a paltry salary of almost $600,000...it certainly would take "its toll" on me !

Willie has done a very credible job these past two
years and he deserves to be paid a salary commensurate with his peers. Anything less will not reflect well on the
Wilpon management team.

Yes, Wilpon and Crew should open up their wallets for Willy.
The extension should be for 2 years, and for similar $$ that other winning managers get. Just don't go overboard and over pay or extent the contract for too long. Willy still needs to learn to smile when he wins, and be comfortable in front of the media.

We're cruising to the playoffs, having lapped the rest of the NL... so I shouldn't anwer this. But I will say that I continue to have problems with Willie's game management. Some of his moves would be harder to gloss over on a less talented team.

And my heart's not exactly bleeding that he's paying his own tolls.

Having said that, I have no problem with his being paid to industry standards. And I'm guessing that there's no way around giving him an extension. If, however, his moves start costing us playoff games, I reserve the right to scream bloody murder.

Listen, I could manage this team with this talent in this division. Stop giving the manager too much credit. Is Bobby Cox now a less intelligent manager than he was before?

I applaud the job the entire Mets organization has done. A team doesn't play .620 ball without the whole team pulling through. Willie is fantastic.

Willies a young manager getting off to a fairly good start. Granted, his team plays so well that it really makes him look as good as he probably is. He mixes his players well on the field,to rest them, now that he's so far out front. I'm sure considerations are already being made to give him a salary extension. It will probably hinge upon whether his team wins the pennant or not.

Met fan in Arizona

willie is a baffoon dumb dumb dumb. a real stupid manager couldn't spell cat if you gave him the c and the t

I think that alot of the criticism Willie gets for game management has some merit. However, managing is so much more than game mgmt. I think the winning attitude this team has starts with Willie. The never say die stance and the ability to come from behind also starts with Willie. This team has had its share of slumps and injuries and Willie has never panicked, nor has his team. I think he deserves an extension and a salary commensurate with his peers.

Of Course. Willie should get a nice contract soon. His amazin work and leadership is seen everyday but especially by the production of his bench both last year and this year. Willie gets all the credit in my book. In regards to the tolls, listen the man is getting paid over 1/2 a million a year, more than most of us. He gets comp'ed on the road and at Shea. He's fine.

Although I praised Willie in the above, If the man brings in Franco with Bases Loaded again I will blow a gasket.

willie is a bum pure and simple

Bob, you must be a Yankee fan who is sore that Willie is now a Met

Willie is a bum? Fact: Mets are on the verge of having the best record in baseball.
Fact: You are in idiot.

Somehow I don't think Bob (if that is your real name) appreciates the irony of ripping on Willie Randolph's mental acumen and spelling skills, all while spelling "buffoon" incorrectly.

"Bob" is not his real name, they just call him that because ITS SPELLED THE SAME WAY BACKWARDS AND FORWARDS FOR HIS DYSLEXIA PROBLEM!

The Mets are winning despite Willie. They have incredible talent and my 10-year-old could win managing them.

Willie has brought aggressiveness to the Mets and he handles the press pretty well.

However, the handling of the bullpen and his pitching strategies are abysmal, and will haunt the Mets as they enter the post-season.

That's when every decision will really count -- Willie's skills will come harshly under the magnifying glass. Then the country will see who exactly this guy is when he's without a 15.5 game lead in the standings.

I think the Mets can do better than Willie -- no question.

Willie deserves nice extension now.

I'd like the "game management" critics to cite specific examples. Earlier in the year
it was "Willie's overtaxing the bullpen" when no SP could go more than six innings and there were injuries. The self-described genius Tony LaRussa didn't look very smart when the Cards were swept last week.

As for attitude, the Mets have had one 4 game losing streak and that has been it. 80-49 reflects managerial acumen, talent or no talent.

Give the man a raise and a pre-paid EZ Pass.

You want a specific example? Fine. Game 3 of the Subway Series vs. the Yanks back in July. Soler was getting rocked early, and it was clear that the game was slipping away. Willie didn't even have anyone warming up until it was too late. He fiddled while Rome burned...and why? To allow Darren Oliver to start the next night vs. the Pirates - which didn't even happen.

Absolutely rediculous and inexcusible. I guess it pains him to see the boys in pinstripes lose, so he threw them a bone.

Again, the bullpen was being taxed and Willie made Soler take one for the team. Joe Morgan screamed about that move, but it was the right move in the long run. This isn't football; there are no undefeated teams and burning your bullpen to win one game
is stupid.

Geoff, you make a decent point but there is one thing that you ignore.
Life's rich rewards.......Alay Soler was barbequed on national TV, AFTER rain, after a delay, after he struggled hard. He is only a kid and I thought that was unfair. He didn't pitch last year at ALL and he seemed to hit a wall due to the lack of work.
Teams like the Twins never do that and it works for them. They can remain in contention developing good talent. Alay Soler was sent down a "shell shocked" young man who needs a therapist. That made me upset because he had 4 really great starts out of his 8. Just might be the one blemish this year.

Even in my post-Bklyn/LA Dodger fan days, when I hated the Yankees, I liked Willie because of his quiet professionalism. When one after another managing opportunity passed him by, he took it with grace. Obviously, SOMEONE was holding the right job for him. He's perfect for this team and I hope he and Reyes, Wright, Beltran & Company stay together for many years.

Bill I agree about wanting to see Willie, Reyes, Wright and Beltran together for a long time. I also think it is exciting to include Maine, Bannister and Pelfrey in the mix. We could have a dynamite rotation in the making.

In an age when managers get blamed for losing and fired unceromoniously, when a team wins, they should also be rewarded. Some of the above have blamed him for one loss that was televised nationally, but what about the 80 games we have won. You also havent mentioned that we have a league leading number of wins in one run games. Even though I "hate" the yankees, you have to admit that Joe Torre is one of the best managers in the game, and Willie learned from the best. He (Willie)deserves some of the credit of our successful team.

Mike Visosky!
can do a better job of managing the Mets than Willie can.
Go ahead Visosky, you show 'em.
Show 'em the power.