To say that 2021 has been a terrible year to be a baseball operations executive for the New York Mets would be an understatement.
Most recently, acting general manager Zack Scott was found asleep at the wheel of his vehicle and declined to take a breathalyzer, according to the police in White Plains, N.Y.
The Mets decided to place him on administrative leave, as the GM pleaded not guilty on his drunken-driving charge.
Scott was reportedly arrested at 4:17 am on Tuesday.
The Mets said:
We were surprised and deeply disappointed to learn this morning about an alleged DUI involving Zack Scott. We take this matter very seriously. Zack will not be traveling with the team for our upcoming road trip while we learn more and determine next steps.
— New York Mets (@Mets) September 1, 2021
A Turbulent Season For Mets Executives
Sandy Alderson, a respected executive around the league who is the Mets’ president of baseball operations, will take over GM duties.
Earlier in the year, the Mets had to deal with another scandal, this time of bigger proportions.
In mid-January, it was revealed that Jared Porter, the man they hired on December 13, 2020 to be their general manager, had sent more than 60 unsolicited text messages to a female journalist, including inappropriate pictures of sexual nature.
The Mets fired him the morning after, after a little over a month of being in charge as the GM.
The league banned Porter through the 2022 season for the incident.
Alderson has had to deal with all this, and then some, if you include former Mets manager Mickey Callaway’s case.
I think it’s fair to question his decision making when you look at the hirings of Mickey Callaway, Jared Porter, Zack Scott, & almost signing Trevor Bauer. #Mets https://t.co/kpcBF4QCfL
— Mathew Brownstein (@MBrownstein89) September 1, 2021
In February, The Athletic released an article detailing multiple allegations against Callaway’s “lewd behavior”, including sending inappropriate photographs.
He did it for five years and during stints with three teams, including the Mets.
Add this to the Mets’ disappointing season, in which they currently do not hold a playoff spot, and to the current rift between players and fans over constant booing, and you have a recipe for disaster.
It’s very, very hard to have a successful season if there are so many off-the-field distractions around the franchise.
A successful organization that wants to play for the grand prize should have capable executives who lead by example.
Poor Judgment
In the Mets’ case, they have shown over the years that they are hiring bright people with great baseball minds, in Porter and Scott’s case.
However, their behavior off the field is less than ideal and fails to set a good example for staffers and players.
As for Scott, the New York Times has some more details about his arrest:
“The night of his arrest, Scott had been at the Greenwich, Conn., home of Mets owner Steven Cohen, who was hosting a fund-raiser for the team’s charity during which players and team officials were in attendance. The event, according to a team official, was done by 9 p.m. Scott, according to authorities, was found asleep at the wheel elsewhere many hours later.”
He could have seriously hurt himself.
On the night of New York Mets GM Zack Scott was arrested for allegedly driving drunk, he was at the Connecticut home of team owner Steve Cohen, sources tell ESPN. A fundraiser for the team's Amazin' Mets Foundation was being held at the house, and Scott and players were there.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) September 1, 2021
Scott was promoted to general manager during the season, in place of Porter, after he was dismissed.
His arrest was yet another stain on the Mets’ 2021 season, one that has been turbulent from almost every possible point of view.
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