In the end, the Mets’ decision was never about whether Jorge López said “team” or “teammate.”
The aftermath of López’s comments Wednesday was full of confusion regarding what the reliever actually said. Some heard it as López deriding the Mets as “the worst team in the whole [expletive] MLB.” Others believed López was calling himself “the worst teammate in the whole [expletive] MLB.” López, in multiple Instagram posts, later clarified that it was “teammate.”
The fiasco distracted from the reasons why the Mets designated López for assignment: He threw his glove into the stands, was dishonest about meeting with management after the incident, swore multiple times in front of a television camera and, given ample opportunity, offered no remorse until finally apologizing in a statement nearly 24 hours later.
“Obviously, we have standards here,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Behaviors like that, we weren’t going to tolerate that. … When you’re not playing well, guys will show emotions. There’s frustrations. But there’s a fine line. [He] went over that line.”
To be clear: DFA’ing López will not fix the Mets’ problems, which still very much exist. Moreover, López’s reputation around the game is solid; by all accounts, this was simply a case of someone having a bad day at the office, making a mistake and paying for it with his job. Given his skills and repute, he’s likely to find another one.
The decision to part ways with López was, however, an effort by Mets officials to set a higher standard in Flushing. One of the team’s leaders, Francisco Lindor, felt that same sort of desire, choosing late Wednesday as a time to gather everyone together for a players-only meeting. Lots of Mets spoke up behind those closed doors, offering opinions on why things have gone so wrong, so fast, as well as thoughts on what must change.
Yes, it may already be too late for the Mets, whose playoff chances are dim. But maybe it’s not. When J.D. Martinez hit a go-ahead homer in the eighth inning Thursday against the Diamondbacks, it provided a much-needed bit of positive energy at Citi Field.
Part of the reason why the Mets designated López for assignment, Mendoza said, was because he wanted to send a message that such behaviors are unacceptable for a team with higher aspirations. As far as the calendar goes, he and others believe there’s still enough time for change.
Or, as reliever Adam Ottavino put it Wednesday: “We stink right now. That doesn’t mean we’re going to stink going forward.”