While we bask in the glow of R.A. Dickey‘s Cy Young Award win — and get in your celebration quickly, because who knows how much longer he’ll be a Met — I’d like to discuss the Manager of the Year Awards, which kind of flew under the radar while we waited for the “more important” awards.

If the people voicing their opinion on the internets (via polls, blogs, blog comments, twitter, facebook, etc.) are any indication, then the majority of Mets fans would like to see Wally Backman installed as manager of the New York Mets in 2011. It would seem that the fans’ second choice is Chip Hale — again, this based on an unreliable, cursory review of the interweb digital super highway.

However there seems to be a universal backlash against the possibility of either Bob Melvin or Terry Collins getting the job.

For those Mets fans concerned that Bob Melvin has no spunk, herewith is a pair of incidents showing that he can be quite stern and vehement in disagreements with umpire’s calls.

In case you missed it, this is Bob Melvin answering questions after his second interview with the Mets brass.

If there was going to be a movie made about Bob Melvin’s life, I think I would pick Edward Norton to play him. Right? That’s a compliment, by the way; Norton is one of my favorite actors.

I had absolutely, positively, nothing to do with this … I didn’t even cast one vote. From MetsBlog:

And then there were four …

The Mets have reportedly settled on four final candidates for the position of 2011 field manager, as Chip Hale, Wally Backman, Bob Melvin, and Terry Collins have alll been informed that they will receive a second interview.

Which one do you prefer, and why?

Let’s go through the candidates one by one …

According to the REAL Sandy Alderson on Twitter, the first two candidates to be interviewed for manager of the 2011 Mets are Bob Melvin and Dave Jauss.

Excuse me if my heart rate drops rather than races at the hearing of this news; I’m human, after all.

Remarkably, I have not been invited to participate in the evaluation proceedings — so I won’t have the benefit of the interview process. But, I’ll provide my analysis as best I can with the facts available to me.

Melvin, of course, is

Being that it’s Election Day and all, I wonder if the next Mets manager could be based on the results of a vote by the people?

Of course this is a fantasy, but hypothetically speaking, who would be the candidates in such an election, and what parties would they represent?

Bob Melvin: Republican, conservative
He’ll stay the course, and dutifully follow the orders set forth by the right-wing lobbyists / upper middle class.

Ken Macha: Democrat, liberal
He’ll also stay the course, but appeal to the left-wing lobbyists / lower middle class.

Bobby Valentine: write-in candidate
He doesn’t consider himself a candidate, but openly lobbies for the job (this is different from Adam Rubin lobby for job) without a party endorsement.

Joe Lieberman: Lieberman Party
Who else is qualified to run as the Lieberman Party candidate? There are a bunch of Mets fans in Connecticut.

Clint Hurdle: Christian Right / Christian Coalition
He will make sure Mets players uphold the virtues set forth by Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Chip Hale: Reform Party
Endorsed by Ross Perot and Jesse Ventura, Hale symbolizes the party’s core belief in centrism.

Tim Teufel: Constitution Party
They couldn’t convince Pat Buchanan to join the ranks, but Tim Teufel would seem a more feasible party leader.


Joe McEwing: Green Party
Ralph Nader became famous after writing the book Unsafe At Any Speed. Similarly, Super Joe’s career 62% basestealing percentage (33 SB, 20 CS) made him unsafe at any speed.

Ken Oberkfell: Worker’s Party
The symbol of the working man, Oberkfell embodies the party’s fundamental vision that all men have a right to a secure job.
Wally Backman: Boston Tea Party
The Tea Partyers long for the the way things were in the 1980s, and tap into the majority’s anger with the two-party system. Like most Tea Party candidates, he is a darkhorse, but on everyone’s radar.