Edgardo Alfonzo has been around the Brooklyn Cyclones for the past few seasons and has now worked his way up to managing the team. He’s joined by two other notable former players, Royce Ring and Marlon Anderson. We all have fond memories of Fonzie back when he manned the Met infield with Robin Ventura, Rey Ordonez and John Olerud. Since he’s involved with the Cyclones the Mets have also seen a few promising bats come his way, including Michael Conforto and Peter Alonso. Yet, being a former star isn’t necessarily a ticket to someday managing in the majors.
The Mets have Pedro Lopez managing things in Columbia, Chad Kreuter in Port St. Lucie, Luis Rojas in Binghamton and Tony Defrancisco in Las Vegas. Being a great player doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve got what it takes to be a great manager… or general manager/owner. Just ask Derek Jeter.
Still, there is some magic to bringing back a former player has a certain appeal. In a city, like New York, fans can turn on you quickly. Fans are somewhat less inclined to turn on a player they used to love watching the first time he blows a decision.
As I’ve illustrated above, Alfonzo is the highest profile manager in the Mets Minor League organization and it’ll be interesting to see if he starts to set his sights on becoming a major league manager over the next few years. We’ll know for sure if the Mets start moving him up to higher levels but I don’t think Mickey Callaway needs to watch over his shoulder.
My first thought when reading about Edgardo Alfonso is Wilmer Flores. Both players from Venezuela, being infielders and being fine hitters. I was impressed by Dallas Green’s usage of Alfonso by rotating him as the backup infielder at each position to get the bat in the lineup. I remember Alfonso being athletic enough to be inserted seamlessly at ss, 2b and 3b.
Let’s see if Wilmer can blossom the same way?