Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen sat in front of the media at Marlins Park in Miami on Friday to issue a slew of roster moves, and answer any burning questions they might have.
And Mickey Callaway's job status was on that list.
The Mets have been faltering lately, falling two games under .500 after their series loss to the Nationals this week. But Van Wagenen said his unwavering support for Callaway will continue as it has since the beginning.
"Look, I think as I've said before, our job is to support Mickey and the coaching staff. Our job is to support the players and we expect to win. So we'll continue to hold ourselves accountable for that."
Coming back from a brutal road trip where they lost five of six games, Mets COO Jeff Wilpon called a meeting with Van Wagenen and Callway, and many believed it was to let Callaway know that his leash was short. However, that wasn't the case at all, as Callaway noted it being a normalcy that these meetings occur following a road trip.
Brodie Van Wagenen on whether or not Mickey Callaway's job is in jeopardy: pic.twitter.com/uLnMtsOhhc
- SNY (@SNYtv) May 17, 2019
"We meet all the time," Callaway said then. "Very standard that we meet after a road trip, more of a, 'How did things go?' This meeting had a different focus. This meeting was about, 'How can we be better? How can we get going in the right direction?' And it was very productive. It was early, the players weren't even here yet. So I'm sure they'll read about it."
Though Van Wagenen won't say directly if Callaway's job is up in the air, this next series against the Marlins may bring more clarity to the situation. The Mets will have the bulk of their rotation -- Jacob deGrom tonight followed by Steven Matz and Noah Syndergaard -- and Miami has lost seven straight games coming into this one.
This would be a great opportunity for the Mets to not only climb back over .500, but have confidence heading into another series with the Nats next week at home.
That momentum would be huge for the Mets, and if the wins start coming, Van Wagenen and Callaway can both see these questions about the skipper's job begin to fade away.
It starts tonight.