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Sorry Mets Fans, Firing Ray Ramirez Isn't Going to Fix Things

Scapegoating never solves the problem.

By John EdwardsPublished 6 years ago 3 min read
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Michael Conforto via Arturo Pardivila III/Flickr

News broke Monday morning that long-time athletic trainer Ray Ramirez was being let go by the Mets in a host of other personnel moves. If you're at all familiar with #MetsTwitter, the responses of fans on social media shouldn't surprise you in the slightest.

Mets Twitter in their natural habitat.

It seems only natural, after all—the Mets have been dealing with a whole host of injuries over the past few seasons, and Ray Ramirez, as athletic trainer under the regime, seemed like the natural culprit. With Ramirez gone, this means that the Mets will be healthy for years to come, right? Right?

Not exactly. As much as #MetsTwitter would like to believe, Ray Ramirez was never a Dr. Frankenstein-esque figure, chopping up the Mets for parts. Mets fans loved to criticize the results of the injuries, but what blame did they place on what Ramirez actually did? It's impossible to vocalize what Ramirez did wrong—simply because the Mets got poor results did not mean that Ramirez was the only culprit.

It was easy to blame Ramirez because he's the face of the Mets training staff—but the fact remains that there's a whole host of Mets staff dedicated to player wellness and care.And they're all coming back for next season. So while the figurehead may have changed, the bulk of the org is still here.

Jerry Crasnick, in an article for ESPN, described the Mets organization's culture of incompetence with regards to injuries. To summarize the article briefly, the Mets have no real leader when it comes to dealing with injuries. There's little communication between the personnel, and reportedly, many of their decisions are made based on public perception, thanks to COO Jeff Wilpon's micromanagement.

Is firing Ramirez, so often a scapegoat for the Mets' injury woes, another decision based not on results or logic, but on public perception? What exactly did Ramirez do wrong this season? In many of the Mets' most impactful injuries, there was little any physical trainer could have done. Michael Conforto's shoulder dislocation was a freak accident, and Yoenis Cespedes' frequent hamstring strains have been attributed by Cespedes himself to excessive muscle mass—a strength and conditioning issue, something that has more to do with Mike Barwis, the Mets' strength and conditioning coach, than Ramirez.

Not to mention the injury that effectively ended the season for the Mets: Noah Syndergaard's lat muscle tear. Syndergaard had refused an MRI prior to the start where he tore the muscle, and despite this, the organization had allowed him to pitch regardless. That's not on Ray Ramirez alone—that's on the organization as a whole for allowing a pitcher to dictate his medical regime (a mistake that Syndergaard himself later humorously acknowledged). And again—Syndergaard had bulked up just like Cespedes in the offseason—something Ramirez has little control over.

There is so much that goes into keeping a team healthy. Ramirez was a factor, but he was only a minor factor. The rest of the medical staff is sticking around for 2018. Mike Barwis is sticking around for 2018. Jeff Wilpon is sticking around for 2018. The majority of people responsible for the culture of incompetence surrounding the Mets' organizational handling of injuries are sticking around for 2018.

If anything changes for next season, it won't be because Ramirez was fired —it will be because the rest of the organization has learned from the mistakes of this season. But seeing how the Mets are decimated by injuries, year after year, I personally find it doubtful that any meaningful changes will be made. Ramirez is just a scapegoat for the Mets' problems, and firing him accomplishes little.

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About the Creator

John Edwards

Staff Writer for The Unbalanced, Contributor at Sporting News.

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