Sandy Alderson Lies About 90-Win Statement

With the Mets next loss, the team will be unable to fulfill Sandy Alderson’s infamous prophecy of winning 90 games. But in typical Sandy Alderson style, he is now lying about what he meant.

To recap, in a February meeting with team brass that was supposed to be remain private but didn’t, Alderson said something to the effect that he thinks the Mets can win 90 games in 2014.

Daily News columnist John Harper found out and asked Alderson about it. He would not confirm the number: “All I’ll say is we have higher expectations than we’ve had in the past.”

But then Alderson went on to say:

“Because I think it has to be a mind-set. Part of creating a winning environment is setting ambitious goals and working toward them. But it has to be systematic and it can’t be totally unrealistic. I don’t think it is in this case.”

That is what Sandy Alderson said in February. This is what he told reporters before Friday’s game, according to ESPN New York:

“It wasn’t a goal. I don’t know how many times I have to reinterpret that for everybody. It wasn’t a goal. It wasn’t an expectation. It was a reminder to all of us, including myself, that we need to think about that level of performance, that level of success, that level of excellence. So the statement is no less relevant today than it was then.”

So yes, Alderson was consistent both times in that his statement was less of a prediction and more of a necessary step towards creating a winning atmosphere. However, Friday he said “It wasn’t a goal.” He even said it twice, “reinterpreting” it for us idiots. But back in February it sure sounded like a goal. After all, he used the word “goal.” Repeating his statement:

“Part of creating a winning environment is setting ambitious goals and working toward them. But it has to be systematic and it can’t be totally unrealistic. I don’t think it is in this case.”

So the 90 wins was an “ambitious goal” that Alderson himself thought was not “unrealistic.” Which means part of him was fully expecting it to happen. Although today he said, “It wasn’t an expectation.”

Sigh.

Amidst the lies and double-talk is one part of Sandy Alderson’s comment that is absolutely true — “So the statement is no less relevant today than it was then.” Right. There was simply no way this team that Sandy Alderson built was going to win 90 games. So his prediction or whatever you want to call it was irrelevant then and it still is today.