On June 26, the New York Mets fired manager Carlos Mendoza after the team’s 34-47 start to the 2026 MLB season. The firing comes as the Mets enter their three-game series against the Philadelphia Phillies and as the team comes off a four-game sweep at the hands of the Chicago Cubs.
New York has gone with Andy Green as their interim manager for the remainder of the season, but the long-term question will be who takes over as the Mets’ manager? On the June 26 edition of “Baseball Night in New York,” SNY’s Jim Duquette shared four potential candidates to take over the job.
For Duquette, the names are: Alex Cora, Carlos Beltran, David Ross, and Brandon Hyde. The first two are potential candidates with ties to the Mets, so they make sense.
“I came up with four off the top, and then there are a couple of other guys that can certainly be thrown in there,“ Duquette said. “Alex Cora’s name will keep coming up and popping up, and he has a World Series ring, and he was let go in Boston, but he does have Mets ties.
“He played for the Mets for a little bit. Carlos Beltrán, we all know his experience in the front office, and he still has aspirations to manage, and it did not go well the last time. This time would be better.”
What Other Candidates Should Be on New York’s Radar?
Among the other candidates, Ross brings prior managerial experience from his time with the Cubs. Meanwhile, Hyde also has a proven track record as a manager during his tenure with the Baltimore Orioles.
“David Ross is a very successful, certainly big league catcher, was a manager for three years,“ Duquette added. “His departure went unexpectedly there in Chicago, and I think he’d be willing for another shot. Brandon Hyde had a lot of success the last three, four years there with the Orioles. He would be a good one.”
Moreover, Duquette adds two more names that could be on the Mets’ radar during this process of finding a manager.
“Albert Pujols wants to be considered,“ Duquette said. “He’d be outstanding as well. Kai Correa, the bench coach currently with the Mets. So there are going to be plenty of candidates to consider, but those are at least six that are in the mix.”
Should the Mets Consider Trading Bo Bichette?
If the Mendoza firing doesn’t wake up the team and only sinks them more, it will be clear that the Mets will be sellers at the Aug. 3 trade deadline. One potential name in the speculation conversation is Bo Bichette.
Nonetheless, Jack Ramsey of Mets on SI noted that Bichette should be one player that New York shouldn’t trade at the deadline.
“Bo Bichette is finally turning it around for the Mets, but anything short of a miracle second half would see his season still end below the majority of his career marks,“ Ramsey wrote in a June 18 article.
“Odds are that the veteran infielder will not opt out of his absurd $43 million contract for next year, but that doesn’t mean the Mets won’t shop him heading into the trading deadline.”
Mets Get Intriguing Manager Take After Carlos Mendoza Firing