Wilpon wishes he'd waited a bit to fire Randolph

Last update: July 23, 2008 - 10:08 PM

NEW YORK - Mets CEO Fred Wilpon and his organization took a vicious beating from fans and the news media last month for the circumstances of Willie Randolph's dismissal. Wednesday, Wilpon had harsh words for himself: "I screwed up," he said.

It wasn't the firing itself he regretted, or how Randolph was treated. He said he should have anticipated how the timing would look.

Early on June 15, GM Omar Minaya said on a call with Mets officials that he had made the decision and would fly to California and tell Randolph after a game against the Angels; he was worried about a possible leak and wanted Randolph to get the news from him.

"I wasn't smart enough to say, 'Cut the New York press out of it?' I should have said, 'Wait a second, let's balance that it may leak with, why not do it the next morning?'"

NEWSDAY