In what has been a week filled with notable changes for the New York Mets, the organization’s general manager shockingly quit on Thursday.
After a massively disappointing 75-87 showing this season, changes for the New York Mets were expected. They had the biggest payroll in MLB history and were coming off a 101-win season the previous year. However, the changes over the last week have been much more than some expected.
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Since last year, the organization has been looking to fill the spot of long-time team president Sandy Alderson. Earlier this week, they introduced his successor in former Milwaukee Brewers president David Stearns. When Stearns arrived, the expectation was skipper Buck Showalter would be back and general manager Billy Eppler would be his No. 2.
Well, now both are gone. On Thursday afternoon Eppler announced that he was resigning from the post he took with the franchise two years ago. “We accepted Billy’s resignation today as he decided it is in everyone’s best interest to fully hand over the leadership of Baseball Operations to David Stearns,” owner Steve Cohen said in a statement. “On behalf of the Mets organization, we wish him all the best.”
Following the news, the New York Post reported that Eppler’s resignation comes after MLB informed the Mets they had begun an investigation into improper use of the injured list.
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It is unclear at this time what were the specific instances of improper use by the organization or when it happened.
“I wanted David to have a clean slate and that meant me stepping down,” Eppler revealed in the shared statement.”I hope for nothing but the best for the entire Mets organization.”
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The news comes just days after Stearns’ introductory press conference and the news that Showalter was also resigning his position with the team after just two seasons. Now the team heads into the winter needing to improve the roster, find a new leader on their bench, and new general manager.