NEW YORK — Terry Collins is a major-league manager again, hired by the Mets to help revitalize a franchise that has struggled on the field and at the gate.
A person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press of the hire on condition of anonymity Sunday because the two sides were working out terms of the contract. The person said an announcement is expected early in the week.
Collins was chosen over a group of finalists that included Wally Backman, Chip Hale and Bob Melvin. He takes over for Jerry Manuel, who was fired along with general manager Omar Minaya in a restructuring of the front office following another dismal season.
The Mets already have hired Sandy Alderson as their new general manager, and former major-league GMs Paul DePodesta and J.P. Ricciardi as his assistants. All of them had input in the decision to hire the 61-year-old Collins, who has not managed in the major leagues in 11 years.
“It’s not just a question of who we are. It’s a question of who we want to be as an organization,” Alderson said last week.
Footnote.
Negotiations between the Athletics and Japanese pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma are at a standstill, a person with knowledge of the situation said. The person, who wouldn’t go as far as to say talks had ended entirely, spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because it is an internal matter.
The Associated Press
