Normally this type of stuff doesn't bother me, but there is one small point that Adam Rubin keeps making that is simply not true.
He keeps saying that Omar accused him of lobbying for Bernazard's job, ie, lobbying for THE job of player personnel, and that Omar accused him of using his desire for THE job as motivation for his reporting on Bernazard.
The problem with that is Omar never said it.
What Omar Minaya actually said was that Adam Rubin was lobbying for 'A' player development position.
Even in Rubin's story from today's Daily News, he quotes Omar incorrectly, which is not proper journalism.
"Adam has lobbied for THE player development position," Minaya said.
This is blatantly inaccurate, and has been quoted differently in every other paper this morning.
The NY Post correctly quotes Omar as saying: "Adam, you gotta understand this, Adam, for the past couple of years, has lobbied for a player development position," Minaya said.
Much different meanings.
I reviewed the tape, and Omar said "a job", not "the job".
So why is Adam reporting that Omar said he lobbied for Bernazard's job?
Rubin is misquoting Omar because it puts him in a better light, but go back and watch the press conference and you see Rubin ask, “Are you alleging that I tried to tear Tony down so I could take his job?” “No, I’m not saying that,” Minaya said. “All I’m saying is that in the past you have lobbied for a job. You have told people in the front office that you want to work in the front office.”
Rubin himself has gone back and forth on this, saying he never asked for a Mets job, but just made some general inquiries--to all of the Mets brass--on how one gets a job in baseball.
Anyone with half a brain that hears these questions up and down an organization knows that the person that is asking the questions wants a job--Rubin, like everyone else, would never say "hey, Jeff, Omar, Tony, hire me"...the world is much more subtle than that....but by asking over and over his message was pretty clear.
I think Adam Rubin crossed the line of journalistic integrity by continually inquiring about a job from the team he was covering.
Omar called him on it....he may have botched the message and the timing by doing it in the press conference, but it's something that needed to be told.
The reporters will all jump to Rubin's side--that's fine--they are banding together. But I'm actually on Omar's side here
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13 comments:
Rubin is really trying to have it both ways. He wants a job, he wants to say whatever he wants, and he wants everyone to look at him as the victim.
He needs to take ownership of what he did and didn't say and do.
Dave,
Count me in on the side of Adam Rubin. Omar came off as a total jerk yesterday and if the Wilpon's had a pair of balls betwen them there would be a press conference at Citi Field today annoucning Minaya's firing.
Even if your take is true that Rubin asked about a job with the Mets which I don't believe I believe just what Adam said that we asked how does one go about getting a job in baseball, it doesn't take away that Omar had to know about all of Tony B'd trangrstions and did nothing about them until someone leaked the info to Rubin.
Steve,
I have mixed opinions....as I stated yesterday, Rubin's reporting was spot on....and that should remain his focus.
His piece this morning was absolutely slanted in his favor---he is equivocating on the fact that he made job inquiries, and he misquoted Omar vice using the actual words Omar said.
Omar said Rubin inquired about a job....Rubin keeps saying Omar's comments were based on his belief that Rubin wanted Bernazard's job.
Omar never said that though.
Omar botched the press conference--true x 100.
I also think Rubin is playing fast and loose with his interpretation of the truth.
You're missing the point, Dave.
Doesn't matter if 'the' or 'a' job was said. Bottom line is Omar was royally pissed that he felt pressured to fire a friend and went after the messenger. His mindset was if Rubin didn't bring the stories to light, he would not have had to do that - and he wanted him to pay for that. His anger got the best of him at that press conference.
It's clear Rubin did not have the hidden agenda of getting Bernazard fired, he could get his job. For Omar to even remotely hint that at that conference was unprofessional, childish, immature. If he wanted to go after Rubin for that, he should have been way smarter in his methods towards that goal. He just came off looking foolish.
The facts remain. There were numerous complaints to HR BEFORE the Rubin story was published. Mets knew this. Omar said Bernazard was very good at his job, did not get fired for his 'job performance'. Uh...sure he did. Your job performance includes interaction with those you were hired to oversee. That interaction was piss poor. Even if he was the smartest baseball player development guy out there, he still failed at the interpersonal aspect of his job.
The ONLY reason the Mets felt compelled to fire Bernazard is b/c those accusations against him were true AND once made public, they were backed in a corner, or so they felt. If they really felt otherwise, they never would have caved to that pressure.
Rubin never saw the bullet coming. A little naive maybe, but only the NY Mets could call a press conference to diffuse a bad situation and wind up making it worse. Omar's idea of shifting the focus from him to Rubin back fired. Just goes to show you how poor the Mets PR is in general....
Thank you!
I feel like the journalists are worse than the "Blue Wall of Silence" that allegedly exists in the NYPD. That is to say, they will all band together no matter the situation. All I have been hearing since yesterday is how outrageous Omar was in bringing up Rubin. Please. All Omar was trying to convey was that when he saw the news story, he had to step back and consider the source and RIGHFULLY so! How many times have we seen a reporter write a story that turns out to have some misinformation. Was it wrong for Omar to have reservations about what was being reported? NO! Bottom line is this, we have gotten to the stage where some reporters actually believe they are more important than they really are. If you are a reporter who plans on reporting news and writing columns that dont necessarily shed a good light upon someone, then you should be man enough to handle when someone calls you out. And let's be real, Omar didnt necessarily call him out, but basically did what all journalists should practice: Don't just take a story or source at face value, but look at the source and consider any ulterior motives.
Dave,
Omar has no leg to stand on. He was fully aware of TB's reputation and behavior. So are the Wilpons.
Adam Rubin is clearly -- and I have been covering the Mets for 11 years -- a guy who is as free of agenda as any reporter that has ever covered the team.
He has been supportive of Bernazard in the past, as has John Harper, and they BOTH went with multiple sourced stories out of the DOZENS of TB horror stories that are out there.
"ed_price #Mets COO Jeff Wilpon: “Omar’s our general manager. Omar’s going to be our general manager. … He didn’t do the right thing.”"
"KenDavidoff: Jeff Wilpon is apologizing to Adam Rubin on behalf of the Mets."
That says it all
I can't believe you are making a big deal between "a job" and "the job." Even if Rubin had lobbied for "a job," Omar bringing it up at the presser was totally unprofessional.
I just heard Jeff Wilpon apologize to Rubin on SNY and say that Omar was going to call Rubin to apologize directly. He said that Omar had made a "big mistake." Ownership clearly does not see eye to eye with Omar on this, and I applaud Jeff Wilpon for coming out and trying to make amends with Rubin.
If political reporters are free to talk to the White House about possible gigs in the administration (see below), then how is Rubin's behavior so terrible, EVEN IF what you allege is true?
http://www.politico.com/blogs/michaelcalderone/0709/Newsweek_reporter_joins_administration_.html
Since when are sports reporters some kind of royalty that no one can offend? The big offense here is when Tony B threw a tantrum because a scout was in his seat. That is not only unprofessional, but, wow, what a cry-baby. I'm bothered by the rumors he had influence in Randolph's demise as well, but that's history. I don't know this guy, don't know much about him, but WHO CARES if he yelled at the team in Binghamton. They're ballplayers, not ballerinas. Take your sissy political correct methods of professional criticism, and put it where women can see it, because I myself feel like going out and getting some bras and panties for myself for even commenting on this soap opera nonsese 'As Flushing Turns'. Can we get back to baseball please? Anyway, Omar saw Adam Rubin's soap opera reporting as the nail in Tony B's coffin, his good friend. So he defended his friend. That's admirable. And anyone who is offened by such a 'breach of protocal' at a prestigious press conference should be watching American Idol, not baseball. Yes, it was unprofessional, but I care a lot more about Omar's ability to run a team, than I do about him being politically correct, or even professional, at a press conference. I cursed out Omar from my couch many times this season, but truth be told, boring as it is, it's the injuries, stupid! Omar's not a bad GM after all. The Mets were one of the 5 best teams for three years running. There are 30 teams out there. A few bounces here and there and he's a genius. Players win championships, the bounce of the ball has more to do with it than Omar.
Excellent post and I totally agree. I was screaming at the TV watching the conference because Rubin was using a straw man argument. Nobody was accusing him of tearing down Tony so that he could take TONY's job. Why would they replace Tony Bernazard with a schlub reporter? Omar was pissed because Rubin basically did a hatched job on Tony B to take revenge for Tony (and Omar) not giving him a job in the organization. Not TONY'S job, but ANY job. That's all Omar was saying...and the pity is that he's such an AWFUL speaker (extemporaneous or otherwise) that this point was lost.
Shame on Rubin for screwing with events in this way and then hiding behind strawmen when the hammer fell.
Was the story in the hatchet job true? Yes.
It really doesn't matter what the motivation for the story is AS LONG AS IT IS THE TRUTH.
In the meantime, Omar has ZERO proof that Rubin wrote the story out of a grudge. He made himself and the Mets liable for a defamation lawsuit. The Mets knew Omar was wrong. Hence the huge apology from Jeff Wilpon.
Not only did Omar expose himself to a potential lawsuit, but he opened up the franchise to intense ridicule. It is a PR disaster for the franchise, thanks to Omar.
Rubin's stories had been out for days and weeks. If Omar felt they were written by a reporter with a conflict of interest, he should have gone to the editors at the Daily News and complained. Instead, he uses a news conference to make unfounded accusations against Rubin. Omar will pay with his job. If not this year, I think by the end of next season. It's just one more mark against him. And it's a huge mark.
Did Omar provide proof yet that Rubin "LOBBIED FOR A JOB". That is not the same thing as asking for career advice, which was what Wilpon said Rubin did(and thus backing up what Rubin said).
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