COMMENTARY : Time Has Come for Mets to Turn the Page on 1986

By now, we all have heard--ad nauseum--how few rules Davey Johnson established during his tenure as Mets manager and how little he enforced the ones he did have. Discipline has its place, but neither Bill James nor Dallas Green has found direct correlations between a game of hearts and ERA and between afternoon success on the 16th hole and ninth-inning failure to hit.

Johnson did have one directive that he regularly enforced and emphasized. It was neither profound nor his own creation. It was simply “Turn the page.” He would advise his players to do so, knowing that selective recall can do wonders for a player’s psyche. Forget yesterday’s failure, clear your mind, dump your burdens.

Now, because Frank Cashen lacks the patience he says he has and because he undermined Johnson eight months before he dismissed him, the Mets’ players must turn the final page of the most successful chapter in the history of the franchise. The next few weeks will produce an epilogue, no doubt, but the book on Davey Johnson as Mets manager essentially is closed.

And now the Mets must forget him and the strain of the last 204 games of his regime. In doing so, they are all but forced to purge Johnson’s greatest achievement from their memories. And that’s a good thing. The time has come for them to turn the page on The 1986 Season and all the wonder and spectacle it created. Johnson’s dismissal ought to enable the Mets to accomplish that.

His departure leaves only remnants from that season in the clubhouse. Now that Johnson is collecting more than $750,000 over the next 1 1/3 seasons to fish in Florida, nearly all of the primary people involved in that wondrous season are gone. Think about it. Hernandez, Carter, Knight, Backman, Dykstra, Wilson, Mitchell, Orosco, McDowell and Santana are gone. And now Johnson is, too.

Granted, most of the starting rotation from that season remains intact, and, of course, Darryl Strawberry still draws his salary from Sterling Doubleday Enterprises. But as good as the pitching was that season, it wasn’t the primary force in the team’s drive to the World Series championship. And Strawberry no longer is the person -- and perhaps not the player -- he was then.

The 1986 Mets scored early and buried opponents. And on those rare occasions with they fell behind, they knew they could come back against any pitcher who wasn’t named Scott or Krukow. They dared opponents to bunt on them. They infuriated other teams. They out-arroganced everyone.

There was the grit of “Backstra,” the intensity of Hernandez, Carter and Knight, the talent of Strawberry and Mitchell and the mystical Mookie element. And Johnson knew how to make it all work together. They traveled with arrogance and intimidation in their bags.

Of course, the starting pitching was critical. But Dwight Gooden was merely very good, not great. Ron Darling was good but not very good, and Bob Ojeda, a critical clubhouse force these days, was in his first season with the team and never asserted himself as he has this year. Sid Fernandez hadn’t emerged, and David Cone and Frank Viola were in the other league.

Strawberry was a primary factor and personality then, but his role has shrunk dramatically in the aftermath of his alcohol rehabilitation.

And now Johnson is gone. There is little or no arrogance. Losing records don’t lend themselves to feelings of superiority. But is this a case of cause and effect or effect and cause? Is this collection of Mets not arrogant enough to play well or are they unable to play well enough to become arrogant? Probably both. Right now, they don’t have personnel that opponents fear.

These Mets are not going to recreate 1986 and that team’s intensity and need to succeed. And because they aren’t -- or can’t -- they’d be better off not trying to. Turn the page. Forget it. Stop using it as a point of reference. They are far enough removed from it in time, talent and personnel to make a divorce work.

These Mets ought to establish a new personality and remove themselves from the long shadows of ’86. Johnson was part of that shadow. With him gone and Bud Harrelson in his place, they have the opportunity.

Expect Kevin Elster to emerge as more of the team leader and spokesman now that Harrelson is in place.

There’s every reason to believe Cashen wanted to make the move Wednesday, an off-day, with players dispersed and Johnson in Florida. It’s hard to believe he’s a former newspaper man.

Everyone’s talking about Johnson moving to the Yankees. If he wasn’t enough of a disciplinarian for Cashen, how would he satisfy George Steinbrenner? How would he deal with Mel Hall?

Why not Johnson to the Braves or Rangers? He has roots in both places. Why not Bobby Valentine to the Yankees?