PORT ST. LUCIE - "No chance."
Carlos Beltran had many teams reach out to him about coaching jobs in the offseason, but he never thought that the first team he'd be back with would be the Mets after being fired as manager three years ago for his involvement in the Houston Astros' sign-stealing scandal.
When general manager Billy Eppler called Beltran in the offseason to explain the role they wanted him for, Beltran was considering going back to the YES Network as an analyst. Now, Beltran has been hired as a special assistant to Eppler, and he has arrived at Mets spring training to begin serving in this new role.
As part of his role, Beltran will be a bridge between the clubhouse and front office, creating a better understanding between both sides.
"There are adjustments that you have to make throughout your career as a ball player, so I like to share that and hopefully guys can take advantage of that," Beltran said at Clover Park on Wednesday.
"As a player I didn't understand the front office. Now being retired and having this experience my job is to educate the players. My job is to let them know that the organization is doing the best they can to provide them the resources. And I'll share what the players need with the front office."
While Beltran will be working with the major league players, he will also be working with minor league players, which is something he is admittedly looking forward to doing.
"More than the big-league guys because they're already here and know how to play the game," Beltran explained. "I'm talking about the minor league guys to be able to share my experiences with them and hopefully I can help them to continue to develop their career."
"When you're in the minor-league system, you need love. You need people to care about you. I'm motivated because I didn't have that person and I hope I can be that person for those kids."
With Beltran back in the game, he acknowledged his excitement to once again be able to be around the players and pick their brains.
"It's hard because I love the game and love talking baseball, so even though I was doing a TV gig, It's not the same as being around the guys and being able to ask them questions."
While Beltran's managerial stint with the Mets was short lived, he is not ruling out his desire to manage in the future.
"At this point I'm thinking about what I have to do for the organization and what Billy wants me to do for the team," he said. "But you can never say no. I'm okay, where I am. But later on, I don't know."
After hiring Beltran as a special assistant, the Mets now have a former player in the front office that can communicate with the players and serve as a liaison. It just so happens that former player was a high profile star for the organization.
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