Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, August 27, 1993 TAG: 9308270200
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: NEW YORK LENGTH: Medium
The Mets said Thursday the 31-year-old outfielder will not return to the club this season. Team president Fred Wilpon went even further, vowing Coleman will never play for the Mets again.
Coleman will remain on "administrative leave" - in effect, suspended with pay - until his arraignment Oct. 8 in Los Angeles on a felony charge of possession of an explosive device.
Coleman has one year left on a four-year, $12 million contract with New York. Wilpon did not say how the Mets would get rid of him after the season.
"We have the right to act - release him, trade him or fight him on the contract," he said. "It's in the best interest of the Mets that he never wear a Mets uniform again, even if he is cleared of the criminal offense. He'll not play here again as a Met, with pay or without pay."
Picked by some to contend for the National League East Division title, New York (43-83) is the only team already mathematically eliminated from pennant contention.
Anthony Young's 27-game losing streak, the firing of manager Jeff Torborg and injuries to Howard Johnson, Sid Fernandez and other key players have been among the lowlights.
There has been as much turmoil in the Mets' clubhouse this season. Bret Saberhagen admitted putting a firecracker under a table where reporters were interviewing Young; in a separate incident, Saberhagen admitted he sprayed bleach on sportswriters.
Prosecutors in Los Angeles said Coleman threw an M-100, which has the equivalent power of a quarter-stick of dynamite, from a car driven by Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Eric Davis as he left the Dodger Stadium parking lot on July 24. A 2-year-old girl was among three people injured. Coleman has said he will not contest the charge.
Coleman's arraignment in Los Angeles was postponed until after the baseball season. Conviction carries a penalty ranging from probation to three years in prison.
"You have to act professionally on and off the field," Mets manager Dallas Green said. "Fred made that clear today. Obviously, Coleman was a big part of the mix with all the problems. To put a team together, you have to have `we' guys. That wasn't Vince's first goal."
Bud Selig, chairman of baseball's ruling executive council and the Player Relations Committee, supported the Mets' decision.
"I agree with the New York Mets that the most prudent course of action at this time is to allow Vince Coleman to continue in his current status pending the outcome of the criminal case in Los Angeles," Selig said.
Wilpon, who co-owns the Mets with Nelson Doubleday, said management was tired of the "embarrassing" incidents.
Wilpon spoke to the club - the first time he has done so since purchasing the team in 1980 - to emphasize "ownership's resolve to bring an end to any further nonsense on and off the field."
"Obviously, he has some friends in the clubhouse who are concerned about what this can do to his career," Wilpon said. "If we lose Coleman's friends, I don't fear that."
Coleman signed with the Mets as a free agent on Dec. 5, 1990, shortly after slugger Darryl Strawberry left the team for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Coleman, who set NL stolen base records in St. Louis, was slowed by injuries in his first two years with the Mets and played only 143 games.
Coleman is leading the league with 38 steals this season. He is batting .279 and has remained relatively healthy.
by CNB