Gary Cohen: Carlos Mendoza ‘least culpable of everybody’ for miserable Mets season

On Friday, the New York Mets fired manager Carlos Mendoza in the midst of a miserable 34-47 campaign despite a $330M payroll.

SNY announcer Gary Cohen sees the move as the most obvious one the franchise could have made, and probably the least effective in fixing the myriad problems they’re facing.

“It’s always the case that when a team is struggling where the Mets are, that the manager is the first to go,” Cohen said in a video posted to X on Friday. “And he’s probably the least culpable of everybody who has contributed to this morass of a season that the Mets are in.

“Injuries have played a part. Poor decisions by the front office have played a part. Guys underperforming their expectations have played a part.”

“He’s probably the least culpable of everybody that has contributed to this morass of a season that the Mets are in…but they had to do something. This is the move that teams make.”

Gary Cohen reacts to the Mets firing Carlos Mendoza pic.twitter.com/Xd7BjKwtOy

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) June 26, 2026

To be fair, the Mets have been an epic disappointment the last two seasons under Mendoza. They have been outscored 58-22 over the last six games and find themselves 13 games under .500, their lowest ebb of the season. After leading the Mets to the postseason in his first year as manager and starting the 2025 season hot, Mendoza has overseen a club that’s gone 72-102 since June 13 of last season.

However, Mendoza was overseeing a roster that had been overhauled by the President of Baseball Operations, David Stearns. And almost every move that he made, from letting Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz walk to signing Jorge Polanco and Bo Bichette, has backfired.

Cohen admitted that “the Mets had to do something,” though he found the decision uninspired.

“Maybe it’ll make a difference and maybe it won’t,” he continued. “I feel bad for Carlos Mendoza. It’s not his fault that this team is 13 games under .500, and I’m sure he’ll get another opportunity at some point down the road.”

If the Mets continue their losing ways, there aren’t too many other people left for the front office and ownership to blame before they’re next on the chopping block.