Mets Owner Wilpon Brings Hands-On Approach To Spring Training, Holds Talks With Manager

Mets co-Owner Fred Wilpon is "making his presence felt" at Spring Training, meeting with manager Terry Collins yesterday "for the second time in the past few days, addressing the roster and the team’s weaknesses," according to Matt Ehalt of the Bergen RECORD. Collins said that Wilpon "isn’t angry, but ... expects the Mets to be much improved" this season. Collins: "He’s got great passion. He wants to win so bad." Ehalt notes Wilpon "still hasn’t raised the payroll from the ranks of baseball’s lower-market teams," as the Mets are projected to spend $100M this year. Collins and Wilpon "talked for more than 20 minutes before the manager met with the media." Collins said that Wilpon "just wanted to talk about the team." But Ehalt notes "pervasive ownership presence can sometimes indicate there are issues." Wilpon "has been a presence at camp, but he hasn’t talked to the media about his team for two years" (Bergen RECORD, 3/10).