The strangest sidelight of this whole Tim Healey-Mickey Callaway-Jason Vargas fiasco is there was no video or audio evidence of last Sunday's clubhouse confrontations in Wrigley Field.
For if there was, it surely would've leaked out by now, right? If the goods are still out there, it's even more amazing. We're living in a time where mostly everything is chronicled by someone with a smart phone camera or some type of audio recorder.
Guess, on this occasion, there were no hidden cameras in the Mets clubhouse. Or no one in a position to video the incident with their phone. If someone does have the video, they wouldn't withhold it, would they?
The only descriptions of Callaway/Vargas wigging on Newsday's Healey came from the accounts filed by boss scribes on the scene, who either saw what went down or interviewed others who did. The fact that the story was based solely on these reports probably seemed unusual for all those used to seeing controversial videos on their phones, daily.
Considering this story was a "print" affair only, there are two big winners _ Callaway and Vargas.
How can this be? In the aftermath of this incident, Callaway came off as both irrational, for wigging on Healey, and weak, when the Mets organization forced him to say the words "I'm sorry" and "I apologize" last Monday. And Vargas, not only physically threatened the scribe but then (a couple of days later) insisted there's another side to this story, which he declined to reveal.
Reading details of their temper tantrums is one thing, seeing them would be quite another. Imagine if there was video of a bug-eyed Callaway ordering a Mets PR operative to "Get this motherf----- (Healy) out of the clubhouse; or Vargas, in full lunatic mode, threatening to "Knock you the f--- out, bro." There is no doubt the reaction would've been a lot harsher.
The shocking video would have likely led to Callaway being fired. And Vargas would have been penalized a lot more than the $10,000 fine he and Callaway were hit with. That kind of video would have gone viral/national and not just have been an embarrassment to the Mets organization. MLB would have felt the sting too, leading Commissioner Rob Manfred to get involved in the controversy.
Video always changes the equation. Incidents that don't get replayed over and over and over again don't have the same impact or the same consequences for those, like Callaway and Vargas, who suddenly are exposed as willing participants in the madness.
