PHILADELPHIA _ Mets captain David Wright lashed out at his own teammates Friday for speaking about manager Terry Collins under condition of anonymity Friday.
Wright's comments came one day after a Newsday report detailed organizational dysfunction, beginning with owner Fred Wilpon's repeated protection of the manager after key figures including general manager Sandy Alderson and chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon pushed for Collins' dismissal.
"TC's office is 10 feet from our clubhouse," Wright told Newsday. "He makes himself available. If you are a player and are unhappy, go knock on the door and talk to him. Players are supposed to be accountable. To me being accountable is putting a name to a quote."
Collins himself offered a short but spirited defense of his work on Friday.
"Time to pile on," said Collins said, whose contract expires at the end of a disappointing season and is not expected to be renewed.
Wright, however, said piling on is the last thing his teammates should have done. "Seems like an easy way out," said Wright, who missed most of the season with back and shoulder problems. "Point the finger at someone else instead of looking in the mirror."
Within the Newsday report, which was based on interviews with more than a dozen team insiders, players fumed about the manager's lack of communication while team executives questioned his tactical decisions.
Collins was specifically hammered for his bullpen management particularly for leaning too hard on his more trusted relievers. One official likened it to abuse.
Collins said the front office never brought up bullpen usage to him, even though Newsday sources said otherwise, but said that being criticized is part of the job.
"You sit here and you make decisions that you think are in the best interest. There's certainly a lot of factors involved. You don't send anybody out to hurt anybody. Never have, never will. The players, the training staff, the coaches, all have inputs and you make the best decision that you think may help you win."
Collins bristled at the insinuation made in another published report, in which team officials blamed him for overusing reliever Jeurys Familia, who earlier this season required surgery to remove a blood clot from his shoulder.
Familia pitched 233 inning from 2014 to 2016, and led baseball in each of those last two seasons with 65 and 67 games finished, respectively. He also pitched in the World Baseball Classic for the Dominican Republic.
At one point during the tournament, team officials asked WBC coaches to back off Familia's usage, especially early in the season. He went down with the injury in May.
"Seriously? Seriously?" Collins said, upset with the question. "With the WBC and all the other factors and I'm the factor? OK, I'll take it. I'm the manager."
Sources disputed the notion of an open-door policy, with one player describing the clubhouse as "miserable," especially after midseason trades deprived the room of key veterans.
"It would be a surprise if he said 'hey' to you when you passed each other in the hallway if your name wasn't Harvey or Cespedes," another Met told Newsday.
