Backman has led the Las Vagas 51s to the PCL's top record this season.
Unless the major league Mets completely embarrass themselves in September, Terry Collins seems locked in as the manager of the team in 2015. That said, there will still be a large faction of fans that believe that the grission of Wally Backman will turn the Mets into a contender as they are currently constructed.
That group got a vote of confidence from the Pacific Coast League today when the organization named Backman its 2014 Manager of the Year. The Las Vegas 51s are 80-61 this season and have already clinched a Southern division title.
It's not as though this is going to convince anyone of anything though. Backman's supporters will see this as a sure sign that he is ready to take the helm of a major league club. His detractors will point to the high amount of talent that the Mets have in Triple-A as the reason the team won so many games.
So what does this mean? It means that Backman did a good job this year, but it's no reason to just hand him the major league job. Terry Collins may be losing more games than he's winning yet again, but he's kept the Mets fairly competitive considering the roster turnover in the bullpen and a lackluster season from David Wright.