Alderson: Rojas to return; GM search update

NEW YORK — Luis Rojas will return to manage the Mets regardless of whom the team hires as general manager this winter, team president Sandy Alderson said Monday.
The commitment came two weeks after Alderson termed Rojas “likely” to return, but stopped short of fully committing because he wanted to

NEW YORK — Luis Rojas will return to manage the Mets regardless of whom the team hires as general manager this winter, team president Sandy Alderson said Monday.

The commitment came two weeks after Alderson termed Rojas “likely” to return, but stopped short of fully committing because he wanted to give an incoming president of baseball operations the latitude to hire his own manager if he or she saw fit. Instead, the Mets have decided not to hire a president of baseball operations; Alderson will fill those duties for now, while the Mets plan to hire a general manager beneath him to handle baseball ops work going forward.

That leaves Rojas in position to return as manager for a second season, after going 26-34 in his first season at the helm. Rojas was a late replacement for Carlos Beltrán, whom the Mets dismissed in January over his involvement in the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.