Randolph tries to raise standards with Mets.

Publication: South Florida Sun-Sentinel (via Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service)

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COPYRIGHT 2005 South Florida Sun-Sentinal

Byline: Mike Berardino

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. _ Don't ask Willie Randolph about his new rules.

"Standards," the New York Mets' rookie manager quickly corrects. "Not rules."

What's the difference?

"To me, rules are like you're punishing someone for doing something," Randolph says of the uniform and clubhouse protocol he has set. "It's not that. This is what I feel. It's what I want. I'm the manager. That's the way it's going to be."

So maybe that explains, among other reasons, why the Mets might not have gone as hard after Sammy Sosa this winter as everyone assumed they would. Slammin' Sam's beloved boom box wouldn't be welcome in the Mets' clubhouse, not in this new era.

Sheriff Willie has banned loud music in the clubhouse, instead urging his players to listen to...

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