Wilpon: I screwed up firing

BY BOB RAISSMAN DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER Fred Wilpon said he learned something from firing Willie Randolph. And it is this: The next time he fires a manager he'll do it in the light of day, when reporters are not sleeping. Wilpon talked about his "lesson" in the studio of his SportsNet New York, after the network announced a new deal to become the home of Big East football and basketball. "I said (to Omar Minaya) 'When are you going to do this?' He said 'After the game (Mets-Angels, June 16).' I wasn't smart enough to say, 'And cut the New York press out of it?' I didn't even think of it," Wilpon said. "I screwed up." Wilpon said Minaya was concerned the story would leak out if he didn't tell Randolph after the game (the firing went public at 3:18 a.m. New York time). "I should have said 'Let's balance,'" Wilpon said.... [read full story]