Former Mets Clubhouse Manager Pleads Guilty, Likely to Avoid Jail Time

Charlie Samuels, 55, the long-time N.Y. Mets clubhouse manager who was fired in 2010 in light of information that he stole millions of dollars in game-used equipment and other clubhouse artifacts, pled guilty Feb. 21 in a plea agreement to criminal possession of stolen property and to criminal tax fraud charges related to under-reporting and underpaying on his 2009 state tax returns.

Samuels is to receive an expected sentence of five years probation and restitution of $50,000, which will be revealed April 16.

Samuels had been charged with stealing hundreds of autographed and unsigned Mets jerseys, baseballs, bats, helmets and other team equipment worth more than $2 million. The memorabilia, including a full set of autographed 1986 World Series uniforms, was recovered in a friend's home in Connecticut.

The plea agreement also prohibits Samuels from going to Citi Field; Municipal Credit Union Field, which is home to the Mets’ minor league affiliate the Brooklyn Cyclones; and the team’s spring training facility in Florida.