image credit to NBC Sports Philadelphia
After firing young manager Gabe Kapler at the end of the 2019 season, the Phillies were in search of a manager more proven, more experienced, and someone who could get the best out of his players. They went out and got that in Joe Girardi.
I believe that there should be a certain degree of leniency when evaluating Girardi’s first year as the Phillies’ manager. Was the 2020 MLB season a normal one? Not by any means. Did Girardi have the best of rosters to work with? No; he not only had to deal with inconsistent players throughout the lineup but also the worst bullpen in the Major Leagues since 1930. With that being said there are a few question marks I’d like to outline.
The first is his mismanagement of the starting rotation. It often felt like Girardi was forgetting that this season was a shortened 60 game season and not a full 162. There are a few occasions you can point to where Girardi pulled a starter and potentially cost us a win. The one that sticks out is the early gem by Aaron Nola against the Yankees. Nola pitched 6 innings of a 7 inning doubleheader game giving up 3 hits and only 1 run (a home run to eventual HR leader Luke Voit), all this whilst striking out 12 batters. He showed no signs of slowing down and looked very comfortable going out there to pitch in the 7th inning, however Girardi opted to pull Nola and turn to the bullpen who instantly gave up the game. Now the offense had been cold so there was no guarantee we would have won, but it certainly raises some thought. In a normal season this would have been fine, not only is it important to preserve pitchers’ health but there’s always another game to get the win. In this season however, every win counted and if a pitcher was comfortable to go out a finish their job, they should have been allowed to.
Now the bullpen was just a mess and I don’t think there is a single manager in the world that would’ve gotten anything out of them so I cannot discredit Joe too much for that, the only thing I will say is his continuous usage of Brandon Workman in high leverage spots, after he’d repeatedly shown he would blow it, was definitely a big mistake.
Whilst his lineup management was for the most part good, there were some concerning things. His refusal to play Adam Haseley, when he has consistently shown he’s better than Quinn, Kingery and Gosselin combined was confusing. The mindset of letting Kingery ‘swing his way out of a slump’ when there is clearly much bigger issues in Scott Kingery’s game hurt the team, he should not have been in the lineup when he was producing nothing, especially in a season where every game mattered.
However going forward I think Joe Girardi is the right manager for the Phillies. Across the season he did show signs of what he can do. He made a real effort to connect with the players and also the fans, something Gabe Kapler struggled to do in his tenure. He’s shown that he can get the best out of players, Bryce Harper looked at times like a serious MVP candidate, as did JT Realmuto. Rhys Hoskins made a real bounceback and returned to the Rhys Hoskins many of us know and love. Segura turned his form around completely and became one of the teams most consistent hitters.
Girardi is a winner. A quick look at his Yankees career will tell you as much, and this is something he’s made clear since he first came to Philadelphia. In his introductory press conference he made it clear he sees “a real opportunity to win here”. We may not have known it at the start of the year, but with this bullpen especially, it was not going to be a quick fix and instant success. With the right moves this offseason, it’s a goal we can achieve next season.
We may have fell short in achieving a winning season yet again in 2020, but with a strong coaching staff behind him in Bryan Price and Joe Dillon, Girardi is the man to lead this team to the playoffs, so long as we surround him with the tools he needs. This team has already shown signs of what it can be under Joe Girardi, see the hot streak where they won 10 out of 11 for example. With a competent bullpen and a few changes to the lineup, this can be a team that challenges for the NL East title and be among the best in the league. Let’s not forget they were top 5 in runs scored per game across the whole season.
Girardi will bring success back to the Phillies organisation, its just a matter of time. I’m already looking forward to seeing what he does in 2021.
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