Today the Phillies introduce to the public to their 55th manager in team history. Joe Girardi will succeed Gabe Kapler as manager of the Philadelphia Phillies.
Girardi has been one of a few former Yankees to join the Phillies in the past couple of seasons. In offseason of 2017, the Phillies hired Rob Thomson as their bench coach. Thomson severed as a bench coach and 3rd base coach with the Yankees from 2008-2017. All of his years on the coaching staff were served under Girardi.
About a week ago, the Phillies hired away the Yankees’ national crosschecker Brian Barber as the director of amateur scouting. Barber served in that role for the Yankees for the past 10 years.
Brian Barber has shown success in the scouting department for the Yankees, an example being Aaron Judge. It was in 2012, that Barber first expressed his praise for the young outfielder.
The Phillies still have vacancies to fill this offseason, most notably their pitching and hitting coaches.
Girardi might look to his past when it come to that pitching coach role. Larry Rothschild has become the 3rd longest-tenured Yankees’ pitching coach since his hiring in 2011.
The Yankees will be moving on from the 66-year-old pitching coach and he’ll be free to join the Phillies. With that breaking news, Rothschild easily becomes the odds on favorite to be the Phillies’ next pitching coach.
If Rothschild were to leave the Yankees for Philly, the very power structure of the MLB could come into question. The Yankees were, and still are, the big dogs of baseball. Their insane success from 1920-1960 and from 1996-2002 have firmly established them as the gold standard for MLB teams.
The Phillies seem 100% willing to embrace, emulate, and expedite the Yankees culture and process. Managing partner John Middleton has recently been doing his best George Steinbrenner impression.
He’s been a vocal entity in a usually behind the scenes position. In the 2018 offseason, Middleton’s “stupid money” comments sent the Philly and national media into a frenzy. His recent press conference with GM Matt Klentak and President Andy MacPhail yielded similar responses.
Hiring away Rothschild would be his next step in showing the Phillies want to be the TOP team in Major League Baseball.
If you can’t beat ’em (1950 & 2009), join ’em.
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
