As game 162 bears down upon the Phillies, management has decided to part ways with 2 members of the coaching staff. Hitting coach Joe Dillon and Infield Coach Juan Castro will not return with the Phillies in 2022.
Joe Dillon first made a name for himself as the assistant hitting coach for the 2019 World Series-winning Washington Nationals. He signed on with the Phillies in the 2020 offseason. In 2020, the Phillies had a .781 OPS, good for 7th in all of baseball. They were tied for 5th in runs scored with 306.
In 2021, the Phillies didn’t crack the top-10 in either category. Before they played game 162, they sat at 13th in runs and 14th in OPS.
Juan Castro also joined Joe Dillon for the 2020 season. Mostly a bench player in his career, he’s most well-known for making the final out in Roy Halladay’s 2010 perfect game.
The Phillies recorded a .984 fielding %, 21st in all of baseball. Their 94 errors were the 10th worst in baseball. They recorded a .983 fielding % in 2020.
As noted by Todd Zolecki, assistant hitting coach Pedro Guerrero is still on the team but will be free to search for other employment opportunities. The new Phillies hitting coach for the 2022 season will get to pick their own assistant.
One can’t help but feel that these moves were no fault of either coach. The Phillies’ loss of Rhys Hoskins and their lack of moves at the 2021 trade deadline lead to the Phillies’ stretches of inadequate hitting. Fielding-wise, the Phillies played most of the season with Alec Bohm at 3rd base and an aging Andrew McCutchen at left. Didi Gregorious at shortstop and Brad Miller at 1st base didn’t help either.
Photo by Andy Lewis/Icon Sportswire
