Gabe Kapler's Catastrophic Phillies Bullpen Management is a Fireable Offense
By Parker White
If the Philadelphia Phillies' underwhelming 2019 season after spending a ton of money in the winter isn't enough to bring in a new manager, Gabe Kapler's poor bullpen management should get him fired after just his second season in the dugout.
I understand that Kapler and the Phillies have had a lot of bad luck in the bullpen department, especially when it comes to injuries to key members, but what's the excuse for his head-scratching bullpen decisions late in games in back-to-back nights that ended in walk-off losses?
A reliever not ready to enter the game. A September call-up relied on in high-leverage spot for second straight game, resulting in another walk-off loss.
— Meghan Montemurro (@M_Montemurro) September 7, 2019
Phillies’ questionable bullpen management & communication issues put the focus back on Gabe Kapler: https://t.co/K5ln2x8IdN
On Thursday against the Cincinnati Reds, Kapler decided to use Jay Bruce as a pinch-hitter for Adam Haseley, which Kapler said after the game was because he was looking for one run. So, basically he took out a hot hitter for someone who has the aptitude to hit a solo home run.
It's not that logical, but it's a reason.
Kapler made that decision even worse because he substituted Sean Rodriguez in for Bruce after the inning, wasting a pinch-hitter for the tenth inning. Why didn't he just double-switch and have Rodriguez lead off the next inning? He could have gotten an extra frame out of Hector Neris besides.
Gabe Kapler said the decisions to PH Bruce for Haseley and to not double-switch Neris were because the Phillies were playing for one run to win -- essentially playing for the HR there. https://t.co/ndpnWnEIvZ
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) September 5, 2019
Mistakes happen. He'll make up for it the next night against the New York Mets, right? Nope.
In the eighth inning of a tie game Friday night, Phillies right-handed reliever Blake Parker walked two batters. Well, after the first walk and subsequent sacrifice bunt, Kapler should've had someone warming up in the bullpen.
He ended up having Neris begin to warm up, but he clearly wasn't ready when he entered the game to face Pete Alonso, who drove in the go-ahead run. Neris continued in the inning and allowed another RBI hit to Wilson Ramos, giving the Mets the lead.
Phillies lose back-to-back games with September call-up Nick Vincent on the mound. https://t.co/vaB0caNn5x
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) September 7, 2019
It doesn't matter that the Phillies tied the game in the top of the next inning. Hell, they could've had a lead if Kapler didn't bring in a guy who wasn't properly warmed up and clearly didn't have good stuff.
It's like Kapler hasn't learned from the first series of LAST SEASON when he brought in Hoby Milner after not having him warned up.
Kapler seems like a nice guy, but when it comes to managing a baseball team and being prepared strategically, he's lacking. He's not the skipper of a rebuilding team. The Phillies have expectations to win, and too many times they are losing games because of Kapler's ineptitude at managing a bullpen.