Anyone with half a brain can tell you, Charlie Manuel is not the best manager in Major League Baseball. At the beginning of his managing stint with the Phillies, he was more overmatched than Tyson vs Mrs. Granny Smith when compared against most of the managers he went up against. He had no knowledge of how and when to implement a double switch and had no idea how to manage a bullpen. This partially had to do with the fact that he was an American League manager who really never had to worry about managing a lineup with the DH and in turn, needed less bench players with more pitchers to choose from when coming into the late innings. And so, he was dubbed Jolly Charlie. The Phillies currently are 1 game out of the wild card and the division pennant. Last year they finished 85-77 and the year before that they finished 88-74 and all of this was under manager Charlie Manuel. So what do you think? Do you think the Phillies should look to go out and find another manager to get the team over the hump, or should they extend his contract for another season or two?
Here’s what you’ll have for the next few years. A lineup that contains Chase Utley(22 HR’s,101 RBI’s 102 Runs scored), Jimmy Rollins(30 HR’s, 91 RBI’s, 135 runs), Pat Burrell (29 HR’s, 95 RBI’s, 111 Walks) and Ryan Howard (43 HR’s, 128 RBI’s, 106 Walks). This is arguably the best 1-4 lineup in all of baseball not to mention you still have the opportunity to resign Aaron Rowland and Jayson Werth and don’t forget that fiery Carlos Ruiz behind the plate for the next couple years. With Cole Hamels, Brett Myers, and Kyle Kendrick as your possible top three pitchers automatically makes this team next year to be the odds on favorite in the National League. Hell, if the Phillies would have started out 3-9, we wouldn’t even half to worry about making the playoffs. We would be worried about home field advantage. But the point is all these guys produced with Charlie as the manager. They played for this guy because he didn’t put pressure on them and he knew that these guys can coach themselves. Jimmy Williams is in the dugout with him to help with those managerial decisions but when it comes right down to it, this teams just needs 2 solid relief pitchers. If we didn’t have Antonio "I'll gauge you with my 6 fingers" Alfonseca or Joe Table (that is what Jose Mesa stands for in Spanish) pitching for this team, we would have about 3 or 4 more wins. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen these two guys blow leads. We need to do some good scouting and pick up some relievers that aren’t scared to pitch in this ballpark. I can deal with Madison, Romero, Gordon, and Geary along with 2 more above average relievers.
Simply put, I say Yea for Charlie Manuel. These players simply love this guy for whatever reason. He is 259-223 with a .537 winning percentage and the players have already shown they want to play for him. All that is needed is some help in that dreadful bullpen and I think we will be a dominant team in the NL East, just like the Braves were for all those years. The Braves had 3 young stud pitchers and a potent lineup with an elite bullpen. All we are missing is an elite bullpen. It's hard to find a coach you want to play for and that knows baseball. I truly do not think Charlie as a manager since he has more than likely mismanaged us and cost the team 4 or 5 games this year. But to bring in another manager who may or may not get this team to play for him is too much of a risk. Charlie has gotten this team within striking distance of a pennant and that is with all the injury problems this team hs had. Remember, Utley, Howard, Victorino, Rowland, Madson, Hamels, Lieber and Myers have all missed a significant portion of the season and Charlie was still able to get their replacements to produce. Maybe management will loosen their belt and spend some money this off season. I personally just hope those bastard Metropolitans in New York keep blowin like a cheap date and loose the rest of their games this year.
Here’s what you’ll have for the next few years. A lineup that contains Chase Utley(22 HR’s,101 RBI’s 102 Runs scored), Jimmy Rollins(30 HR’s, 91 RBI’s, 135 runs), Pat Burrell (29 HR’s, 95 RBI’s, 111 Walks) and Ryan Howard (43 HR’s, 128 RBI’s, 106 Walks). This is arguably the best 1-4 lineup in all of baseball not to mention you still have the opportunity to resign Aaron Rowland and Jayson Werth and don’t forget that fiery Carlos Ruiz behind the plate for the next couple years. With Cole Hamels, Brett Myers, and Kyle Kendrick as your possible top three pitchers automatically makes this team next year to be the odds on favorite in the National League. Hell, if the Phillies would have started out 3-9, we wouldn’t even half to worry about making the playoffs. We would be worried about home field advantage. But the point is all these guys produced with Charlie as the manager. They played for this guy because he didn’t put pressure on them and he knew that these guys can coach themselves. Jimmy Williams is in the dugout with him to help with those managerial decisions but when it comes right down to it, this teams just needs 2 solid relief pitchers. If we didn’t have Antonio "I'll gauge you with my 6 fingers" Alfonseca or Joe Table (that is what Jose Mesa stands for in Spanish) pitching for this team, we would have about 3 or 4 more wins. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen these two guys blow leads. We need to do some good scouting and pick up some relievers that aren’t scared to pitch in this ballpark. I can deal with Madison, Romero, Gordon, and Geary along with 2 more above average relievers.
Simply put, I say Yea for Charlie Manuel. These players simply love this guy for whatever reason. He is 259-223 with a .537 winning percentage and the players have already shown they want to play for him. All that is needed is some help in that dreadful bullpen and I think we will be a dominant team in the NL East, just like the Braves were for all those years. The Braves had 3 young stud pitchers and a potent lineup with an elite bullpen. All we are missing is an elite bullpen. It's hard to find a coach you want to play for and that knows baseball. I truly do not think Charlie as a manager since he has more than likely mismanaged us and cost the team 4 or 5 games this year. But to bring in another manager who may or may not get this team to play for him is too much of a risk. Charlie has gotten this team within striking distance of a pennant and that is with all the injury problems this team hs had. Remember, Utley, Howard, Victorino, Rowland, Madson, Hamels, Lieber and Myers have all missed a significant portion of the season and Charlie was still able to get their replacements to produce. Maybe management will loosen their belt and spend some money this off season. I personally just hope those bastard Metropolitans in New York keep blowin like a cheap date and loose the rest of their games this year.
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