The Phillies Fire Manager Joe Girardi, but Their Flaws Run Deeper

But the Phillies’ flaws ran deep. They held a top-10 pick in five consecutive drafts, from 2014 through 2018, and uncovered just one player, starter Aaron Nola, who has made a major impact. Dombrowski, who was hired in December 2020, overhauled the team’s player-development staff last September.

Harper and starter Zack Wheeler have been wise investments, and Realmuto — acquired from Miami in a trade, then signed to a long-term contract — has made two All-Star teams for the Phillies. But without a pipeline of cheap, young players who would get better with time, the Phillies have been forced to continue importing expensive veterans.

That is often a dubious strategy, because many players with enough service time to command high salaries have often already peaked. Older teams can win, as Girardi’s Yankees did in 2009. But that roster was packed with players worthy of Hall of Fame consideration; this Phillies roster is much weaker.

Girardi, then, could only do so much. His Yankees teams, collectively, had 200 more victories than losses — 910-710. But Girardi’s three Phillies teams went 132-141, a stressful and unfulfilling stay in a demanding sports town. As Girardi packed his office late Friday morning, Dombrowski said, Middleton and others sensed a shift in his mood.

“By the end, he was in a much more relieved state, I would say,” Dombrowski said. “The pressure was off his back.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/03/sports/baseball/philadelphia-phillies-fire-joe-girardi.html