Greg Hall
In a not-so-shocking personnel change, the Phillies have relieved John Mallee of his duties as the team’s hitting coach and replaced him with a familiar face, former manager Charlie Manuel, for the remainder of the 2019 season. The club, in a desperate need for a jolt, has slipped to fourth place in the National League East and have been a below average offensive team over the past few months.
With the Phillies’ shift into an analytical-driven team, the move to bring back an “old school” face like Manuel, who served as the team’s manager from 2005-13, in an everyday role can be questioned on the surface, but since the move is not permanent, it brings the Phillies a short-term hitting guru along with a beloved personality with the fan base.
Manuel won the division title five times, two National League pennants and the 2008 World Series in his tenure as skipper.
With only 44 games left in the regular season, the Phillies hope Manuel can give the team the spark it needs to get back into contention, now two games out of the second Wild Card spot. Since the All-Star break, the Phillies offense has ranked 26th or worse in OPS, batting average and runs scored, among other statistics.
Manuel has worked miracles before in Phillies pinstripes; he is being called upon to do so again.
You can follow Greg Hall on Twitter (@WePodAndWeKnow) and e-mail him at [email protected].
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