Phillies need to clear the benches


This post is long overdue, but it’s one that was talked about here on the FightinPhillies.com blog toward the end of last season. The Phillies had turned in a miserable season last year, and it wasn’t too far away from the season that they turned in before that. I know all the talk has been about rebuilding and having patience for the rebuild to take place. You can even read a piece in the papers today around Philadelphia by Matt Gelb, Philly.com Phillies beat writer, on the patience needed for young Phillies pitchers.

What can’t be understood by this writer or many other fans of the Phillies is how the same bunch of bench coaches have hung onto this team even though it is doing so poorly, even during the ‘rebuild’ that has been ongoing for several years now.

The time has clearly come for the Phils to clear the benches of this coaching staff, except for the manager, Pete Mackanin, who has inherited this bunch and deserves better. What hitting coach stays around with the worst offense in the league that long? Look at the Phillies, and it’s as if the position doesn’t even matter. Same can be said for the pitching. It’s up, and down, all round. There’s no rhyme or reason to why these coaches havent’ been replaced yet. I know they aren’t on the field making things happen, but every now and again you have to look at what’s happening with the team, and it’s not pretty right now.

Another Phillies blogger set out a twitter post to this just yesterday,  

And how could anyone not be disappointed with the coaching? We’ve seen the same mistakes night after night, this is a young team, but they’ve been playing baseball professionally for a long time now. The message is not getting through.

The talk around the Phillies will start to gravitate towards the expansion of the rosters on the 1st of September, we’ll be seeing some players come up from the minors and some old familiar faces to help this team on the field out and be able to play the rest of this season out. This coaching debacle cannot and shouldn’t be forgotten by the fans, you’re the one paying for the tickets, going to the stadium and supporting this team, in addition to the television revenue that has presumably isn’t being used for baseball purposes anymore cause the team is acting like it has no money to spend.

Your coaches for this 2016 Phillies team: (need to be replaced)

Steve Henderson– hitting coach (mind you the Phillies have been one of the worst hitting teams the past couple years)

Steve Henderson #5

Photo of Steve Hendersonphi

Full Name:
Steve Henderson
Uniform #:
5

COACHING CAREER: Named Phillies hitting coach on Oct. 4, 2012…Prior to being named to his current position, spent three seasons as a minor league coordinator for the Phillies: outfield/baserunning (2010) and hitting (2011-12)…Was TB’s hitting coach for five years (1998; 2006-09) and the minor league hitting coordinator for eight years (1997; 1999-2005)…Spent three years as a coach with HOU (1994-96), the last two as the hitting coach…Served as a minor league coach for PIT for four years (1990-93).
PLAYING CAREER: Played 16 professional seasons, including parts of 12 years in the Major Leagues…Selected by CIN in the June 1974 draft…Finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 1977 to Andre Dawson…Led NYM in RBI (65) in his rookie year of 1977.
PERSONAL: Steven Curtis Henderson… Married Pam Baxley (Nov. 15, 1980)…1970 graduate of Jack Yates High School (TX)… Attended Prairie View A&M University (TX)… Hobby: Golf.
Bob McClure – pitching coach (who could forget the infamous phone of the hook trick in Washington DC when all Bob wanted to do was call in a relief pitcher, wave the white flag, this was a sign if nothing else)

Robert McClure #22

COACHING CAREER: Named Phillies pitching coach on Nov. 21, 2013…Was not affiliated with a club for the 2013 season after working as BOS’ pitching coach in 2012; had originally joined BOS as a special assignment scout/instructor prior to being named pitching coach…Spent six seasons (2006-11) as KC’s pitching coach where he guided 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner Zack Greinke, among others…Served as a minor league pitching coach for COL for seven years (1999-2005), including three years with Salem (A, 1999-2001) and four with Colorado Springs (AAA, 2002-05)…Coached his son’s Sequoia High School baseball teams in Redwood City, CA from 1995-98…Worked as a scout for FLA in 1996…Began the 1994 season as FLA’s bullpen catcher before being promoted to bullpen coach in May of 1994, a position he held for the remainder of the season.
PITCHING CAREER: Selected by KC in the third round of the secondary phase of the 1973 draft…Pitched for parts of 19 seasons in the Major Leagues (1975-93)…Was a member of the 1982 AL Champion Brewers…Earned the win in relief in the deciding Game 5 of the 1982 ALCS vs CAL.
PERSONAL: Robert Craig McClure… Married Shirley Brockmeier; has four sons: Jake, Adam and twins Teddy and Brock, and one daughter, Jessica… 1970 graduate of Terra Nova High School (Pacifica, CA), where he lettered in baseball, football and basketball… Played at the College of San Mateo (CA); went 17-1 and batted .340 in his college career and earned All-State and All-America honors… Played Little League baseball with former All-Star first baseman Keith Hernandez…Hobbies: Keeping up with his twins and saltwater fly fishing.

Larry Bowa- Bench coach (Love Larry, but it’s time to move on, he’s a lifetime Phillies all-time favorite player but hasn’t brought nothing to the table on making things happen for this team. He’s better off not being on this Phillies coaching staff)

Lawrence Bowa #10

MANAGING/COACHING CAREER: 2016 is his 51st year associated with MLB, 42nd in the major leagues and 32nd with the Phillies…Is one of eight men to manage, coach and play for the Phillies…Named Phillies bench coach and infield instructor on 10/8/13, his second stint as a coach with the club; was previously the third base coach, 1988-96…Also was third base coach for the Angels (1997-99), Mariners (2000), Yankees (2006-07) and Dodgers (2008-10)…Coached on six teams that went to the playoffs (1993 PHI, 2000 SEA, 2006-07 NYY, 2008-09 LAD)…Spent four years as manager of the Phillies (2001-04) and one-plus for the Padres (1987-88)…Named 2001 NL Manager of the Year by the Baseball Writers Association of America, The Sporting News, USA Today Baseball Weekly and ESPN the Magazine, after managing the Phillies to their first winning season since 1993…Managed the Las Vegas Stars (SD’s triple-A affiliate) to the Pacific Coast League championship in 1986…Served as bench coach for Team USA in the 2013 World Baseball Classic
PLAYING CAREER: Five-time NL All-Star (three starts)…two-time Gold Glove Award winner…Finished with a .980 fielding percentage…Played 2,222 career games at SS and five at second base…12-year Phillies career ended Oct. 27, 1982, when traded to CHI with Ryne Sandberg for Ivan DeJesus…Played in one Division Series, four LCS and one World Series with the Phillies and one LCS with CHI…Holds World Series record starting seven double plays in 1980…Ranks second in NL history in most games played at SS (2,222), trailing only Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith (2,511), and sixth in MLB history behind Omar Vizquel (2,709), Luis Aparicio (2,583), Derek Jeter (2,544), Smith and Cal Ripken Jr. (2,302)…Ranks second in NL history in highest fielding percentage (.980) by a SS (min. 1,000 games), behind Jimmy Rollins (.983), and sixth in MLB history trailing Omar Vizquel (.985), Rollins, J.J. Hardy (.982), Mike Bordick (.982) and Cesar Izturis (.981)…Led the NL in fielding six times: 1971-72, 1976, 1978-79, 1983…Finished third in MVP voting in 1978, behind Dave Parker and Steve Garvey.
PERSONAL: Lawrence Robert Bowa… Married Patty McQuivey (11/6/15)… Has one daughter, Victoria (Tori) Ashley (7/20/83)… 1963 graduate of McClatchy High School (Sacramento, CA), where he lettered in baseball and basketball… Attended Sacramento City College… Spent one winter working in the Phillies ticket office… Was formerly a member of the Phillies Speakers Bureau… Honorary Chairman of Christmas Seals Drive (1973)… Member of Phillies basketball team which participated in fund-raising games during the mid-1970s… One of many players who worked with Garry Maddox in fund-raising events for the Philadelphia Child Guidance Clinic… Has been a permanent resident of the Philadelphia area since 1976… Has written two books: Bleep: Larry Bowa Manages (1988) and I Still Hate to Lose (2004)… Was inducted into the South Atlantic League Hall of Fame in 2002, the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame in 2009 and the Sacramento Sports Hall of Fame in 2016… Spent the 2005 season as a studio analyst for ESPN’s Baseball Tonight and co-host for Sirius/XM Radio and worked three years (2011-13) as a studio analyst for MLB Network.
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