Just three games in, Klentak gives Kapler his support

NEW YORK » The pitchers have the support of the manager, and the manager has the support of the general manager, and the general manager has the support of ownership. Such were the messages swirling Tuesday evening at Citi Field, where baseball’s newest, most captivating reality show had come to entertain.

Three games. Three of them. That’s all it took for Matt Klentak to fit Gabe Kapler with a vote of confidence, a procedure that typically takes months, or seasons, or for the bulk of a career.

These games. Three of them. That’s all it took for Kapler to announce that he would re-set his bullpen policies. Three? This could be a blast.

“We unfortunately have the combination of a rookie manager and a tough first three games, then an off day, then a rainout, with nothing else to talk about,” Klentak was saying before a game against the Mets. “And that’s why we are where we are. But I think Kap is going to be absolutely fine with managing the bullpen, and I think our team is just as talented today as it was in spring training, when we were all talking really positively about the club.”

Kapler ultimately will be judged on his record, and will be given 300 games, not three, before it means much in a global baseball sense. But he lugged a 1-2 record into New York after using six pitchers in his first game, nine in his second and six in his third, including Pedro Florimon, a position player. And New York is a tough place to hide. So Kapler’s office was filled with more press than he might have seen in Clearwater or Atlanta, just because it is closer to Philadelphia, but also because nothing can drag out the media better than an unexpected blast of oddity.

And that’s when Kapler struck first, revealing that, after some self-examination, he wouldn’t likely burn a bullpen the way he’d done before it was even eligible for April Fools status.

“I spent the last 48 hours thinking about how to get a little more length out of our pen,” the manager said. “It was very much a plan to use a lot of our relievers in the first couple games of the season. Now we’re starting to think about how we’re going to have to read and react. There’s no way we can continue with the bullpen usage like we did because guys are going to be down. “Goon… “There has to be some reading and reacting. I’ve spent the last 48 hours digging into how to improve our bullpen usage and be really good at it going forward, to really respect the arms and keep people healthy and strong, to not overuse them while still respecting how to mix and match and be creative with a very deep bullpen.”

Maybe Kapler was trapped by the excitement of being a first-time, major-league manager. Some of it was by design, with the Phillies deliberately loading their roster with relievers. Some of the trouble may have been because two of the relief pitchers central to the plot to shorten games, Pat Neshek and Tommy Hunter, began the season injured. But it all conspired to, among other ripples, catch Hoby Milner in a net of questioners, wondering how it felt to have led the majors in firstweek headlines. For that was Milner whom Kapler decided to turn to Saturday, that even before he’d warmed in the bullpen. If it was a player making such a rookie mistake, he’d have been assigned by the veterans to wear a false face on the team plane.

“It has not been long for me,” said Milner, reacting to his fresh inclusion among the Beautiful People. “I wish it wasn’t the case. But it is what it is, and we’re just going to keep on showing up to the field and doing what we’re doing.”

That was as sensible a move as any. That, along with double-checking to make sure the bullpen phone was functioning.

“Andy (MacPhail) was on the trip with us in Atlanta,” Klentak said. “So I spent some time just talking with him on the plane. I think the beauty of Andy, of our ownership, of a lot of our experienced baseball people, is that they know that three games do not make a season.

“Three games, as challenging as they may have been, are not going to undo all of the positives that have occurred over the last six months, both on and off the field. And I think we’re fortunate to have leadership in the organization above my pay grade that fully recognizes that as well.”

The Phillies should be interesting. Rhys Hoskins was off to a strong start. Scott Kingery, versatile and hungry, was too. Jake Arrieta, among the more gifted right-handers in the game, will start Sunday. There is some power. And the bullpen is deep … within reason.

“I didn’t expect that the season wouldn’t go over with moves not being scrutinized at all,” Kapler said. “I expected all of that. I intend to be strong through those and be accountable for all of the decisions and any mistakes that I make.”

He’s made some already. His general manager has agreed to look the other way. Baseball can be a fast game sometimes.

Contact Jack McCaffery@jmccaffery@21stcenturymedia.com; follow him on Twitter@JackMcCaffery.