Phillies hire Girardi; Padres add Tingler
PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Phillies hired former Yankees manager Joe Girardi to replace Gabe Kapler on Thursday. Girardi will be introduced at a news conference Monday.
“I’m excited for this next chapter of my career,” Girardi said in a statement. “The Phillies have a strong commitment to winning from the owners to the front office to the players to the fans. It’s something that I’ve seen up close for the last 30 years of my baseball career. I played against the great Phillies players of the early ‘90s from Dutch Daulton to John Kruk to Dave Hollins, and I managed against their teams during the incredible run they had from 2008 to 2011. To have my name now associated with this great franchise is something that I couldn’t be happier about.”
It was a busy day around the league for managerial hirings. The Chicago Cubs tabbed former catcher David Ross to replace Joe Maddon, and the San Diego Padres turned to rookie manager Jayce Tingler. The Los Angeles Angels introduced Maddon.
Kapler was fired after an injury-depleted team went 81-81 despite significant offseason additions highlighted by Bryce Harper’s arrival. He was 161-163 in his two seasons. The Phillies also interviewed Dusty Baker and Buck Showalter.
The Cubs hired the 42-year-old Ross, who played the final two of his 15 major league seasons with the Cubs and was a revered leader on the 2016 team that won the World Series, ending the infamous championship drought dating to 1908. He spent the past three years in Chicago’s front office and was widely viewed as a potential replacement for Maddon, one of the most successful managers in franchise history with a 471-339-1 record in five seasons.
“I’m honored by this opportunity to be the next manager of the Chicago Cubs,” Ross said in a statement. “My time with this organization has been special since the day I joined, so to continue with the club in this role is a blessing for which I’m so very thankful.”
Chairman Tom Ricketts described Ross as a “proven winner.” And president of baseball operations Theo Epstein called him “as gifted a leader as I’ve ever come across.”
The Padres tabbed the 38-year-old Tingler to replace Andy Green, who was fired on Sept. 21 near the end of his fourth season.
Padres management had placed an emphasis on experience as they began their process. Players also seemed eager to play for a manager who had won elsewhere. In other news:
Yankees center fielder Aaron Hicks will undergo Tommy John surgery on his right elbow that will keep him out 8-10 months. GM Brian Cashman said pitcher Masahiro Tanaka had arthroscopic surgery to remove bone spurs in his pitching elbow.
First baseman Luke Voit had surgery on Thursday to address bilateral core muscle injuries. Voit’s second half was impacted due to a sports hernia.
Joe West, a longtime umpire for MLB, has sued former catcher Paul Lo Duca, accusing him of defamation for comments on a podcast that described West trading an expanded strike zone for the right to drive a pitcher’s classic car.
The complaint, filed in a New York state court Tuesday, also names the Action Network, a sports website that focuses on betting and that carried the podcast, as a defendant. The lawsuit rebuts the comments made by Lo Duca on the podcast, which was posted this spring.
West has been a fulltime baseball umpire since 1978 and is the head of the Major League Baseball Umpires Association.