Kapler plans to manage with his own analytics
PHILADELPHIA» Gabe Kapler will let his starting pitchers work into the seventh, eight hand ninth innings. And Ga be Kapler will drag his starting pitchers back to the dugout after 50 crooked throws.
Gabe Kapler will order sacrifice bunts, playing for one run, early and late, at home andon the road. And Gabe Kapler will dismiss the sacrifice bunt as an archaic baseball gimmick and order his hitters to aim for the center-field light towers.
Gabe Kapler will manage one way when he feels like managing one way. And he will manage another way when his pile of analytic print-outs suggests it is the bestway to win a game. That’s the new Phillies manager, and his plan, and his style, even if that is contrary to the quick-take narrative.
“I will make sure I get a well rounded view of every situation andmake the best decision for the Philadelphia Phillies in themoment,” Kapler said. “And that strategy might change from one game to the next.”
He’s 42, the youngest Phillies manager since Terry Francona, and he came to Citizens Bank Park Thursdaywith 11 tattoos, 12 if the stereotype is included. The stereotype is that anyone around the age of Bill Giles’ grandkids will be so married to analytics that he will make no decision not supported by advanced baseball calculus. But that’s not how it works; at least it’s not how Kapler plans tomake it work. Instead, he vows to surround himself with what he called a “diversity” of coaches with plentiful styles and experiences, that hewill consult them regularly, and he will do what he thinks is right.
He isnot asking a process tobe trusted, for no sport often played in thewind is easily solved by a computer or a theory.
“Iwill find every bit of information, whether it be traditional information, small-ball information, big-ball information, medical information, strength and conditioning information, just every little detail with how a player is tomatch up with another player,” he promised. “And then I’ll make the decision withall of the information. I don’t have one specific strategy norwill I ever have one specific strategy.”
Kapler is the 54th Phillies manager, and if he takes the best from mostof them, he will be best for the operation. He’s young and willing to try new ideas, like Gene Mauch. He is a communicator, like Jim Fregosi. When hewas a player, he was known to be a splendid leader inthe room, and nobody worked a clubhouse like Charlie Manuel. And maybe he’s nothing like Ryne Sandberg, which is a good thing too.
Because nothing is secret any more, Kapler arrived in Philadelphia to at least some squinted eyes
A fitness blogger of some accomplishment in a previous professional life, Kapler has advocated au natural sunbathing and eating chicken bones, among other brash ideas. Some couldbe a little vivid; allwere in the spiritof endeavoring to help people, baseball players included, gain maximum physical fitness. Butwhat has baseball been for its entire existence except for a little sideways? Books have been written about ballplayers’ quirks. The 1993 Phillies were a famously odd a group of grown men, yet they reached the World Series. Tug McGraw was a noted screw ball, and not just because of his favorite pitch. The Phil lies have been through pill scandals and Pete Rose and Richie Allen missing batting practices to catch the 11 that Mon mouth.
In that sport, different works. “He has a unique ability to connect with people,” Matt Klentak said. “We saw this in the interview process. But we’ve also seen this in our talks with people who have been around him in his career. He can connect with players. He can connect with themedia. He can connect with the front office. He has a very unique ability to do that. I think that bodes verywell for our young roster.”
That mayor may not make Cesar Hernandez a better base runner. But if the second baseman is thrown out in the third inning, Kapler promises to provide advice on how not to be thrown out in the seventh. Of course, he just came out of the front office of the Dodgers organization, which spends money on players, not on upgrades to the stadium public address system. But he’ll adjust there, too.
“We’re going tomake razor sharp turns around the bases,” he said. “When the ball enters the hitting zone, we’re going tobe in powerful and athletic positions. Before the game begins, we’re going toprepare, prepare, prepare so that we’ve thought out everything andmake strong decisions. We’re going to hunt for value at the margins. We’re not going to leave any stone unturned to find our competitive advantages.
“We’re going to think traditionally and we’re going to think progressively. We’re going to mold those two things together.”
Traditional. And progressive. Analytical, but adaptive. That’s how Gabe Kapler will manage no matter what the book says.
To contact Jack McCaffery, email himat jmccaffery@21stcenturymedia.com; follow himon Twitter@JackMcCaffery