Gabe Kapler hire brings Phillies into the new age of baseball managers
On Thursday afternoon, Gabe Kapler was introduced as the new manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. But on Wednesday, he was still part of a Los Angeles Dodgers organization playing in the World Series against the Houston Astros. The Astros captured Game 7 in Los Angeles to win their first World Series title, but it is both teams that the Phillies are hoping to model after with the hire of Kapler as their new manager.
By committing to Kapler, the Phillies are investing in the two biggest trends in new baseball managers today: an ability to connect with younger players and a solid foundational knowledge of baseball analytics.
The Phillies job was not the first managerial position Kapler went for. In fact, Kapler was a finalist for the Dodgers job in 2015 before the team picked Dave Roberts. It has turned out to be a pretty good pick, as Roberts has brought Los Angeles to the NLCS and World Series in his first two seasons.
Despite losing out to Roberts, Kapler stayed with the Dodgers as their Director of Player Development. Led by president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers have moved to the front of the analytics movement in Major League Baseball.
Therefore, Kapler is well-versed in the analytics that drive the game of baseball today. With how significant of a role that advanced stats play in today’s game, it is imperative to have a manager who knows how to implement these analytics into the everyday game plan. With a Phillies front office led by general manager Matt Klentak that places a high value on the use of analytics, Kapler should be a very good fit.
But it isn’t just an in-depth knowledge and understanding of advanced stats that makes Kapler an attractive managerial choice. In fact, it is his own youth and his ability to connect with younger players that makes him an appealing choice for Philadelphia.
As the head of LA’s player development program, Kapler oversaw the Dodgers’ entire minor league system. One of his responsibilities required him to constantly interact and work with prospects in the organization and monitor their growth in the farm system. At the young, ripe age of 42, Kapler’s voice will be welcomed in a clubhouse that is sure to be dominated by talented young players in 2018. Kapler could be the perfect person to lead the Phillies young, developing core next season and into the future.
Here’s Kapler gushing about his excitement to take over the Phillies roster:
In addition to his analytics background and experience working closely with younger players, Kapler’s playing days in the majors make him someone who could be a very successful manager. During his 12-year playing career, Kapler was nothing more than a role player. He made no All-Star teams while playing for six different franchises. But Kapler was a World Series champion in 2004 when he helped the Boston Red Sox end their 86-year championship drought.
Having won a World Series, yet not being a star player, Kapler has the unique ability to connect with just about every player on his roster. Often times, the best managers and coaches in sports were role players during their playing days. The ability to connect and relate to one’s players can be the difference between a good and a great manager. Look at the likes of Joe Maddon and Terry Francona, just to name a few (two managers who Kapler played for). Other than his lack of managerial experience, there’s no doubt that Kapler can be a great manager.
But he’s not the first of his kind to get a managerial position. In fact, some of the best teams in baseball are following the same path. Look no further than the two teams that battled it out in the Fall Classic.
One of Kapler’s teammates in Boston back in 2004 was Roberts, whose steal in the ninth inning of Game 4 of the ALCS against the New York Yankees propelled the Red Sox to their historic series comeback and championship run. Like Kapler, Roberts was a role player who bounced between five teams during his 10-year career. At age 45 and having established a great rapport with his players, Roberts has excelled with the Dodgers after serving as a coach with the San Diego Padres for five seasons.
But across the diamond, the newly-crowned World Series champion Astros have followed the same model as well. Like the Dodgers, the Astros front office is steeped in analytics. As a result, their manager A.J. Hinch knows the advanced metrics of baseball quite well.
But Hinch, age 43, is a young manager who also spent his entire seven-year playing career as a role player on four different teams. In his first three seasons with Houston, Hinch has taken the Astros to two division titles and playoff appearances. Oh, and a World Series title too. Not too bad. But before he was a manager, Hinch worked in scouting and player development too.
Look no further than his bench coach from this year’s championship team as another example of the new era of young, player-first managers: Alex Cora. The 42-year-old Cora will be taking over as the manager of the Red Sox, a team he won a World Series title with in 2007. Like the other managers I’ve written about here, Cora was a role player on the six teams he played for during his 14 major league seasons. Not surprisingly, there’s a palpable excitement over Cora in Beantown.
This is the growing trend in baseball managers today, and the Phillies have officially joined the party by bringing in Gabe Kapler.
