NEW YORK — Two off days, one forced by bad weather, provided Gabe Kapler with time to reflect on his first series as Phillies manager.
Some might call that series a disaster.
He calls it a learning experience.
“It's given me an opportunity to think about the areas that I need to improve as a manager,” Kapler said. “Any way you look at it, this has been very challenging. There's been some sting to losing a couple baseball games. There's been some difficult moments and there's also been a lot of opportunities to learn. I've talked to just about everybody on our staff, just about everybody in our clubhouse on the players side, the front office, thinking about various ways I can improve.”
Kapler was criticized for quick-hooking Aaron Nola with a 5-0 lead in what became an 8-5 loss to Atlanta on opening day. On Saturday night, he went to the mound to bring in a reliever but no reliever was ready to enter. The incident stemmed from a communications breakdown and the Phillies were subsequently admonished by Major League Baseball.
Kapler appeared humbled as he spoke with reporters before Tuesday night’s game against the Mets.
“When I make a mistake, it's really important for me to be accountable,” the rookie manager said. “I understand that in Philadelphia and nationally, people are going to have strong reactions and they should. I think they're justified in this particular case.
MLB
“I didn't expect the season would go over with no mistakes. I didn't expect the season wouldn't go over with moves not being scrutinized. I expected all that. I intend to be strong through those and be accountable for all of the decisions and any mistakes that I make.”
Kapler made 18 pitching changes in three games in Atlanta and the bullpen picked up 15 2/3 innings. Upon reflection, he said he would alter his tack with the bullpen.
“It was very much a plan to use a lot of our relievers in the first couple of games of the season,” he said. “Going forward, our bullpen usage will be changing a little bit.”
Kapler would not totally specify how the change would work, but he did say he would look to get more “length” out of this relievers by stretching them out and having them face more batters in an appearance.
Kapler, who shares with the front office a devotion to analytics, disputed the notion that his bullpen strategy was scripted through data study before the game even begins.
“We start with the foundation of information and then read and react off of it,” he said. “One of the things I want to convey is I have a side of me that likes to plan and prepare and I have a side of me that's very responsive to what's happening in the game. One is like my baseball side, the guy that sat in the dugout for 12 years, and that's the read and react to the game action. The planning is more what I've learned being part of a front office and then also as part of the field staff. I try to blend those two — as much planning as possible to give us that foundation of information and then get into the game, read and react, and be more of the baseball person that really is the core of who I am.”