Roy Halladay loves Charlie Manuel. All the same, the rehabbing pitcher says that it was time for a change in Philadelphia.
Manuel was fired as manager of the Phillies on Friday, in a lot of ways putting an end to the team’s glory days surrounding its 2008 and 2009 World Series runs. Still, Halladay, who on Tuesday was pitching for the Low-A Lakewood BlueClaws, says that the team’s struggles may not be just because of an aging roster and questionable decisions on the part of general manager Ruben Amaro Jr.
Halladay says that the Phillies just didn’t have as much discipline as they used to.
“Obviously, I loved [Manuel]. He was great,” Halladay told reporters after his rehab start. “But from what I’ve seen, Ryne [Sandberg] came in and made some changes and addressed some issues that I think were being overlooked. So from that standpoint, as much as I miss Charlie, I think that Ryne’s going to do a good job and I think he’s going to bring back a little more of the Phillie baseball style than we’ve had the last couple of years. You know, we really haven’t had that whole team effort and the whole team hustle that I think we’ve had in prior years.”
Halladay was then asked to specify what was being “overlooked.”
“Guys being in places on time. Being on the field on time,” Halladay said. “Taking ground balls, taking extra BP, and all those little things that nobody thinks makes a difference.”
Although Halladay seems to be making a direct connection between sidework and wins and losses, it’s a dubious argument. The Tampa Bay Rays, for instance, are famously known to not set times for players to show up to the ballpark, and expect them to get their work in without prodding. Since the players in questions are adults and experts at their trade, it doesn’t seem too much a stretch to expect that without managerial oversight.
Nonetheless, Halladay is very old school in some ways, so perhaps his comments shouldn’t be that surprising. Check out everything he had to say in the video below.
