There are more than a few times professional sports teams prove they know more than the fans that pay to see the games. Then again, there are also more than a few instances when the fans appear to know a whole lot more than the front office people making the decisions.
For the sake of Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro, he had better hope this is one of the times the people in charge know more than the fans, because his job security is already at a critical point. Amaro recently told a reporter from Comcast Sportsnet and repeated on WIP radio that the team was not going to listen to fans who were basically moaning and groaning about the slow process of bringing up young players – specifically two promising pitchers, Aaron Nola and Zach Eflin.
Amaro, who is nothing if not assessable and candid, said that some fans “bitch and complain” about the lack of a plan, and said that these fans don’t “understand the process.” Amaro seemed annoyed that there was a growing sentiment that -- if nothing else, the pitchers should be moved up a level.
More than that, there was even some impatience to the point that at least one should actually take a spot on the Major League roster. It is a suggestion that made Amaro bristle that a portion of the fan base did not trust the Phillies’ decision process.
The problem is that the Phillies can’t show you a legitimate blueprint of where they hope to go even next week, let alone next season.
There is usually nothing to be gained from taking even the mildest shot at even a portion of a fan base, and this is no different. According to Amaro, the Phils are going to stay the course, and stick to their plan in terms of developing young players. He made it a point to stress that it was only a few people who thought the players should be rushed through the system, and not the entire fan base -- or what is left of it.
This is dangerous ground for Amaro -- and dangerous ground for the Phillies.
There are many organizations in professional sports that can truly tell people to have patience and trust the process – but the Phillies are not one of them. In the matter of about five years, the Phillies have gone from a model organization in terms of earning faith in their process, to a real question mark.
The problem here is that there is little evidence of the team having a plan in place. The Phillies have gone from a big market team willing to buy the parts needed to win a championship, to a team asking its fan base to be patient and wait for them to develop players.
And while this is going on, game after game, they are marching Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Carlos Ruiz on to the field. They are also depending on Jonathan Papelbon to be a premier closer on a team that doesn’t have enough games to close, and Cole Hamels to basically take the mound every fifth day with the term “For Sale” on the back of his uniform in place of his name.
The problem isn’t the fans’ lack of patience and distrust of a real plan. The problem is that the Phillies can’t show you a legitimate blueprint of where they hope to go even next week, let alone next season.
In the next breath -- after wondering why fans won’t trust that the Phillies have a plan -- Amaro once again defended the organizational decision to stick to its guns about Domonic Brown. It sounds like Brown is going to get yet another chance to make the big club when most fans have simply had enough of him.
Once again, Amaro will put his reputation and the Phillies organizational reputation on the line with Brown. For a very short period of time, there were signs that he could be a five-tool player, and a possible all star at the Major League level. However, other than a brief two-month flurry of success, Brown has been a major disappointment and the fans don’t trust that he is going to turn the corner.
Making matters worse, the Phils are also hopeful that Cody Asche will make his return to the Major League roster, this time as a left fielder. Let’s see, Brown was there for a time. And then Darin Ruf. And now Asche. Does that sound like a team with a plan in place?
The Phillies have always been an organization that is almost mother-like in terms of bringing along players. Even going back to the days of Ryan Howard, they don’t want their prospects leaving the nest too early – and then failing.
The Phils are an organization that repeatedly puts the brakes on player development, just to make absolutely sure that they are ready for the big step to The Show. There is a lot to be said for taking the time to develop a player, but there is also a lot to be said for taking some chances on a player, and realizing that you are not going to shatter his confidence if he has some struggles.
The problem with Amaro lecturing a portion of the fan base to have some patience and trust the Phillies game plan is that there is very little evidence that there actually is a plan in place that will work.