A rumor surfaced on Monday afternoon that Phillies fans were not happy about.
According to Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer, a team source said he does not think the Phillies will fire Matt Klentak.
This runs counter to what most MLB insiders have been saying about Klentak's future with Philadelphia. Last week, Ken Rosenthal reported that Klentak was on the hot seat and could loose his job if the Phillies did not make a deep playoff run.
Jim Bowden also chimed in, saying Klentak is "expected to be let go" by early this week.
Here is Bowden's full piece on Klentak:
If the Phillies don’t make the playoffs, Klentak is expected to be let go early next week; if they do earn a postseason berth, the Phillies will probably need to get past the wild card series to save his job.
The team made several solid moves under his leadership, such as signing free agents Bryce Harper and Zack Wheeler, but both of those acquisitions could be credited more to owner John Middleton playing checkbook baseball. Klentak’s most important trade was the acquisition of the game’s best catcher, J.T.
Realmuto, although his failure to sign him to a long-term contract almost negates the value of the deal, considering he gave up a package that included future pitching ace Sixto Sánchez. And while Klentak continually tried to improve the bullpen, he could not assemble a competitive unit – the Phillies are the only team in baseball with a bullpen ERA north of 7.00.
Related
The Phillies had to go 2-6 in their final eight games to make the NL playoffs as a wild card team.
Instead, they went 1-7 and were swept by the Rays in their final series. A number of questions loom on the horizon for this team, including whether or not they resign star catcher J.T. Realmuto.