The Phillies bullpen is an absolute mess, which was on display this past weekend when the Mets swept them out of Citi Field to push their division rivals 11.5 games back of the NL East lead, and Joe Girardi’s deployment of his thin relief group hasn’t helped matters either for Philadelphia.
Girardi, in the final guaranteed year of his contract, is seemingly on the hot seat as the Phillies, who retooled in the offseason with additions like Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos, are now seven games below .500. Girardi told reporters on Sunday that he is not concerned about his job security, but Gio says the end is near.
“He’s gonna get fired at some point here in the middle of the season,” Gio said during Tuesday’s show, adding that a new face can help even if plenty of the team’s problems don’t have to do with the manager. “Sometimes a shot in the arm. Remember when 80-year-old Jack McKeon took over that Florida Marlins team and took them all the way to the World Series? It happens.”
McKeon was 72 years old when he took over the Marlins in mid May of 2003, after Jeff Torborg was fired. McKeon went on to lead Florida to a Wild Card berth, and eventually took down the Yankees in the World Series for the franchise’s second title. He was actually brought back in 2011 at 80 years old after Edwin Rodriguez resigned midway through the season.
So, who is the Phillies’ version of McKeon? Gio brings up two names that should be familiar to Mets fans.
“Terry Collins, he’s the guy…he’s 73,” Gio said. “He’s the guy.
“Davey Johnson, 79...he’s a guy you go to. That’s what I would do, I would dust off one of these guys. One hundred percent.”
Johnson managed the Mets to their last World Series title in 1986, while Collins managed the team to its last Fall Classic appearance in 2015. Gio says either one should take over the Phils and turn the ship around.
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