On Tuesday's WIP morning show, Phils beat reporter Randy Miller gave a candid, behind-the-scenes look at the transition of power in the Phillies front office. Miller seems to have been in the Mike Arbuckle camp, although he respectfully says Ruben Amaro Jr. is also qualified. However, Miller states that the team that won the 2008 title was built by Arbuckle, not Amaro, and not Ed Wade.
Listen to the Randy Miller podcast on this page for the full commentary, and to hear what Arbuckle was doing while you were celebrating after the parade, which may have been one of the worst days of his life.
It's a little sobering to hear the account of Amaro not being very
involved in the drafts, and portrayed as something a skater at times,
but I guess everyone has his strengths, and few people are universally loved. The Phillies need to get some
major deals done with the existing team, and also add a possible FA or
two, so hopefully Amaro can focus on that aspect, and the scouting staff
won't all skip town, so that the GM can effectively "delegate" some of those
responsibilities in his first year. The organization needs to rebuild its farm system, and scouting and development will obviously be huge
in that process.
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Bill Conlin agrees that there may be a sea change in the staff, but notes that it's a normal thing in baseball when a new GM is named (one who will likely be here longer than 3 years, anyway).
Don't be surprised if a number of key minor league people loyal to
Mike Arbuckle also seek other opportunities. Director of scouting Marti
Wolever and director, minor leagues, Steve Noworyta, worked closely
with Arbuckle. Wolever was one of Arbuckle's first hires in 1992.
Arbuckle hired the well-respected Noworyta in 1998. Gordon Lakey,
director of major league scouting since '98, had previously worked
under Pat Gillick in Toronto. Charley Kerfeld, special assistant to the
general manager, was a 2006 Gillick hire. Ditto charter Tampa Bay Rays
GM Chuck LaMar, hired by Gillick as director, professional scouting,
last October.If any or all of these valuable cogs in the Phillies' championship
wheel should move on, it would be no disrespect of Ruben Amaro, the new
GM. It is just the way baseball works. Of course, the wild card could
be held by Wall Street. In this economy, can anybody afford to be
unemployed for even 10 seconds?
Also, great question by Angelo: If Arbuckle really had big market GM
abilities, why has he been interviewed and passed over seven times so
far? Something tells me that after a parade in Philly, the eighth time
could be the charm. Either way, I'll raise a glass to him for the role he played in bringing us a title.
Related: Maybe now Angelo won't have to be as upset as he was here (note: this was captured years ago):