Gabe Kapler won’t be fired this season, GM Matt Klentak says

Gabe Kapler said Monday that he wants his time as Phillies manager to be judged by how his team is performing. So far, Kapler’s boss is giving him high marks.

Kapler, general manager Matt Klentak said, will be the team’s manager for the rest of the season. The Phillies entered Monday on a seven-game losing streak, hold a record that is just a win over .500, and trail first-place Atlanta by 6.5 games. A season that began with such optimism is beginning to sour.

But changes to the coaching staff are not imminent.

“My view right now is that the wrong thing to do is to point a finger at any one person and say you are the reason this is happening,” Klentak said. “I do not believe that.”

So Klentak is committed to Kapler for the rest of the year?

“Yes sir,” Klentak said. “Gabe Kapler is our manager. Our staff is our staff. Look, I’ve been a part of teams that have made in-season staff changes. I understand how that can happen. But right now I do not think that is the right way for us to go."

Klentak said no one works harder or communicates better than Kapler. The manager, Klentak said, continues to make adjustments. Kapler entered Monday with a 119-120 record as Phillies manager since being hired in October of 2017. He has a three-year contract that runs through next season.

“It doesn’t bother me,” Kapler said of the pressure that seems to be mounting in the city. “I knew that coming to the city of Philadelphia and being a coach or manager in this town comes with high demands, a high bar, it comes with a lot of expectations. I appreciate it.”

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