The Philadelphia Phillies continued to make organizational changes on Sunday, just days after ensuring they’ll miss the playoffs for a 10th consecutive season. This time around, the Phillies fired hitting coach Joe Dillon and infield coach Juan Castro, according to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. Assistant hitting coach Pedro Guerrero is also free to leave, as Dillon’s successor will be able to handpick his own right-hand coach.
The Phillies lineup disappointed this season by ranking 13th in runs scored and 20th in wRC+, an advanced metric hosted by FanGraphs that adjusts for ballpark among other variables. Philadelphia received underwhelming contributions from shortstop Didi Gregorius and third baseman Alec Bohm, both of whom entered Sunday’s season finale against the Miami Marlins with OPS+ in the 70s.
Obviously it isn’t fair or reasonable to put all the blame for those players’ failures on Dillon’s shoulders — just as it would be unfair to credit him for Bryce Harper’s brilliant season, or any other individual success. That is, however, how these things tend to work, with hitting and pitching coaches serving as the first scapegoat.
Dillon, for his part, originally joined the organization as part of manager Joe Girardi’s staff in November 2019. Prior to that move, he was a member of the Washington Nationals coaching staff. Castro also joined Girardi’s staff in November 2019. Unlike Dillon, Castro had been part of the organization before then, serving as a minor-league infield coordinator.
Girardi, it should be noted, has just one guaranteed season remaining on his contract. The Phillies will have to make a decision on his club option for the 2023 season. Based on how his first two seasons at the helm have gone, it seems like a distinct possibility that the Phillies could be seeking out a new skipper around this time next year.
The Phillies have already made other changes to the organization in recent days, including hiring Preston Mattingly as farm director. Mattingly, the son of Miami Marlins skipper Don Mattingly, had previously spent five seasons in the San Diego Padres system, most recently as an advance scouting coordinator.
