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When the Phillies swept the Cubs last week, it felt like for the first time in a long time that they might be poised to go on a run.

Baseball is weird like that.

The flaws and inconvenient truths embedded in the numbers built by over more than a 100-game sample be damned, it sure seemed the Phillies were about to parlay the invigorating momentum sparked by a short stretch of improved play and set ablaze by Thursday night’s ninth inning heroics by Bryce Harper into a perhaps season-altering lights-out homestand.

That outcome felt only more likely after the Phillies roughed up a reeling Padres team on Friday night that came into the weekend only 11-20 since the All-Star break.

And then, well, the Phillies’ lineup went 10 for 64, producing a .156 batting average and .487 OPS, while scoring a total of only five runs in a pair of disappointing losses. Just like that, the momentum was gone.

And then Phillies manager Gabe Kapler went to the podium in the media room at Citizens Bank Park after Sunday’s 3-2 loss and defended his team by expressing his pride in their effort and (mostly) everybody lost their minds.

“Obviously, it’s frustrating to lose today’s baseball game,” Kapler said. “Really proud of the grind in the at-bats, saw 110 pitches off their starter, saw 27 pitches with three outs in the ninth inning.”

Proud. The grind in the at-bats.

Fans got mad on social media. Radio hosts and callers debated his comments and the ramifications of their impact on clubhouse culture. I read and listened for a while in both the morning and early afternoon, and then I reached out to Kapler himself as a follow up to a Q & A we did prior to the game Saturday night. His response:

“I’ve been in a lot of clubhouses and around a lot of players. I’ve never met one that wanted to go up and strike out. I’ve never met one that enjoyed failing in a big moment in front of 40,000 people. Did we succeed the last two nights? Absolutely not. However, I think it’s reasonable to recognize and acknowledge the effort, the refusal to give up and the constant grind to get better. It’s something I see every day from our group.”

Kapler’s stance here isn’t exactly a revelation. He doesn’t believe in publicly admonishing his team because his philosophy is that the work supersedes the result (my assertion, not his) and that the best way to manage in workplace settings, including a baseball clubhouse, is with a supportive nature.

As a result, some fans and media types have criticized Kapler for creating what they perceive to be a lack accountability and acceptance of failure. Naturally, he doesn’t see it that way.

“The “acceptance of failure” notion is interesting. I’m not certain I understand that. I think about all of the stories I’ve heard or been a part of when a player’s career comes to an end. It’s a real challenge for most of us, because competing in this game, working day and night to be better than the person in the dugout across the field, is who we are. It’s what we grew up knowing. The concept of that entire identity disappearing because a coach or manager didn’t raise their voice publicly or identifies that there was something that can be built on for tomorrow doesn’t resonate with me.”

Though I don’t agree with every tactical decision he makes, I do agree with him on this.

Generationally, I think we’ve arrived at the point where workers perform better through open and honest dialogue in which they feel supported [Simon Sinek’s Leaders Eat Last book comes to mind]. As someone who has experience coaching at the high school varsity level, I find that communication tends to breed trust and self-worth, yielding better work. That’s just me. In the workplace, maybe there are people out there in the world that need to be screamed at, outwardly admonished, and in some cases publicly criticized in order to achieve maximum output, but I think we’re trending away from that as a society. Athletics isn’t much different in this regard.

Anyway, I wanted to learn more about Kapler’s coaching philosophy, his management style, how he feels he’s grown in his role since taking the job just a little less than two years ago, and how he handles criticism. Here is our full exchange. Hopefully, it brings you a little insight into the inner workings of the Phils manager.

Crossing Broad: From what you’ve experienced over the past two seasons, what do you believe to be the most important part of your job? In other words, what are the things that you feel you have to do in the dugout beyond tactical and game strategy decisions in order for both you and the team to be successful? Continue Reading