By Sam Bush
The Phillies made another major announcement today that was expected but not a mortal lock:
Temporary manager Pete Mackanin, who was elevated after Ryne Sandberg quit last Friday, was named to skipper the team for the rest of the 2015 season.
“I was first the interim-interim manager,” Pete Mackanin joked prior to Tuesday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Citizens Bank Park. “It’s a good feeling. I”m happy that I know what my fate is until the end of the season and I’m looking forward to doing some good work.”
General manager Ruben Amaro Jr. chose Mackanin for the role because of his prior experience as an interim manager both with the Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates, over the likes of fellow former managers Juan Samuel and Larry Bowa who are also on the Phillies’ coaching staff.
“A manager manages a team based on the type of players that he has,” Mackanin explained of how he will handle the rest of the season. “If you have a team of power hitters, you wait for the three-run homer. If you have speed, you utilize speed.
“Whatever kind of team you have, you kind of adapt. Basically, because I have priority players, young players that we want to try and develop, I’m just going to try to continue to play them as much as possible and try to get them to where we think they can be and move onto the future.”
