Phils Bring Wrong Type of Attitude
Blaming the manager for what ails the Phillies is too easy. Charlie Manuel doesn’t “play” well in Philadelphia (no pun intended). His southern draw and expressions make him an easy target for fans who care more about the tough-guy image of Philly fans more than the teams they supposedly root for. But the fact is this team seems to be underachieving, and their bipolar act is getting old. There’s also been too many suggestions that keeping players happy is too high of a priority. Jimmy Rollins was dropped in the lineup for one day. The Phillies’ own broadcast reported that Bobby Abreu had been penciled in to leadoff the day he was suddenly out with back spasms. Just last night Chris Wheeler went on and on about how Manuel wants to keep Rollins happy and “bouncing around the dugout.” This isn’t speculation. This isn’t Howard Eskin grinding an ax against Abreu or Wheeler. These are facts. Why drop a guy in the lineup for one day? If Manuel didn’t back down to his “star” shortstop, he didn’