Phillies Managing Partner John Middleton's preference is believed to be for President Andy MacPhail, whose contract runs through next year, to "relinquish the club presidency a year early or at least to cede his baseball-related duties," thereby "enabling the Phillies to hire both" a President of Baseball Operations and a GM, according to sources cited by Scott Lauber of the PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER. The Phillies "technically had that model, but after helping to modernize the front office by building a robust research-and-development department," MacPhail took a "mostly hands-off approach to day-to-day baseball matters to avoid micromanaging" then-GM Matt Klentak. Middleton two weekends ago gave a "full-throated defense of MacPhail’s value to the organization, pointing to his 'wealth of contacts' and track record over 44 years." If MacPhail does not step down from his role, the Phillies could go into '21 with MacPhail, in "perhaps a pre-retirement hurrah," overseeing interim GM Ned Rice. Middleton "floated that possibility by noting the difficulty of integrating an outside hire to a leadership position when everyone is working remotely because of COVID-19." Ideally, the Phillies "would replace" MacPhail and Klentak, who they recently demoted to an unspecified role, in the same offseason. But "regardless of who Middleton puts in charge, creativity will be required to improve a top-heavy roster in the first offseason during the pandemic" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 10/11).
