Phillies Need to Give Charlie an Extension
By: Mike Reisman
Charlie Manuel has been in the news fairly often lately, as he is in his contract year and wants to stay longer. In fact, it has become such a big deal, it has been more important than most stories about players this winter. I have no clue what the Phillies are thinking, but they have a great thing in Charlie Manuel and they need to keep him.
First of all, Charlie is a nice, quiet guy. It's not like he yells and screams until he gets what he wants, or refuses to coach until he gets a new contract, he just goes about his business, and mentions that he would like to return next year. Is that too much to ask for? The guy has won more games than anyone since Danny Ozark in the 70's. He also has one of the two championships in Phillies history, and was able to do what Larry Bowa couldn't in getting the Phillies over the hump and into the playoffs.
But really all of this is irrelevant. Charlie has what few other coaches have in this league, and that is complete and total respect from his players. If you went into the Phillies clubhouse and asked them off the record what they thought of Manuel, they would all probably tell you how much they loved him. That's rare for any coach in any sport. If winning, respect, and quiet, reserved attitude aren't enough for the Phillies, clearly they are planning on playing without a manager next year.