On Thursday the Philadelphia Phillies -- the worst team in the MLB -- confirmed the season-long rumors surrounding general manager Ruben Amaro's status beyond the 2015 season.
The team announced it "elected to not extend the contract" of Amaro while assistant GM Scott Proefrock would take over the position on an interim basis. Amaro's contract was set to expire after 2015, but rumors speculated he was on the hot seat due to the Phillies' performance over the past four seasons.
However, for a short time it was believed Amaro could return as GM because of the trades he executed over the past eight months. He appeared to have escaped the mess he got himself into and managed to shed some salary and drastically expedite the rebuilding process by restocking the organization's farm system.
Instead, the Phillies elected to move on and their search for a new GM is already underway.
"The Phillies are in great hands with Andy MacPhail in charge," writes Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. "The now open GM job will be coveted, and due a perceived difference in styles and MacPhail's responsibilities on the business side, the belief is the Philly GM could have more of a decision-making role than the one in Boston. Matt Klentak, Angels assistant GM, who was first mentioned here, is a name heard, as are Giants scouting director John Barr, Royals assistant GM J.J. Piccolo and Rangers assistant GM Thad Levine. It makes sense that the change was made now if the Phillies are going to compete with all the other teams who are looking for a GM."
Jim Salisbury of CSN Philly says MacPhail would prefer a candidate with a balanced background in scouting and analytics. He also noted the early favorite could be Klentak, who worked under MacPhail in Baltimore during his time as president of baseball operations of the Orioles. However, there are a number of others he mentions in addition to Heyman's list.
"[Jerry] DiPoto could emerge as a candidate with the Phillies. So, too, could New York Yankees assistant GM Billy Eppler and Kansas City Royals assistant GM J.J. Picollo, who is a Cherry Hill, New Jersey native. Another South Jersey native, John Barr, could be attractive to MacPhail. He is the San Francisco Giants' scouting director and has had a hand in creating that team's recent run of three World Series titles in five years. Hal Morris, another front office man with the Angels, could also be a possibility as could Jim Hendry, who was the Chicago Cubs' GM when MacPhail ran that club."
MacPhail told Salisbury that he intends to look at a "wide spectrum" of candidates, which explains the enormous speculated list just two days after Amaro was dismissed.
The team is expected to take their time filling this position, but stay tuned for updates regarding what candidates are separating themselves from the rest.
