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TSN Baseball Insider Steve Phillips answers several questions surrounding the game each week. On Friday, he looks at Brook Jacoby's suspension and potential fallout for the Blue Jays, the surprising Houston Astros, shortening the season and how to view A-Rod's landmark home run.

A report appeared this week that the Toronto Blue Jays had a meeting to discuss the organization's state of affairs - including a look at the coaching staff.  Though general manager Alex Anthopoulos denied the report, is it time this conversation took place? Should the spotlight be on manager John Gibbons and/or the rest of his coaching staff and should the Blue Jays be looking to make a changes on the bench before this season gets away from them?

When other teams change managers it almost always raises the questions about managers for other organizations that are struggling.  An internal review every so often is appropriate to make sure that the club is preparing properly and that the focus and effort is where it should be. 

There is nothing to hide if a front office holds a meeting during the season about where the organization stands.  It would be wrong if there weren’t these types of meetings going on. 

It is unclear whether or not a meeting took place in the Jays’ front office to evaluate the process and the coaching staff.  If it hasn’t, it will.

If this season gets away from the Jays it won’t be John Gibbons’ fault.  I was in the clubhouse on the road with the Jays and the amount of prep work amazed me.  Players were doing all of the physical preparation and then some.  They were also doing the mental preparation.  Players sat for hours before the game alone and with coaches watching video of themselves and the opposition. Batting practice had a purpose and a plan and wasn’t just a home run derby.  Infielders took grounders and outfielders read ball off the bat during BP. 

This is a flawed roster.  It lacks impact pitching and lacks sufficient depth. Gibbons and his staff piece together the pitching from game to game.  They rely upon a slugging lineup to outscore the opposition.  They have no ability to predictably outpitch their opponents.  No mid-season change in managers is going to make this staff improve.  They lack the ability necessary to shut down potent lineups.

Now, I understand that at the end of the season everything will be reevaluated.  It is possible that ownership may want a change at the helm to at least sell a different result to its fans for next year.  The fans sometimes need a reason to believe next year will be better than this season and a new manager can help that perception.  It would be a shame but it could happen. 

Anthopolous and Gibbons seem to be tied at the hip.  If Alex goes, so will Gibbons.  If Alex is back in 2016, then Gibby likely survives as well unless ownership forces Anthoplous’s hand. 

When Michael Saunders was hurt in the pre-season, it was originally announced that he would be out until the All-Star Break. But he returned in late April, struggled through nine games and is now going to miss another three to five weeks healing from discomfort in his surgically repaired knee. Did the Blue Jays err in rushing him back into the lineup and where does the responsibility lay in a situation where a player returns to the lineup before he's ready and 100 per cent?

I actually have first hand experience with Michael Saunders injury.  I had knee surgery to remove torn meniscus as well.  I rehabbed and got back to what I thought was close to 100 percent.  So I went out and played basketball with my boys and sure enough my knee started killing me again.  I went back to the doctor expecting the worse but was told that I had a bone bruise. 

The cartilage is supposed to serve as a cushion in the knee when we run and make explosive movements.  When that meniscus is compromised the bones can bang together and get bruised.  It is extremely painful to the touch and is very slow to heal because of the lack of significant blood flow to the area. 

I had gone through all of the rehab to get back to doing what I wanted. So did Saunders.  The trainers and medical staff cleared him to play just as I had been cleared to do what I wanted.  Unfortunately for both of us, our knees have been compromised and we suffered the bone bruise. It isn’t anyone’ fault.  It is the nature of the deterioration of the knee. 

My knee feels much better again and so will Saunders’ knee but we both will likely face an ongoing battle with bone bruises as the meniscus doesn’t regenerate itself.

Bryce Harper, one of the most exciting players in the game right now, was ejected from a game on Wednesday after a questionable call - and what didn't seem like much of an argument. It was the second time this month for Harper. Fans at the game and watching the game were there to see the superstar play and were obviously disappointed with that decision. With MLB trying to promote the game especially to younger fans, do they have to do a better job controlling their umpires and keep star players on the field in those situations, or does that blame rest with the player?

Generally speaking, players have a responsibility for their own behavior when interacting with umpires.  Players have to understand their importance to their team and honor that first and foremost.  I understand that tempers can flare and in the heat of the moment anyone can snap at an umpire.  But players need to understand that they aren’t going to convince an umpire to change a pitch from a ball to a strike or vice versa.  Just about any other play can be reviewed now so there is no need to argue. 

Bryce Harper has to understand his importance to his team, in addition to the fact that the fans are coming to see him play.  He can’t put himself in position to be ejected. If something needs to be argued, Matt Williams his manager can do the arguing and suffer the ejection. 

On Wednesday, Harper didn’t like a called strike during his at bat.  He thought the pitch was low.  He was right. He actually handled himself well by letting the umpire know that he thought he missed the pitch in a way that didn’t draw attention to the interaction.  On the other hand, Matt Williams, the Nationals’ manager was hollering at umpire Marvin Hudson from the dugout.  Hudson ripped off his mask and moved in the direction of Williams, responding in kind.  Meanwhile Harper walked out of the batter’s box as Williams and Hudson yelled back and forth.  As the yelling wound down, Hudson pointed to the batter’s box scolding Harper to get in to it.  Remember hitters are not supposed to leave the batters box during at bats under the new pace of play rules.  Harper snapped back at Hudson that in fact he had been in the batters box when Hudson started arguing with Williams.  Hudson urged Harper to get back in the box again.  Harper moved toward the box and somewhat mockingly stepped in the box.  That is when Hudson ejected him. 

This whole problem, was all driven by the umpire, Marvin Hudson. Hudson missed a pitch and got it wrong.  Harper initially handled himself properly.  He did nothing wrong when he stepped out of the batter’s box, as the pace of the play had been stopped by the umpire responding to barking from the dugout.  Hudson was overly aggressive in confronting Matt Williams in the dugout.  Then he was overly aggressive in ordering Harper back in the batter’s box.  Harper was not violating the rule, he was just waiting for the argument to stop. Harper did show up Hudson a bit by mockingly stepping in the batter’s box.  That is what caused Hudson to eject him.  But none of that would have happened if Hudson hadn’t been so out of control.

Umpires have a responsibility to calm situations not inflame them.  Hudson clearly lost control.  Umpires also have an obligation to try and keep players in the game.  They have to give a little leash to players in the heat of the battle.  Marvin Hudson stole the show and made it about himself. Fans don’t pay to see the umpires, they pay to see Bryce Harper. 

Harper and Matt Williams will likely be fined for their ejections, which is unfortunate.  I want to know if the umpire receives any sanctions.  I want to know that Marvin Hudson is accountable as well for his actions.  He should be suspended in my opinion. 

We may never know.

4) What in the world are the Miami Marlins doing?  They fired their manager, Mike Redmond, on Sunday night after nearly getting no-hit by Braves starter Shelby Miller.  Redmond had been on the hot seat earlier in the season, but seemed to get off of it as the Marlins got hot at the end on April.  But unfortunately the roller coaster went back down the slope and the team started to struggle.  So a 16-22 record led to his dismissal.  The organization said all of the normal things we say when we fire a manager,  “We are looking for more consistency from the team.  We are looking for a new voice to help turn things around.  Yadda, Yadda, Yadda.”  Been there and done that.

The Marlins made this move because in 2003, when they had the exact same 16-22 record, they fired their manager and it worked. Back then they fired Jeff Torborg and hired veteran baseball man, Jack McKeon.  They went on to win the World Series that season.  So it is impossible to say it was the wrong move.

Owners are funny.  If it works once they think it is likely to work again.  Jeffery Loria, Marlins’ owner, is a very hands-on guy.  He likes to be involved in the baseball part of the operation despite not being a baseball guy.  He made his money as a New York art dealer.  But when you are the owner you can be as involved you choose.  Loria had his hand in the firing of Torborg in 2003 and clearly had a hand in this. 

How do I know this firing was driven by the owner and not just a move by the GM?

Because they hired the GM, Dan Jennings, to remove his tie and become the manager. 

Who knew? 

I really messed up when I fired Bobby Valentine during my tenure as Mets general manager.  I should have interviewed myself to replace him.  It would have been a great interview.  I know I could have given every answer I was hoping to hear from a candidate. 

Very few GMs would ever consider themselves a candidate to replace the manager they just fired.  Bobby Cox did it back in the day with Braves.  The aforementioned Jack McKeon did it with the Padres as well.  But they had both been major league managers previously and had the resumes to warrant the move. 

The Miami Marlins moved Dan Jennings from general manager to manager.  What is the big deal?  Well, he doesn’t quite have the resume or experience to warrant such a move.  His only experience in writing a lineup and making pitching changes was when he was a high school coach in Mobile, AL.  He is a scout by trade.  He started with the Cincinnati Reds, then moved to the Seattle Mariners and Tamp Bay Rays organizations before joining the Marlins.  He is good at what he does.  But he doesn’t manage.  He never has.   He can pick players but that is a far cry from managing them and the game itself. 

This move is not just unconventional it is insulting to all of the guys who have worked so hard to become major league managers.  I can’t imagine what Tony LaRussa, Jim Leyland and Bobby Cox think about it.  I don’t blame Dan Jennings for saying yes to the opportunity. I mean no disrespect to him.  He is a really good baseball man.  He is a nice person.  He is a good general manager.  But he has no business in the dugout. 

It isn’t as easy as it looks from the suite above the field.  The game is so much faster down there.  The decisions which seem so easy and obvious when you sit up above are not so.  It is not easy helping young kids grow and develop at the major league level or nursing a veteran through a slump while trying to win now. The in-game decision-making is a challenge too.  Matching wits with opposing National League managers is a challenge.  Jennings has never had to do this at any level.  Thinking along with the manager when you are the GM and thinking as the manager are not the same. 

There is no way with his resume that Jennings considered himself as the replacement for Redmond.  As a GM, I wouldn’t even interview a candidate that hadn’t at least played, managed, coached or worn a professional uniform. This consideration came from ownership.  Jeffery Loria likes Dan Jennings.  He is likeable.  I get it.  But the lack of regard for his inexperience shows that the decision was made by someone who thinks it is easy to manage. 

The Marlins will win some games under Jennings because they have talent.  But he already may have cost his team a game.  In the 8th inning of the Marlins and Diamondbacks game on Tuesday, Jennings did not have a right-handed reliever warmed up to counter the move made by DBacks manager Chip Hale to pinch hit AJ Pollock.  Pollock crushes lefties with a .375 batting average compared to only .257 vs. right-handers.  Sure enough Marlins lefty reliever Mike Dunn gave up a home run to Pollock, which proved to be the game winner. 

The danger of this move is two-fold.  Firstly, Jeffery Loria now has direct communication with the manager. He can share his opinion about players and lineups and such and may have undo influence on Jennings decisions.  Secondly, Jennings will be in a position to possibly justify decisions he made as general manager through his decisions as manager.  There is a reason why the roles have remained separated for all these many years.  There is an inherent conflict in the roles.  The manager is charged to win now while the GM has to balance winning today with winning the most games for the longest period of time.  Jennings will certainly be conflicted in this role.  

I like Dan Jennings.  I am rooting for him because if it doesn’t go well it could end ugly.  I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. 

Can I change my pick today?  I no longer believe the Marlins are a playoff team.