Phillies manager: 'I didn't think we had a good clubhouse last year'
The Philadelphia Phillies were apparently as dysfunctional off the field as they were on it last season.
Despite boasting one of the highest payrolls in the league, the Phillies rattled off a second consecutive 73-win campaign. Manager Ryne Sandberg said the negative effect from a poor locker-room atmosphere may have contributed to their on the field performance.
"I didn't think we had a good clubhouse last year," Sandberg told Ryan Lawrence of the Philadelphia Daily News.
"I don't think it was conducive to winning. I don't think it was about winning a baseball game that day, in some regards. I think there were some distractions there. So (we have to) be on top of that, have a better atmosphere."
Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro has already started the teardown of a roster overcrowded with high-priced veterans - beginning by trading away Marlon Byrd and Jimmy Rollins. Cole Hamels, Chase Utley, Jonathan Papelbon and Ryan Howard have been rumored to be on the block as well, with Amaro telling Howard the Phillies are better off without him on the roster.
Sandberg hopes moving some of the veterans out will help create an environment that allows the influx of younger players to be more comfortable.
"I think it was an atmosphere where maybe some of the younger players and some of the players with a few years in, they just couldn't be themselves," Sandberg said. "I don't know. It was really a hard thing to put my finger on as it went along.
"That's why it went a while without getting fixed until realizing it, after the season, I'd say."
The third-year manager did saddle himself with some of the blame for letting the clubhouse reach its toxic point, and plans to take the necessary measures to try and curb that trend in 2015.
"We have to talk to a lot of players," Sandberg said. "I plan on talking to the veteran players. I plan on talking to them as a group. I plan on talking to the younger players. Really having better overall communication throughout the whole team, with myself and the coaching staff with the players.
"I think that was lacking. Sometimes it's easy to take it for granted. Say you have a veteran club and they know everything and they'll handle the clubhouse and everything will be fine. I learned that's not the case."