Even when he wins, Ryne Sandberg can't win.
Last night his Phillies took their second straight from the first place Washington Nationals, in the process assuring their third consecutive series win.
So of course after the game all anyone wanted to talk about was Cole Hamels' reaction to getting lifted from the game in the eighth.
The starter had gone six strong innings before suffering some hiccups in the seventh before giving up two runs in the seventh and then seeing the game knotted 3-3 when Asdrubal Cabrera took him yard.
Sandberg headed to the mound. Hamels made it clear he was not pleased.
Actually, he's lucky he got that far. The manager actually gave him a vote of confidence by not pinch-hitting for him in the seventh and allowing him to go back out for the eighth, even though the Phils' 3-0 lead was now a razor-thin 3-2 margin.
This is getting to be a habit for Phillies who seem to have no problem second-guessing their rookie skipper. This started with Kyle Kendrick storming off the mound after getting an early hook.
Then this week it was both Dominic Brown and rookie David Buchanan appearing peeved at the manager. Buchanan is a rookie pitcher. Brown has been butchering everything that comes his way in left field to earn split playing time.
Sandberg is a Hall of Famer.
You figure it out.
Somebody on the Phillies, if not G.M. Ruben Amaro Jr., then maybe a veteran like Jimmy Rollins, needs to read this team the riot act.
Sandberg is the manager.
He doesn't need to be shown up by his team every day in what is an already tough year that they are only making tougher, even as the team shows some signs of life by posting a few wins.
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