Phillies finish season with .500 record, lose final game in possible end of Gabe Kapler era

Gabe Kapler, his season over and his future uncertain, stood Sunday afternoon by the steps of the Phillies dugout as his players left the field one last time. They ended a disappointing 2019 with a 4-3 defeat to the 105-loss Marlins and finished with a .500 record, but Kapler said he was “truly proud of everyone.”

They fought through adversity, the manager said, and played like brothers. And the manager let them know it, failing to leave the dugout until he embraced every player who walked down the dugout steps.

And then there was someone waiting for Kapler. John Middleton -- the team’s managing partner and the man who will have the loudest voice in determining if Kapler returns in 2020 -- shook Kapler’s hand before the manager left the dugout for possibly the final time.

» READ MORE: Marlins 4, Phillies 3 - box score

The Phillies have a crucial offseason ahead of them. They must fix their starting rotation, rebuild their lineup, and correct the holes in their offense. But first they have to decide if Kapler is still their manager.

A decision should be made this week. Kapler has not yet had a conversation with management about 2020 and said he talks every day with general manager Matt Klentak and they “discuss everything under the sun.”

But he has not been told that he’s the manager for next season. There are already five managerial vacancies in baseball. The Phillies could be next.

“I love managing that group of players. I love working with that staff. Love working with this front office,” Kapler said. “They give me all sorts of autonomy. I have felt supported by our ownership group. Our ownership group has done everything in their power to put a winning product on the field. I'm proud to be a Philadelphia Phillie and will do it as long as I'm able.”

The Phillies have not been in a playoff spot since Aug. 16. They entered Sunday locked into fourth place in the National League East and eight games out of the wild-card race. But a win against the Marlins would at least have provided the Phillies their first winning season in eight years. It would be a small victory for a season that was supposed to reap so much more.

But the Phillies ran out of starting pitchers and were forced to start relief pitcher Blake Parker for the second time in five days. They scored just three runs against the Marlins, who were managed by a utility infielder after manager Don Mattingly handed his duties to Miguel Rojas for the season’s final day.

“I thought we battled,” Bryce Harper said. “We had an opportunity to be one of the best teams in the division, and it just didn’t happen. I thought we battled the best we could. Losing a lot of our bullpen, a lot of our rotation, losing McCutchen early kind of hurt us. We’re definitely going to look back on that, learn from that, build on that, and get better as a team.”

The Phillies used seven relief pitchers, went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position, left eight men on base, and scored all three of their runs on two homers by Brad Miller. A deflating season ended with a lackluster loss.

“As a manager, this year I was blessed with high character, high quality, players and men,” Kapler said after taking a deep breath to begin his postgame news conference. “What you’re seeing right now, emotionally you’re seeing, is me feeling the power of that.”

Minutes before the game, Bryce Harper stood in front of the Phillies dugout, not far from were Kapler would be waiting a few hours later. He held a microphone in his hand and thanked the fans for their support. He credited them for welcoming his family to Philadelphia, a city he said he “didn’t really know anything about.” And he made amends for the season, which Harper conceded did not go as planned.

“But I believe in this organization. I believe in this city,” Harper said. “We will reign again.”

The Phillies expected to reign this season. They committed nearly a half-billion dollars to their roster and acquired five All-Stars -- Middleton compared Klentak to Branch Rickey. Six months later, the players packed up their belongings into moving boxes while two other division rivals shook off their champagne and readied for the postseason.

The Phillies didn’t hit for power, their starting rotation crumbled after Klentak bet heavily on those arms last winter, and their bullpen was ravaged by injuries. Now they must determine Kapler’s fate. The manager left the dugout Sunday after shaking Middleton’s hand and walked the long hallway back to his office. The offseason was about to begin.

“What I’d like to do is when we’re done with this conversation is get back in the clubhouse, talk to our coaching staff, and tell them how proud I am of them and talk to our players and express the gratitude that I have in my heart right now for the work that they did,” Kapler said.