New Phillies manager Gabe Kapler has begun to form his coaching staff for 2018.
Triple-A manager Dusty Wathan has been promoted to the big league club, where he will serve as the team’s third base coach, assistant pitching coach Rick Kranitz will be retained for an as-yet-undetermined role, and former Chicago Cubs hitting coach John Mallee has been added to take over for Matt Stairs as the Phils’ hitting instructor.
Mallee, who is 48, is the lone outside-the-organization hire of the three. He was let go by Chicago last month after three seasons, and helped develop a young Cubs lineup that at various points featured Starlin Castro, Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber, Anthony Rizzo and Ian Happ.