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Philadelphia Phillies: The pros and cons of hiring Dave Dombrowski

By David Esser

Feb 25, 2019; Bradenton, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski speaks with members of the media before the start of the spring training game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at LECOM Park. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2019; Bradenton, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski speaks with members of the media before the start of the spring training game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at LECOM Park. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 27, 2020; Arlington, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner (10) celebrates with the Commissioner’s Trophy after the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Tampa Bay Rays to win the World Series in game six of the 2020 World Series at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 27, 2020; Arlington, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner (10) celebrates with the Commissioner’s Trophy after the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Tampa Bay Rays to win the World Series in game six of the 2020 World Series at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /

Con: Not analytically savvy

Despite Dombrowski’s recent success in Boston, the game of baseball is very much trending in a different direction compared to what he’s used to. “Analytics” have become the driving point to most successful front offices around the league, with teams like the Rays, Dodgers, and Astros all experiencing an abundance of success with this model.

Dombrowski is very much an “old school” type of executive, which checks out considering the fact that he’s been working in MLB front offices since the late 70s.

NBC Sports’ Jim Salisbury described Dombrowski as such: “He’s a lot more old-school than new-school, more of a scouting and “feel” guy than an analytics guy. He fits what managing partner John Middleton said he was looking for after Matt Klentak was stripped of his general manager’s duties back in October.”

Like previously mentioned, Dombrowski’s natural feel for the game has proven to be a good one, but there’s an inherent risk here that he could quickly be left behind by some of the league’s newer, more innovative front offices.

After the failed Matt Klentak experiment, it’s possible that the Phillies organization needs a jolt of old school baseball, but there’s also fear that a dated front office could fail to adapt to evolving times – resulting in disaster.

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