Could Jorge Velandia (right) be the next manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. (Frank Klose/SportsTalkPhilly)
By Tim Kelly, Sports Talk Philly editor 
It's safe to say that Philadelphia Phillies fans are beginning to get restless as the team enters the third week of their managerial search.
Over the weekend, two potential managerial targets came off of the board. The Boston Red Sox formally announced the hiring of Alex Cora as their next manager Sunday. The Phillies had been linked to the Houston Astros bench coach, though it's unclear if there was ever an attempt to set up an interview with the 42-year-old. Even if the Phillies were seriously interested, they aren't a more attractive job than the Red Sox, so they may have been out of luck anyway. In addition to Cora, Cleveland Indians pitching coach Mickey Callaway, who was the most consistently-linked external candidate to the team and likely interviewed last week, will become the next manager of the New York Mets, according to Joel Sherman of The New York Post.
The Phillies were linked to other managerial candidates this week, such as former Arizona Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale and San Francisco Giants third base coach Phil Nevin. Perhaps they, or someone that the Phillies have yet to interview, will be the next manager. Or perhaps one of the internal interviews that the Phillies did two weeks ago was with their next manager.
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General manager Matt Klentak and the team's braintrust interviewed three internal candidates before venturing outside the organization in their managerial search. Third base coach Juan Samuel was one, though you get the impression they probably did that more out of respect to the Wall of Famer. The Phillies seem to be targeting a younger, more progressive manager than the 56-year-old.
Dusty Wathan, who is the winningest manager in Reading franchise history and managed Triple-A Lehigh Valley in 2017, was the speculative favorite after the team announced that Pete Mackanin wouldn't return as manager in 2018. I wrote about the possibility of Wathan potentially being Mackanin's successor this past summer. The 44-year-old, who spent nearly all of his playing career in the minor leagues, has managed nearly every young talent on the Phillies. He's also had tremendous success as a minor league manager. There's a lot to like about Wathan.
But front-office executive Jorge Velandia may prove to be the internal option that intrigues the Phillies the most. Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia reported earlier in the search that Velandia had a "lengthy" interview for the job, one that may have been more than just due-diligence:
Velandia is going to get a long, serious look for this job. Klentak has a very small band of advisers in the organization and while Velandia might not be on the first ring, he's firmly on the second ring. The two have bonded in Klentak's first two years on the job and Velandia has shown a willingness to learn and embrace the analytic side of the game that Phillies ownership has demanded and the front office has built. Velandia has relationships with members of the Phillies' analytics team. His chemistry with Klentak, others in the front office and the analytics team should not be underestimated because game-day strategy is no longer limited to what happens in the dugout during nine innings. Managers are now seen as extensions of the front office, the final button-pusher in a daily team effort that extends to the executive level.
The 42-year-old is just five years older than Klentak, and less than 10 years removed from a major league career of his own. Houston Astros manager A.J. Hinch and Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell are among the former major leaguers who spent time in front-office roles before becoming managers. Charlie Manuel, after a stint as the Cleveland Indians manager, worked as a special assistant to then-general manager Ed Wade before the Phillies eventually hired him as their manager.
As bright of a candidate as Wathan or even some of the external candidates may be, Klentak has had the chance to develop a day-to-day relationship with Velandia, so there wouldn't be any surprises with him as a manager. The Phillies would know what they are getting in Velandia, and he also crosses off the boxes of being young and willing to embrace the game's increasing analytical presence.
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If Velandia became the next manager, perhaps he could retain Samuel and promote Wathan to the major league staff. Perhaps he would promote Wathan and choose to keep Matt Stairs on as hitting coach, while bringing in a new pitching coach and either bench coach or third base coach (whichever job Wathan wouldn't fill).
Hale or Nevin could still be the club's next manager. The team also interviewed Manny Acta recently and was connected to Los Angeles Dodgers director of player development Gabe Kapler. The next manager could still be an external candidate that the public is unaware of. Or maybe we've all overthought this and Wathan will be promoted to major league manager. But as more candidates come off the board, you get the feeling that the "long, serious look" that Salisbury says the Phillies will give Velandia could end with him signing a contract to be the team's next manager.
