PHILADELPHA – Incoming team president Andy MacPhail, and other front office members within the Philadelphia Phillies' organization, have recently been involved in the process to find a new general manager ever since they cut ties with Ruben Amaro Jr. on September 10.
Last week in Miami, MacPhail told Comcast SportsNet's Gregg Murphy that he has had just one interview with a potential candidate thus far, describing the process overall as being in the 'early stages'.
MacPhail declined to mention the name of who he interviewed, however a recent report by Clark Spencer, Marlins' beat writer for the Miami Herald, may have revealed the unknown candidate's identity.
According to Spencer, it is former Marlins' front office executive from 2002-2013, Larry Beinfest.
Beinfest, who was fired as the Marlins’ president of baseball operations at the end of the 2013 season, said in a recent interview with the Miami Herald that he was looking to return to a front-office position.
Beinfest's first trade as general manager of the Marlins involved sending right handers Antonio Alfonseca and Matt Clement to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for RHP Julian Tavarez and minor leaguer Dontrelle Willis, who went on to win 68 games and a 2003 World Series championship for the organization.
While this transaction turned out to be very successful for Beinfest, not every trade of his was of this nature.
In a September 28 article, Spencer writes:
"… the team’s small payroll often dictated Beinfest’s moves, leaving him almost no margin for error, and he will be forever remembered for one salary-driven trade that turned out horribly for the Marlins: the Dec. 4, 2007, trade with Detroit in which the Marlins dealt Miguel Cabrera and Willis to the Tigers for six players, none of whom panned out for them."
MacPhail reportedly hopes to hire the Phillies' next general manager by this offseason's organizational meetings.
Beinfest is likely the first of many interviewees to be considered during this process.
Matt Rappa (@mattrappasports) is managing editor of Philliedelphia.com.
