Former Phillies manager Charlie Manuel suffers stroke, team says

Charlie Manuel, who managed the Philadelphia Phillies to back-to-back National League pennants and a World Series title, suffered a stroke on Saturday, team officials said.

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Manuel, 79, was undergoing a procedure at a Florida hospital when he had the stroke, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

“The hospital was able to attend to Charlie immediately and subsequently remove a blood clot,” the Phillies said in a statement. “The next 24 hours will be crucial to his recovery, and Charlie’s family asks that you keep him in your thoughts and prayers at this time.”

Manuel has had several health issues through the years, including a heart attack, quadruple bypass surgery, a blocked and infected colon and kidney cancer, WCAU-TV reported.

Manuel took over as the Phillies manager in 2005, according to Baseball-Reference.com. He led the team to N.L. pennants in 2008 and 2009, winning the World Series in ‘08 against the Tampa Bay Rays in five games. The squad repeated as N.L. champions the following season but fell to the New York Yankees in six games.

He was fired during the 2013 season.

Manuel had a 780-636 record in nine seasons in Philadelphia and is the winningest manager in franchise history, according to the Inquirer. The Phillies reached the N.L. Championship Series three times, Sports Illustrated reported.

Before managing in Philadelphia, Manuel piloted Cleveland from 2000 to 2002, compiling a 220-190 record.

Manuel returned to the Phillies in 2019 as the team’s hitting coach, according to Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Phillies Wall of Fame.

His overall managerial record is 1,000-826.

“He’s great to have around, he just has that wholesome outlook on life and all that baseball knowledge,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson told WCAU on Saturday. “He sits there next to the cage all day long and just watches guys hit, talks to them. Very simple approach. It’s great. He’s a lot of fun. When he and Larry Bowa get together in spring training, it’s like a comedy show. He’s a neat man. Everyone in our organization loves him and we’re all praying for him.”

As a player, Manuel played six seasons in the major leagues from 1969 to 1975, according to Baseball-Reference.com. He played four seasons with the Minnesota Twins and two with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

He was an outfielder and pinch hitter, batting .198 with four home runs and 40 RBI.

Manuel played in Japan from 1976 to 1981, finishing his career with the Yakult Swallows, Sports Illustrated reported.