Stark: Phillies Looking at Pirates Benedict for Pitching Coach

Update 3:06 pm: Rob Biertempfel, Pirates beat writer for the Pittsburgh Tribune, tweeted this.

Two sources confirm: #Pirates pitching guru Jim Benedict interviewed yesterday with #Phillies re: pitching coach gig

— Rob Biertempfel (@BiertempfelTrib) October 22, 2013

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Jayson Stark of ESPN.com posted a tweet that has the Phillies looking across the state for help.

#Phillies granted permission to talk to Pirates Jim Benedict for pitching-coach job. More on search for ESPN insiders http://t.co/RVwwmOvfYh

— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) October 22, 2013

Benedict is the Pirates Special Assistant to the General Manager who works mainly with pitchers in the organization. Over the last few years, the Pirates have gotten their hands on a few good, young, talented hurlers we’ll be seeing for a long time; notably Gerrit Cole and Jamison Taillon. They’ve also done well to revive Francisco Liriano’s career and have been patient with Charlie Morton.

On ESPN.com’s rumor mill page, AJ Mass says the Phillies top choice for the vacant pitching coach job was Bryan Price, now the manager of the Cincinnati Reds. He was Dusty Baker’s pitching coach before Baker was let go.

Pat Gallen

Pat joined Phillies Nation in July 2009, coming over from Examiner.com. As a previous employee of both Comcast SportsNet and the National Basketball Association, Pat prides himself on being a well-rounded individual when it comes to sports. However, the Phillies are first on the list. You’ll usually find Pat chiming in on the Phillies Nation Facebook or Twitter account, weekdays on 97.3 ESPN radio or hosting Phillies Nation TV. He’s also a Senior Writer for the site, and in his free time is a music enthusiast and Will Ferrell movie-follower. His favorite beer: Philly’s own Yards. In 2015, Pat moved on from Phillies Nation as a sports anchor and reporter for CBS-3 in Philadelphia.