Phillies manager Gabe Kapler hoping to learn from mistakes

Gabe Kapler isn’t sugarcoating how his first week as a professional manager is going.

“Any way you look at it, this has been very challenging and there has been some sting to losing a couple of baseball games,” the first-year Phillies manager said Tuesday at Citi Field before a matchup against the Mets. “There’s been some difficult moments and there’s also been a lot of opportunities to learn.”

Kapler’s learning curve has been on display from Thursday’s season opener against the Braves, when he removed starter Aaron Nola with one out in the sixth inning and a runner on second, despite Nola allowing no runs at that point and only three hits on 68 pitches. Hoby Milner, a lefthanded reliever, allowed a home run to the lefty Freddie Freeman in the next at-bat, and the Phillies went on to lose, 8-5.

Milner remained in the middle of Kapler’s controversial decisions on Saturday against the Braves when the manager put him in the game, even though the reliever hadn’t warmed up.

Kapler said there was a miscommunication and put the blame on himself, though he added that Milner said he felt comfortable pitching the inning. Milner faced three batters, allowing an RBI single to Nick Markakis, before recording the final out of a 15-2 loss.

“When I got to the mound, I was surprised he was not warmed up,” Kapler said. “But again, that’s my responsibility to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

With an off day Sunday and Monday’s game against the Mets postponed because of snow, Kapler’s had more than 48 hours to think about his miscalculations early into his new job.

Kapler said as a player, he would watch film and hit “until his hands bled” after a poor performance. As a manager, he’s been writing down his mistakes and thinking of ways he can improve, knowing that he works in a large market that opens himup to enhanced scrutiny.

“In Philadelphia and nationally, people are going to have strong reactions and they should,” Kapler said. “And I think they’re justified in this particular case. If they’re having a reaction to a move I made or a mistake that was made, there’s no doubt that it’s called for.”

Through three games, Phillies starters had thrown 12 innings, compared with 15 2/3 innings from the bullpen. The Phillies had a walk-off loss with two outs in the ninth and needed 11 innings for their lone victory. Kapler used at least five relievers in each of the first three games — 18 total -- with nine pitchers recording less than three outs in their appearances. The manager understands this isn’t sustainable for an entire season, but said it was part of the plan to use the bullpen often early in the year.

“There’s no way we can use the bullpen like we did because guys are going to be down,” Kapler said . . . “We understand now that going forward our bullpen usage is going to be changing a little bit.”

The 42-year-old manager, who spent 12 years as a player in the majors, knew there would be mistakes along the way and is hoping to learn from those errors.

“I didn’t expect the season would go over with no mistakes,” he said. “I didn’t expect this season would go over with moves not being scrutinized at all. I expected all of that and I intend to be strong through those and to be accountable for all the decisions and any mistakes I make.”