But to suggest that the failures of the last three seasons are a product of simple human error is to absolve the environment that allowed the human to err. It is like suggesting that the bulk of the Phillies' offensive struggles should be blamed on a first baseman with a .682 OPS and a $25 million annual salary instead of a general manager who decided that it was a good move to sign him to a 5-year, $125 million contract extension 2 years before the expiration date of his existing contract. That is not an argument that the first baseman should remain in the starting lineup. But the logic of our aforementioned chorus suggests that removing the first baseman without removing the person responsible for his presence will merely lead to a future in which the overpaid, underperforming player is not named Ryan Howard. And if that logic is valid, then we must extend it to the person responsible for the presence of the underperforming general manager. Thus, we arrive at the president's office, and the ownership group responsible for Montgomery's presence there.