The Phillies removed the interim tag for Rob Thomson on Monday, signing him to a two-year deal through the 2024 season.
Thomson, 59, took over a Phillies club that was 22-29 (.431 winning percentage) entering play on June 3 and guided them to a 65-46 record (.586 winning percentage) and the franchise’s first postseason berth since 2011.
“As time progressed, it became apparent that Rob was the right person to lead this team and our club’s on-field performance over the course of the season certainly reinforced that,” said president Dave Dombrowski in a statement. “His calm demeanor and ability to communicate with players and staff has greatly benefitted the Phillies and we are excited to formally name him our manager going forward. While a great deal of credit for the turnaround of our season goes to the players, Rob’s leadership style has also made a significant impact.”
Thomson became only the fourth manager in major league history to take over a team at least seven games under .500 and lead them to the postseason as he joined Dick Howser (1981 with the Royals), Cito Gaston (1989 with the Blue Jays), and Jim Tracy (2009 with the Rockies).
Thomson was first hired by the Phillies on Dec. 5, 2017, as a bench coach. Before his time in Philadelphia, Thomson spent 28 years as a member of the New York Yankees organization (1990-2017), including 10 seasons on the major league coaching staff as bench coach (2008, 2015-17) and third base coach (2009-14).
"He's just a very good person," said Ranger Suarez on Monday, just after Thomson's deal was made public. "He let us be ourselves. There's a lot of freedom that we feel when we are around him. The most important thing is that we're comfortable because we can be ourselves."
Suarez will be on the mound on Tuesday in Game 1 of the National League Division Series as the Phillies visit Atlanta.
