Sources: Rob Thomson returning to manage Phillies in 2026

Somewhere out there, there are probably a few Phillies fans still pacing their kitchens, replaying every October at-bat in their heads, wondering if maybe — just maybe — this was the year the front office would decide that Rob Thomson’s magic had run its course.

Turns out, not yet.

According to Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Phillies are sticking with Thomson. He’s safe for 2026 — the plan is to keep him right where he is, at the top of that dugout railing, chewing gum, keeping the calm while the city swirls. 

A formal announcement is expected later this week.

He’s 62 now. The steady Canadian who once said he was planning to retire at the end of 2022 — until, of course, baseball pulled him back in. Joe Girardi was fired that June. Thomson, the quiet bench coach, got the interim tag. Then came that October run. Then came the belief.

Since then, his Phillies have gone 346-251 in the regular season, captured an NL pennant in 2022, reached Game 7 of the 2023 NLCS, and yes, absorbed two straight Division Series heartbreaks in 2024 and 2025.

So what does “Rob Thomson’s return” actually mean? That’s the twist no one quite knows yet. His contract runs only through next season. There’s no word on an extension, no word on whether some of the familiar lieutenants beside him will stay or go.

The Phillies will have their annual postseason press conference on Thursday. 

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Recent Phillies Coverage

• Sources: Rob Thomson returning to manage Phillies in 2026 (Oct 13)
• Does Rob Thomson get another chapter with the Phillies? (Oct 13)
• No running it back this time: The Phillies’ era of loud, flawed greatness has ended (Oct 10)
• Kerkering’s errant throw puts final nail in Phillies’ season (Oct 10)
• With season on the line again, Cristopher Sánchez carries the Phillies’ calm into Game 4 (Oct 9)
• Reaction: Phillies stay alive as Thomson’s plan and Schwarber’s bat carry them in Game 3 (Oct 9)
• From silence to thunder: Schwarber’s blasts jolt the Phillies - and the NLDS - back to life (Oct 9)
• Nola on the mound as Phillies fight to keep season alive in Game 3 of NLDS (Oct 8)
• A gamble in October: Rob Thomson bets on Nola for Game 3 as this Phillies’ era hangs in the balance (Oct 8)
• Reaction: Castellanos hesitated while the Dodgers executed; Phillies call on Nola for Game 3 (Oct 7)
• Dodgers beat Phillies 4-1 to take commanding 2-0 lead in NLDS (Oct 6)
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• NLDS Preview: Phillies must make the Dodgers’ bullpen blink (Oct 4)
• Ohtani faces Phillies and Citizens Bank Park crowd, admits nerves before Game 1 (Oct 4)
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• Phillies News from the Philadelphia Baseball Review

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