PHILADELPHIA -- The Philadelphia Phillies fired manager Rob Thomson on Tuesday following a 9–19 start, naming Don Mattingly interim manager for the remainder of the 2026 season.
President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski announced the move, which comes less than a month into a season that has quickly veered off course for a club built with postseason expectations.
Mattingly, 65, is in his first year with the organization after being hired as bench coach in January. The 2020 National League Manager of the Year brings more than two decades of major league coaching and managerial experience, including stints managing the Los Angeles Dodgers (2011–15) and Miami Marlins (2016–22). He most recently served as bench coach for the Toronto Blue Jays from 2023–25.
The Phillies also announced a series of coaching changes tied to the move. Dusty Wathan has been promoted from third base coach to bench coach, while Anthony Contreras joins the major league staff as third base coach after managing Triple-A Lehigh Valley since 2022. Chris Adamson has been elevated to manager of the IronPigs after serving as the club’s bench coach.
The decision follows one of the most disappointing openings to a season in recent franchise history. To say the Phillies have underperformed would be an understatement. A team that entered the year with World Series aspirations has, nearly a month in, ranked in the bottom five of most major offensive categories. Their .219 team batting average is the second-worst in Major League Baseball, and their 102 runs scored rank third-fewest in the sport. The struggles have not been isolated to the lineup — defensive inconsistencies and questionable baserunning have compounded the issues, while a starting rotation that anchored the club a year ago has faltered. The Phillies entered the day with a 5.13 ERA, the third-worst in baseball.
Individually, several key contributors have struggled to find form. Alec Bohm has endured a difficult start, hitting .143 with a .412 OPS through 98 at-bats. On the mound, Aaron Nola has posted a 6.03 ERA through six starts, while Jesús Luzardo owns a 6.91 ERA in his first five outings. Taijuan Walker was released after allowing 23 earned runs in 22 2/3 innings, another sign of the club’s early instability.
The downturn stands in contrast to the club’s recent success. The Phillies won at least 90 games in each of the previous three seasons and reached the National League Championship Series in 2023, followed by consecutive National League Division Series appearances in 2024 and 2025. Expectations remained high entering 2026, but through 28 games, the performance has fallen well short of that standard.
Thomson, who had been in his ninth season on the Phillies’ major league staff, was originally named interim manager on June 3, 2022, before being given the full-time role later that season. He guided the club to a 355–270 record and four consecutive postseason appearances from 2022 through 2025, including back-to-back National League East titles in 2024 and 2025. His 355 wins rank 10th in franchise history.
Despite that track record, the club’s early-season performance forced a change. The Phillies entered the year with expectations of returning to contention, but a combination of inconsistent play across all facets quickly altered the outlook and created urgency within the organization.
Mattingly now becomes the 57th manager in franchise history and inherits a team attempting to stabilize its season before the standings create a deficit too large to overcome.
The move underscores that urgency — a shift from patience to immediate course correction — as the Phillies try to regain footing in a season that has already taken on a far different tone than anticipated.
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