PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Alex Cora was barely out of a job after the World Series champion manager was fired by the Red Sox when his old boss offered him a professional lifeline.
Dave Dombrowski, the Phillies’ president of baseball operations, wanted to know if, if Rob Thomson were fired, Cora would be interested in taking over a team with a $284.7 million payroll and World Series expectations that had floundered through April as one of the worst teams in baseball.
Cora ultimately declined due to family reasons, and a potential reunion with Dombrowski eight seasons after they won the World Series together in Boston was put on hold.
Rebuffed by Cora, the Phillies looked along the bench to Don Mattingly.
Just four months after being hired as Philadelphia’s bench coach, Mattingly was named interim manager to replace Thomson, who was fired Tuesday after the Phillies lost 11 of 12 games and entered the day tied for last in the majors.
“Alex had no intention of taking the job at that time; should we make the change anyway? We ultimately came to the conclusion that we were going to make the change and it was what was best for the club,” Dombrowski said.
Thomson led the Phillies to four straight playoff appearances, including the 2022 World Series, and back-to-back NL East titles, but couldn’t lead high-priced talent, including Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber and Trea Turner, back to the top of the standings in the first month of the season.
“I still think, and I hope, because I love these guys, that this team is going to turn things around,” Thomson said hours after he was fired. “They’re going to be popular. There’s a lot of different reasons for that, but one of them is the fact that there’s a lot of talent in there.”
Dombrowski, who has run baseball operations for Montreal, Miami, Detroit and Boston and won World Series titles with the Marlins in 1997 and Red Sox in 2018, made it clear Tuesday that Cora was his top choice to succeed Thomson.
“We never got to the heart of the matter,” Dombrowski said. “He called me Saturday night as a friend. I think he calls me one of his mentors and we talked because he had never experienced that before. We talked Sunday morning.”
“I came to the conclusion that if he took it, I would make a change. I thought he would accept it. Until Monday morning it became clear from his perspective that he wanted to spend time with his family. He wanted to be a father first and that’s why he had decided.”
Mattingly will now work for his son
Mattingly, the former New York Yankees great, was named interim manager through the end of the season and third base coach Dusty Wathan was promoted to bench coach. Mattering will now work for one of his sons – Preston Mattingly is the Phillies general manager – in what is believed to be the first father-son GM/manager combination in baseball history.
Mattingly said it wasn’t a problem to essentially work for his son because they both had the same vision for the franchise.
“We both want to win games,” Mattingly said. “We’re just like any player. We’re here to win.”
Thomson is the second manager to be fired in baseball this season, following the Red Sox fired Cora and five coaches on Saturday.
Dombrowski gave Thomson a vote of confidence during their losing streak last week. Dombrowski backed Thomson’s work and said he had been a good manager since replacing Joe Girardi in 2022.
Thomson went 355-270 and orchestrated a baseball revival in Philadelphia. The 62-year-old, a ballplayer who was eventually promoted to his first managerial stint in 2022, signed a contract extension in the offseason through the 2027 season and was once again expected to lead the Phillies to World Series contention.
Thomson made the rare move of addressing a fired manager to the media one last time, saying he was so grateful for his time with the Phillies that he would like to remain associated with the organization in the future.
“I don’t want to go anywhere else,” Thomson said. “Maybe now is not the right time. But yes, I am completely involved in that.”
The Phillies were instead one of baseball’s biggest flops, losing ten games in a row before top prospect Zack Wheeler led them to defeat. win against Atlanta on Saturday. The Phillies lost to Atlanta on Sunday, falling to 9-19 overall, tied with the division rival New York Mets.
Thomson led Philadelphia to the 2022 World Series after taking over for Girardi and losing to the Houston Astros in six games. Since then, the club has regressed in the postseason. It lost in the NL Championship Series in seven games in 2023, and the NL Division Series in four games in 2024 and ’25.
Thomson, nicknamed Topper, has been with the club since the 2018 season, when he was hired as bench coach under former manager Gabe Kapler.
He was with the New York Yankees from 1990 to 2017, including 10 seasons on the Major League coaching staff as a bench coach (2008, 2015-17) and third base coach (2009-14). He earned his nickname in the Yankees organization because he was always on top of the details.
Thomson became only the fourth manager in major league history to reach the postseason in each of the first four full seasons and begin a managerial career, joining Dave Roberts, Aaron Boone and Mike Matheny. He became only the third manager in Phillies history to win consecutive division titles, joining Charlie Manuel and Danny Ozark.
“I’ve played for a lot of guys over my 15-year career, and Topper is definitely one of the guys at the top,” Harper said.
Phillies season is spiraling out of control
The Phillies have been terrible in what was supposed to be a celebratory season, with the franchise hosting the All-Star Game and surrounding festivities. Instead, they have collapsed in every aspect of the game, with regulars Alec Bohm and Schwarber both hitting under .200, while starters Jesús Luzardo, Aaron Nola and Andrew Painter all have ERAs over 5.00.
The Phillies recently released high-priced bust Taijuan Walker in the final year of a four-year, $72 million contract and outfielder Nick Castellanos was released in February as he entered the final year of a five-year, $100 million deal.
The Phillies haven’t won the World Series since 2008 and had last made the playoffs in 2011 until Thomson led them to the surprise run to the 2022 World Series called Red October, which rejuvenated the fan base and made 90-plus winning seasons the norm.
The Phillies will now turn to Matteringwho kept the coaching staff intact, to revive their season and at least keep them in the hunt for a NL wildcard spot.
Mattingly is ready to lead the Phillies into contention
Mattingly, who spent his 23rd straight season as a major league manager or coach, had his sights set on retirement after leaving his role as manager. Toronto’s bench coach under manager John Schneider after the World Series.
He changed course after a conversation with his family and joined the Phillies, enticed by the chance to work with his son and Thomson, his friend from their Yankees days.
Mattingly managed the Dodgers from 2011 to 2015 and the Marlins from 2016 to 22. He was the 2020 NL Manager of the Year after leading the Marlins to their first playoff appearance since 2003.
When the Phillies hired him in the winter, he said he was no longer interested in managing again. Mattingly said before Tuesday’s game against the Giants that these comments were largely out of respect for Thomson’s presence and that he indeed had the spark and desire to get the Phillies back into the playoff race.
“I’ve always felt good. I’ve been pretty healthy,” Mattingly said. “I feel like I have energy. But I wanted to say that from the standpoint of Thom being here. I didn’t want anyone to feel like I was here to do something like this. So I really wanted to leave it that way.”
Mattingly played 14 seasons as a first baseman in the major leagues, all for the Yankees, from 1982-95. He was a six-time AL All-Star and the 1985 AL Most Valuable Player. Mattingly captained the Yankees in his final five seasons.
Like Thomson in 2022, Mattingly believes he can make the Phillies great again as interim manager.
“We are talented enough,” he said. “We know that. We believe that.”
