The Phillies fired rob thomson on April 28, 2026 and named Don Mattingly interim manager for the rest of the 2026 season. The change came after a 9-19 start that left the club tied with the Mets at the bottom of the National League.
Don Mattingly Takes Over
Mattingly will manage the Phillies through the end of the season. The club also moved Dusty Wathan from third base coach to bench coach and brought Anthony Contreras up from Triple-A to handle third base coaching duties.
The shift gives Philadelphia a new manager and a reshaped bench staff in one move. For a team that entered April 28 with 28 games already played, the decision changes the rest of the season’s dugout structure immediately.
Phillies Coaching Changes
The Phillies had not been moving in the standings before the change. Their 9-19 start put them at the bottom of the National League alongside the Mets, making the early-season record the clearest backdrop for the firing.
Bob Nightengale of suggested the Phillies were not planning to hire Alex Cora or any other skipper in the short term. The report came as speculation circulated because Dave Dombrowski was leading the Red Sox front office when Boston hired Cora in 2017 and won the World Series a year later.
Dave Dombrowski And Preston Mattingly
Mattingly’s promotion also puts his family connection into the same decision. Don Mattingly’s son Preston is Philadelphia’s general manager, while Dombrowski leads the baseball operations side of the organization.
For Phillies players, the immediate change is practical rather than theoretical: a new voice in the dugout, a new bench coach, and a new third base coach for the final stretch of the 2026 season. The club has already chosen the structure it will use next, and it begins with Mattingly in charge.
