PHILADELPHIA — A Yankees legend could be heading to fix the problems of a team helmed by his son.
Saturday night at Citizens Bank Park, the Philadelphia Phillies trailed the Atlanta Braves 3-1. It was the seventh inning. A comeback was absolutely possible. Braves ace Chris Sale had already left the mound.
The fans left anyway.
The sight of a home crowd emptying the seats while a playoff-caliber roster still had outs remaining told a story that the box score could not. It said something louder than boos. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic captured it plainly, writing that the moment revealed everything about where the Phillies now stand with their own fan base.
By Sunday, the Phillies had been swept. Five losses in a row. A 2-9 homestand, their worst since 2000. A record of 8-13 and a freefall into fourth place in the NL East. Only the collapsing New York Mets, at 7-15, sit below them.
And suddenly, the name Don Mattingly is surfacing in Philadelphia. Mattingly, the six-time All-Star first baseman who spent his entire playing career with the Yankees, is now the team’s bench coach. And according to Rosenthal, he may be the first person in line if manager Rob Thomson does not turn things around.
A familiar face in an unfamiliar role
Mattingly, 64, joined the Phillies coaching staff this past winter after three seasons as bench coach for the Toronto Blue Jays, who lost the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 7 last October. His connection to Philadelphia is two fold: he spent years coaching alongside Thomson during their shared time in the Yankees organization, and his son Preston now serves as the Phillies’ general manager.
It was Dave Dombrowski, Philadelphia’s president of baseball operations, who pursued former Yankees icon Mattingly aggressively after the Blue Jays’ season ended. In December, Dombrowski told reporters the talks were focused and serious.
Mattingly himself made his intentions public from the start. The Yankees hitman told reporters he was not coming to Philadelphia to manage a baseball team.
“I’m just here to provide an extra pair of eyes for Rob, as a guy sitting next to him who’s managed before,” the Yankees legend said at the time.
As recently as earlier this offseason, Mattingly said of managing: “I feel like those days have passed me by. I don’t have any aspirations to manage. I don’t think I have the energy for that anymore.”
That framing has not stopped the speculation. In baseball, bench coaches do not take jobs without understanding that a managerial vacancy creates an immediate opportunity. Mattingly would know this better than most.
The main news: Rosenthal raises the prospect of a change
With the Phillies’ skid reaching five games and public frustration growing, Rosenthal raised the possibility directly in The Athletic. He reported that if the slide continues without a reversal, the organization could look at replacing Thomson with the Yankees icon, his own bench coach.
The complications are real. Beyond Mattingly’s stated reluctance, there is the matter of Preston. A father managing a team where his son controls personnel decisions creates questions about separation of duties that no organization wants to navigate publicly. Rosenthal acknowledged the situation carries complexity.
“It’s not known whether Mattingly would want the job,” Rosenthal wrote. “His son Preston is the Phillies’ GM, creating a potentially awkward situation.”
Thomson holds a contract through 2027. He was extended before the season began, a sign of organizational confidence at the time. But owner John Middleton is known to be attentive to fan sentiment, and Dombrowski has shown throughout his career that he will act quickly when he believes change is necessary.
The precedent inside the organization is recent. In 2022, the Phillies fired Joe Girardi after a 22-28 start on June 3. Thomson stepped in, steadied the ship and guided the club to the World Series that same year. If Girardi was not safe after 51 games, the question of how long Thomson’s runway extends is a legitimate one.
Thomson addressed the situation after Sunday’s loss. His tone was more cautious than his usual steadiness has projected.
“We’re disappointed, we’re frustrated,” Thomson said.
The Yankees legacy Mattingly would carry into the dugout
For Yankees fans, this storyline runs deeper than a struggling NL East team. Mattingly is one of the most recognizable players in franchise history. He played all 14 seasons of his major league career in pinstripes, from 1982 through 1995. The Yankees hitman earned six All-Star selections, nine Gold Glove Awards, a batting title in 1984 and the American League MVP award in 1985. His .307 career average and .830 OPS have made him a recurring presence on Hall of Fame ballots.
The Yankees connection to this Phillies situation does not end with Mattingly’s playing days. Thomson himself spent two decades working in the Yankees organization before landing a managing job in Philadelphia. Both men built their coaching careers inside the same Yankees system. Now one is on the hot seat and the other may replace him, in a city more than 90 miles from the Bronx.
After his playing career ended, Mattingly built his managerial record with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he led the club to three playoff appearances, and the Miami Marlins, where he earned the NL Manager of the Year award in 2020. He then moved into a bench coach role with the Blue Jays for three seasons before arriving in Philadelphia.
Third-base coach Dusty Wathan is also considered a possible internal replacement if Thomson were removed, giving the Phillies options beyond Mattingly. But by reputation, experience and the weight his name carries in the sport, Mattingly would be the organization’s most prominent choice.
The Phillies open their week Monday against the Chicago Cubs. They have won 95 and 96 games in each of the past two seasons. The ceiling for this roster has not changed. The clock, however, has started ticking.
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