ATLANTA, GEORGIA – JUNE 28: Rob Thomson #59 of the Philadelphia Phillies looks on before a game against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park on June 28, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Brett Davis/Getty Images)
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The Philadelphia Phillies looked dead in the water when the organization made a surprising decision to move on from manager Rob Thomson earlier this season.
At the time, the club was struggling to find consistency and appeared headed in the wrong direction. But even as Thomson exited, he publicly suggested that better days would still be ahead for the underperforming roster that he had managed.
Several weeks later, that prediction has proven remarkably accurate.
Former Philadelphia Phillies Manager Rob Thomson Addresses Team’s Success After Firing
Now the Phillies have been one of baseball’s hottest teams since Don Mattingly took over as interim manager, suggesting an improvement was always imminent and leading some observers to wonder whether Thomson might harbor some resentment as he watches the club surge without him.
In his first public comments about the team’s surge since he departed, Thomson addressed those questions head on.
“I think that in a lot of situations where managers get fired, most wish that they had a little more time but (there are) no lingering frustrations,” Thomson told The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. “You can call it whatever you want, but the fact is that the team has been playing so much better since the change and they are back to who they are!!”
While the comments acknowledged some natural disappointment that comes with losing a managerial job, they also made clear that Thomson has not spent the last several weeks dwelling on what might have been or being bitter about being his ouster from the post just before a surge in the standings.
Instead, he has largely viewed the turnaround as confirmation of what he believed the roster was capable of all along.
Philadelphia Phillies’ Don Mattingly Oversees Dramatic Surge After Rob Thomson Exit
The results under Mattingly have been difficult to ignore, particularly as the team pushes into a crowded National League playoff picture.
“The Phillies … are 21-10 under Don Mattingly and right back in the thick of the NL Wild Card chase,” MLB.com’s Mike Lupica reported earlier this month. “And even not hitting the way Mattingly believes they ultimately will, have started to look like the team they were expected to be, three weeks from the official start of summer and with more than 100 games left to play.”
That stretch has transformed the Phillies from one of the National League’s most disappointing teams into a legitimate postseason contender once again.
For Mattingly, the success has strengthened his case to remain in the dugout beyond the interim label. For Thomson, it has provided validation of a belief he expressed before leaving — that the talent already existed for the Phillies to become a much better team.
And for the Phillies players, it’s a bit of a bittersweet result after the team cut ties with a beloved figure at the helm.
“You do feel guilty as a player,” Mattingly said of Thomson’s firing, per Rosenthal. “You know it’s not the manager.”