The Philadelphia Phillies fired manager Rob Thomson after a 9-19 start to the season, the team announced Tuesday.
Don Mattingly will serve as Thomson's interim replacement through the end of the 2026 season after beginning the campaign as bench coach. Mattingly's son, Preston, is the Phillies' general manager.
Philadelphia also promoted third base coach Dusty Wathan to bench coach, and Lehigh Valley Triple-A manager Anthony Contreras will join the major-league staff and assume the role of third base coach.
Thomson had managed the Phillies since 2022, winning the NL pennant in his first season on the job. He posted a 355-270 record with Philadelphia, leading the club to the playoffs in four consecutive seasons.
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski had given Thomson a vote of confidence just last week, saying the franchise wasn't considering a managerial change despite the team's poor play.
"Rob Thomson's been a good manager for us since (2022). We always look at everything that's taking place, but no," Dombrowski said when he was asked about potentially replacing Thomson.
In December, the Phillies signed Thomson to a contract extension that would have kept him as manager through the 2027 season.
The 62-year-old's dismissal comes four days after the Boston Red Sox relieved manager Alex Cora and five members of his coaching staff.
Dombrowski confirmed Tuesday that he offered the Phillies' managerial position to Cora but was turned down.
"I talked to him on Sunday morning. We talked about potentially taking the job. I had told him I had really come to the conclusion that if he took it, I was going to make a change," Dombrowski said, according to MassLive's Chris Cotillo.
"I thought he might take it. As time went on over the next day into Monday morning, it was apparent from his perspective that he wanted to take time with his family," Dombrowski added. "It wasn't because of pay or because he's paid through the next year. He just felt that he wanted, at this point, to be a father first and foremost. That's what he had decided."
