Phillies cut loose Joe Girardi, promote Rob Thomson to interim manager

Schooled as a cool manager yet accustomed to more success, Joe Girardi tried to keep a stiff upper lip while his Phillies team with great expectations at first slipped, then plummeted through a worsening first several weeks of the season.

Despite finally winning a series finale against the Giants Wednesday, a come-from-behind effort that ended a five-game losing streak, the die for Girardi’s tenure here had essentially been cast last week, when the Phillies were swept by the front-running New York Mets.

Amid a Thursday offday, his Phillies 12 games behind the Mets in the National League East, team president Dave Dombrowski reached the conclusion that had seemed obvious to many others for some time – Joe must go.

The dismissal came despite Dombrowski’s earlier public assertion that he wouldn’t fire a manager during the season. Yet the Phillies also had declined the option for a fourth season for Girardi’s contract for 2023.

Bench coach Rob Thomson, actually a touch older than Girardi at 58, and having served for years on Girardi’s staff with the New York Yankees, gets a shot at a managerial job. He’ll take over the position on an interim basis.

“I am extremely excited for this opportunity and I appreciate the confidence Dave (Dombrowski) has shown in me,” Thomson said via team statement. “Having said that, this is an emotional day for me, having worked so closely with Joe for so many years. This has been my home now for the last five years and I care deeply about this franchise, this city, our players, our coaches, our staff and our fans. I am ready to lead this team and look forward to getting to work and turning this around.”

The Phillies, saddled with the fourth-highest payroll in the majors, have stumbled to a 22-29 mark. They had won just five of their last 17 games.

“It has been a frustrating season for us up until this point, as we feel that our club has not played up to its capabilities,” Dombrowski said in a statement. “While all of us share the responsibility for the shortcomings, I felt that a change was needed and that a new voice in the clubhouse would give us the best chance to turn things around. I believe we have a talented group that can get back on track, and I am confident that Rob, with his experience and familiarity with our club, is the right man to lead us going forward.”

Despite a series of roster upgrades since he took over for Gabe Kapler after the 2019 season, Girardi, 57, went 132-141 with the Phillies. This after going 910-710 and winning a World Series – ironically over the Phillies in 2009 – during a 10-year stint as Yankees manager.

Thomson, a former minor-league player in the Detroit organization, has had a variety of baseball roles during his career, including varied front office and coaching roles during a 28-year Yankees career. Since joining the Phillies in Dec. of 2017, Thomson, an Ontario native and member of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, has been bench coach and spring training coordinator.

In addition to the Girardi dismissal, coaching assistant Bobby Meacham was also fired. And quality assurance coach Mike Calitri was promoted to replace Thomson as bench coach.

Thomson’s first game as manager will come against the Angels tonight at Citizens Bank Park. That franchise’s longtime manager, Morton native and Springfield High graduate Mike Scioscia, might be considered a solid managerial candidate now for the team he grew up watching.