The Philadelphia Phillies are sticking with Don Mattingly as their full-time manager, the club said Wednesday.
After replacing Rob Thomson in the Phillies dugout on April 28, the club seemed to rally around the veteran bench boss from the get-go. Philadelphia earned a National League Wild Card Series postseason berth in 2026.
The Atlanta Braves, winners of the NL East Division, dispatched the Phillies from advancing to the next round of playoffs. Atlanta won the best-of-three game series.
With the clock ticking on a possible lockout imposed by MLB club owners when the current collective bargaining agreement with the players’ union runs out on Dec. 1, clubs have decisions to make on personnel sooner than in past off-seasons.
With both the American and National League Championship Series in full swing and the 122nd edition of the World Series set to begin on Oct. 23, the Phillies brain trust can now get to work on the free agency season.
With free agency officially beginning the day after the final World Series game (if needed—Game 7 is scheduled for Oct. 31), players can’t sign with a new team until the fifth day after the final World Series game.
The Phillies face difficult decisions on more than a half dozen free agents. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, general manager Preston Mattingly (the manager’s son), and the club’s skipper can now take a deep dive into who will stay in Philadelphia and who may wear a different uniform in 2027.
Second baseman Luis Arraez, Alec Bohm, who splits his time between third base and first base, and reliever Jose Alvarado lead the pack of impact players. Mattingly will offer his take on the positives each offers. Once the free agency season is up and running, Philadelphia, like the 29 other MLB franchises in November, will be waiting for players to accept or reject qualifying contract offers.
Players with non-tendered contracts will immediately become free agents. With Mattingly sticking around in the dugout, the Phillies have another trusted voice to evaluate a roster they hope can lead them deeper into the postseason next season.
Continuity Strengthens Phillies
MLB Network analyst Jon Morosi on Wednesday broke down how keeping Mattingly in the Phillies’ fold strengthens the club.
“He is staying in the Philadelphia Phillies managerial chair, and for good reason,” Morosi said. “He did a very admirable job in taking over for Rob Thomson. Of course it’s a very unique situation where his son Preston is the GM, and Dave Dombrowski runs the baseball operations department. And there had been, at various points, gauging interest in Alex Cora. It appears that Alex is going to take the year off.”
As unfair as it may be in labeling Mattingly as Philadelphia’s Plan B, as they considered candidates for the manager’s position once Cora rejected them a second time, he was the safe selection with a winning past. After taking over for Thomson, Philadelphia had the fourth-best MLB record the rest of the season.
Going into spring training as the Phillies’ bench coach, Mattingly, 65, was able to get a first-hand look at those who were expected to lead for the 162-game schedule.
After an exceptional playing career with the New York Yankees and 12 seasons managing the Los Angeles Dodgers and Miami Marlins, the experts are convinced Mattingly can get through, especially with Philadelphia’s headliners.
“When you look at the landscape of the type of manager the Phillies would want, you would want an experienced manager who relates well to superstar players. That is Don Mattingly. The big picture point to make is the Phillies are a team that is going for it. [They] are looking to try to get back with a group of aging position players to the World Series next season,” Morosi explains.
Among the topics Mattingly will chime in on in shaping the 2027 Phillies is the offense. Philadelphia finished 2026 ranked 19th in runs scored, and their bullpen posted the 21st-best ERA (4.43).
Along with counting on veterans Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, J.T. Realmuto, and Kyle Schwarber to manufacture runs, the Phillies’ pitching is perhaps their best strength. The leading four starters in 2026 consisting of Zack Wheeler (14–5), Cristopher Sanchez (18–7), Jesus Luzardo (14–5), and Aaron Nola (7–12) are all expected to be back healthy at the start of next season.
Like Mattingly, who went from interim to permanent manager of the club he finished the season with, Andy Green of the New York Mets and Boston’s Chad Tracy have also gone from fill-ins to full-time skippers.
When Mattingly went off the market with his signing a two-year deal to stay in Philadelphia, the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners were the remaining clubs with managerial vacancies.
