In late July, Don Mattingly took over as the Philadelphia Phillies’ interim manager, emphasizing the necessity of accountability.
Following a disastrous stretch that saw them fall to a shocking 9-19 record, which included a 10-game losing streak, the Phillies were now in position to contend for the title.
That mess wasn’t going to take care of itself.
“We haven’t been losing unluckily,” Mattingly stated. We have made a contribution to that. We need to improve our baseball game. … This is a “we” thing. This is not a case of pointing the finger at one thing and saying, “This is the answer. ” Play better than the opposition is the solution.
Even if that message is straightforward, since taking over for Rob Thomson on April 28, Mattingly’s voice has struck a chord with the revitalized Phillies.
The Phillies defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-0 on Sunday to reach 24-23, their first winning record since April 7.
The Phillies, who were 15-4 since Mattingly took over as manager, entered Monday looking a lot like the team that won the National League East and 96 games the previous year.
Shortly after Mattingly was promoted, Phillies left-hander Jesús Luzardo stated that “he’s been a player for a long time, and he knows the life and the struggles that we go through. ” “He’s also an excellent communicator and can see that perspective. “
To be sure, Mattingly’s MLB resume speaks for itself.
Mattingly played for the Yankees for 14 MLB seasons, from 1982 to 1995, during which he hit 222 home runs, won nine Gold Gloves, and had a . 307 batting average. As a former first baseman, he was a six-time All-Star, the 1984 American League batting champion, and the 1985 AL MVP.
If Mattingly’s playing career, which ended at age 34, had not been plagued by persistent back issues, his figures would have undoubtedly been even more ostentatious, and he would have been inducted into the Hall of Fame.
This is Mattingly’s third time managing a Major League Baseball team. In addition to serving as the Yankees’ hitting coach from 2004 to 2007 and the Toronto Blue Jays’ bench from 2023 to 2025, the baseball lifer has also held dugout positions for four other clubs.
Mattingly’s protracted wait for his first visit to the World Series ended with Toronto’s AL pennant victory last season.
“It might give you some credibility that you’ve kind of been there and did some things,” the Phillies Nation website quoted Mattingly as saying recently. “What’s ultimately going to get me across is how you handle things. “
In November, Mattingly resigned from his position with the Blue Jays. Two months later, he was named the Phillies’ bench coach, whose general manager is his son, Preston Mattingly.
Mattingly said he had no plans to manage again at the time.
However, things changed when Dave Dombrowski, the president of baseball operations, dismissed Thomson, who had previously transformed the Phillies as an interim manager in 2022 when he took over for Joe Girardi and guided Philadelphia to the World Series.
Dombrowski admitted that he initially contacted Alex Cora, who was fired by the Boston Red Sox last month, and was refused. As a result, Mattingly was not his first option.
The Phillies were tied with the Mets for the worst record in baseball when Mattingly took over as manager. Their lineup had the second-worst OPS (. 656), while their pitching staff had the third-worst ERA in the league (5. 13).
However, since Mattingly took over, the Phillies have had the fourth-best ERA (2. 91) and the fifth-best OPS (. 755) through Sunday. In a scorching eight-game stretch, Kyle Schwarber, the star slugger, blasted nine home runs.
Mattingly’s contagious confidence is a major factor in the turnaround, as evidenced by Friday night’s come-from-behind, 11-9 victory in extra innings in Pittsburgh.
“At that point, it was something like 7-3,” Bryce Harper stated later. “[Mattingly] said, “You know we’re going to come back. ” And I took his word for it. I believed that as well. “
