The city of Philadelphia Dave Dombrowski phoned the Phillies’ bench coach the day before everything happened and inquired about his whereabouts. No game was played. Rob Thomson had film to analyze, which is why he was at Citizens Bank Park. Next up was an unknown opponent, the Los Angeles Angels.
This was not a talk Dombrowski could have at the ballpark. The seasoned executive asked Thomson if he might meet him at his home. This was remarkable since Dombrowski, the club’s baseball operations president, had never hosted a guest at his Center City high-rise residence. He walked downstairs to let the doorman know that Thomson might come in.
The following day, Dombrowski knew he would remove manager Joe Girardi. However, he wasn’t positive that Thomson would take his post. The two guys discussed the club. Thomson, Girardi’s faithful subordinate, found it awkward. He was offered the position by Dombrowski.
“It would be foolish of me to decline,” Thomson said to Dombrowski.
Two years have gone by since everything changed. Dombrowski acknowledged this past weekend that it was one of the more important choices he has ever made in his illustrious career. It is not the manager’s fault that the Phillies have won the fourth-most games in Major League Baseball since June 3, 2022, Thomson’s first day on the job. However, since Thomson acquired the manager’s office, there has been a significant culture shift, according to workers throughout the firm. Its foundation is the unassuming, 60-year-old Canadian baseball legend who has established unshakeable trust.
Everybody has a job. Thomson thinks they’ll succeed. He doesn’t meddle or freak out, and in a franchise that isn’t known for its consistency, that attitude has become the norm. During those two years with Thomson, the Phillies have been a dominant force in the National League.
Regarding the Phillies’ run to the World Series, current bench coach Mike Calitri remarked, “How 2022 unfolded was magical and historical.” However, it makes more sense now that I’ve gone back over the last 700+ days. Great works were usually present here. All he had to do was piece the puzzle together.
Thomson left Dombrowski’s building two years ago. He felt lightheaded. Only two men knew it was done at that point. The next manager would be Thomson. He made the decision to travel seven blocks to The Franklin Residences, where he lived.
“There are hundreds of people passing me,” Thomson remarked. “I’m thinking that something is about to alter in my life. Hugely. I will eventually be unable to accomplish this.
He didn’t know. He dialed his wife. He dialed his children. Nobody else could be aware of it.
Thomson remarked, “I just waited after that.”
That night, he didn’t sleep.
At a press conference on June 3, 2022, Dave Dombrowski introduces Rob Thomson as the next manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. (Associated Press/Matt Rourke)
On September 17, 2021, Riley Wilson’s minor league career came to an end. In rookie ball, he was a 25-year-old lefty reliever. He hit the final hitter he faced and struck out two others. That December, he was released by the Phillies, although they made him an offer. In 2022, he started working as an intern with the Phillies’ advance scouting group, a laborious task that involved long hours to uncover patterns about potential opponents that could or might not affect the outcome of a real baseball game. His work ethic was admired by Thomson. They required someone to operate the video replay room during games when Thomson was promoted to manager and Calitri was promoted to bench coach.
Thomson relinquished the replay challenges to the intern.
“He never abandoned me during that initial period, which was undoubtedly difficult,” Wilson remarked. He might have easily been impatient with me very quickly. However, he never did. He never left me.
It was a tight play at second base on Sunday night against the St. Louis Cardinals. Calitri grabbed the phone from the dugout and dialed Wilson. Time was not on their side. Wilson responded, “Go for it.” In the end, the challenge was successful and resulted in two Phillies runs. In 2024, it was the Phillies’ thirteenth victorious challenge. In the majors, it is tied for the most.
Wilson is no longer an intern.
Dusty Wathan, the third-base coach for the Phillies, stated, “Thoms has really good people around him.” Many managers have competent people around them, but they don’t trust them. It is reciprocal. Correct? Because he has faith in everyone, you begin to have faith in him.
He allows you to sort things out, even if you’re a rookie player. He may allow pitchers to throw one or two more batters. In the long run, that pays off handsomely. The element of trust is very important.
Zack Wheeler has found a connection with it.
Wheeler remarked, “I appreciate that he respects me and my feelings.” “He asks me all the time. He seldom ever lets me know when I’m leaving the game. I appreciate that, then. He trusts me back, therefore I make an effort to be as honest as I can with him.
That has some substance.
“Yes,” Wheeler said. “I’ve never experienced that before.”
In the opening game of the 2023 Wild Card Series against the Marlins, Rob Thomson gets the ball from Zack Wheeler. (USA Today/Bill Streicher)
Only three teams—the Dodgers, Braves, and Orioles—have won more games during the regular season than the Phillies in Thomson’s two years there. Thomson has won 196 of his 333 games, which is the eighth-highest number of games won by a manager at the start of their career since MLB’s expansion in 1961. According to Stats Perform, it’s the highest by a manager who took over a team in the middle of the season.
Since 1890, no Phillies manager has had a higher winning percentage than him, at.589.
Over the past 731 days, everything has changed.
Thomson, who was appointed as temporary manager but had the title taken away four months later, in October 2022, remarked, “It feels like yesterday.” Indeed. I mean, working with our group, staff, and front office has been a lot of fun. There isn’t a spot that I can think of that is finer than this one. I truly am unable to.
Thomson, who is contracted through 2025 and has been with the Phillies since 2018, leaned forward at his desk.
He said, “And for that reason, I will never work again.” “I’m done once this is over. Because what we have going on here is something I can’t picture anywhere else.
It is now difficult to picture this location without him.
Calitri declared, “He’s the right person for this time with this group.”
Rob Thomson raises a glass to the Phillies following their 2022 NLCS victory against the Padres, which sent them to the World Series. (Daniel Shirey / MLB Photos via Getty Images )
Two years ago, Dombrowski pondered how Thomson would be different as the boss. Being the right-hand man is one thing. Keep to your lane. However, nothing changed.
Dombrowski said, “No.” He simply feels a lot more at ease having candid conversations and discussing issues. I’ve been doing this for a while; I had to tell him. However, you still need to express your feelings to me. It’s crucial. I’m not down there. I might have a viewpoint. I’m not always correct, though.
According to Kyle Schwarber, younger players have responded more favorably to such openness. They are aware of their position with Thomson. Schwarber described him as “straight-forwardly honest with them.” They are aware of when they will or won’t play days in advance. It’s neither an overreaction to a terrible night nor a game of guesswork.
“He is aware of the true difficulty of baseball,” Bryson Stott remarked.
The Phillies have improved the development of unfinished players at the major league level, a goal that had evaded the team for years, thanks to stability among the coaches and players. They have developed a pitching program that combines traditional and modern concepts. They now represent the manager’s consistency.
“I don’t say a lot,” Thomson said. However, they pay attention when I speak. They also carry it out. They are that person. That’s probably the primary cause, in my opinion. I desire for them to be authentic. I want them to enjoy themselves at the stadium. However, having fun is not the same as (messing) around. They are also aware that I am aware of the distinction. Thus, I believe that’s how it operates.
It is effective since the norm has been constant for the past two years.
On practically every level, Rob Thomson is more concerned about other people and more sympathetic to their needs than he is to his own, according to Calitri. He is unmatched in his constancy.
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