ATLANTA — Rob Thomson has a permanent job.
On the eve of the Phillies’ divisional round playoff series with the Atlanta Braves, Thomson received a two-year contract extension and had the “interim” tag removed from his title. He will manage the Phillies in 2023 and 2024.
“As time progressed, it became apparent that Rob was the right person to lead this team and our club’s on-field performance over the course of the season certainly reinforced that,” president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said in a statement released Monday. “His calm demeanor and ability to communicate with players and staff has greatly benefited the Phillies and we are excited to formally name him our manager going forward.”
Thomson, 59, was elevated to the managerial role on June 3 once the Phillies fired Joe Girardi after a 22-29 start. A longtime coach, mostly with the New York Yankees, Thomson worked as the Phillies’ bench coach since 2018 under both Gabe Kapler and Girardi.
The Phillies went 65-46 under Thomson and made the playoffs for the first time since 2011. They swept the St. Louis Cardinals in the best-of-three wild-card round and will open the National League divisional series Tuesday night against the Braves in Atlanta.
Thomson became the first manager to take over a team in the middle of a season and lead it to the playoffs since Jim Tracy with the 2009 Colorado Rockies. Only Thomson, Tracy, Cito Gaston (1989 Toronto Blue Jays), and Dick Howser (1981 Kansas City Royals) took over a team that was at least seven games under .500 and guided it to the postseason.
Players responded to Thomson’s calm demeanor and even-keeled mentality throughout the season. Several players have drawn a contrast between Thomson and Girardi, an accomplished manager with a World Series title on his resume who nevertheless was regarded for being tightly wound at times.
“[Thomson] is a special guy,” Wheeler said last week. “He cares about us. He is there every single day way earlier than we are, preparing for that day and days ahead. Anybody who has your back like that, we have his back. He’s a good teacher and a good person to have in charge of our clubhouse and everything. Everybody really loves him and we like to play for him.”
