Before the calendar even flipped to May, the Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox made major changes to their teams.
Both franchises decided it was time to move on from well-respected managers Rob Thomson and Alex Cora. The Phillies are hoping for a similar outcome to when Thomson took over for Joe Girardi in 2022, amidst an underwhelming campaign.
The Red Sox have had Cora at the helm of their team since 2018, outside of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic-shortened campaign. He helped lead Boston to a World Series title in his first year, and the team made the playoffs three times, including last season.
Under Thomson’s watch, Philadelphia was in the playoffs all four years as well; that is what makes their firings all the more eye-popping, even historic.
Phillies, Red Sox make history firing managers
Jayson Stark of The Athletic (subscription required) asked himself, once those moves were announced, how many times has a manager who made the playoffs the previous season been fired before April was over? Had it ever been done to two managers in the same year?
The answer to the latter is no. There have never been two managers fired before May who led their respective teams to the postseason. In fact, there is only one other instance of that occurring in MLB history.
In 1981, Bob Lemon was the manager of the New York Yankees, and the team reached the World Series. 16 games in the 1982 campaign, George Steinbrenner decided it was time to make a move and fired him.
The circumstances for each manager are different. While Cora’s departure truly came as a shock, it felt as if something had to be done by the Phillies’ brain trust to get this team back on track.
Phillies firing Thomson was justified
Thomson is a well-respected manager, and it was a difficult decision to move on from him. However, his team’s stay in the postseason was shortened every year he was at the helm.
After making the World Series in 2022, Philadelphia blew a 3-2 lead in the NLCS against the Arizona Diamondbacks at home. They were shockingly upset by the New York Mets in the NLDS in 2024 after earning a bye, and last year ran into the buzzsaw known as the Los Angeles Dodgers.
On top of the most recent postseason failure, the Phillies started the season 9-19 before the plug was pulled on Thomson. Would he have benefited from managing the softer stretch in the schedule, as his tenure ended with 13 consecutive games against the Chicago Cubs and Atlanta Braves, who are tied for the most wins in baseball with 26?
Almost certainly. But, it wasn’t a chance ownership was willing to take. Don Mattingly was handed the reins to the club on an interim basis, and they have gone 8-2 since, clawing their way into the playoff picture in the National League.
