The Phillies were 230-29 when Joe Girardi was fired on June 3, 2022, but the team caught fire under interim skipper Rob Thomson, going 64-46 the rest of the way and taking the former long-time Girardi bench coach to the World Series.
And that, unfortunately, was the high point of this Phillies run.
“The irony of wanting to eat the entire apple and getting eliminated by a team from New York, the Big Apple, maybe the apple too big for Rob and the rest of the team,” Spike Eskin said to open Friday’s show. “I was hoping we would turn the page today, but I am not ready to turn the page, and I don’t think any of us are there yet.”
“The ending of this season, the weight of the disappointment and the failure, has not subsided yet, nor should it,” Ike agreed. “This wasn't some Johnny come lately, jump on the bandwagon when they start winning out of nowhere type of season; this has been building since their run in 2022, and the expectation from this fan base and what we wanted as an end result, it has gotten to that level and rightfully so; it's one of the top five payrolls in all of baseball with stars aplenty, and when you have a disappointment like we did, after the owner said he wants his trophy, it’s justified.”
That World Series run got Thomson the full-time gig, but after two seasons where the Phils won 90 and 95 games but were bounced in the NLCS and then NLDS, it seems like the team is going backwards…and that’s why Spike agrees with a few of our colleagues: Topper’s time has come.
“I’m glad this is where we are, because the Phillies are treated like children sometimes, where it’s great when they do well, but when they don’t, we’ll just talk about the Eagles,” Spike said. “But you said something yesterday that stuck with me through last night about the culture of the clubhouse – and I think there is a lot to be done with the Phillies. I don’t think Rob Thomson is a bad manager, and I don't think what he did this year caused the Phillies specifically to underachieve…but I do think they need to move on from Rob Thomson.”
If you’re wondering how that jibes, well, Spike doesn’t think that the fact the team gets along and has a good culture is a bad thing – but good culture doesn’t always mean a winning one.
“We have talked about that as a good culture, but they need a culture that is conducive to winning, and they allowed, whether it was the players or Dombrowski who wanted it, the players to police themselves, to run the clubhouse so when something goes wrong, we will be sure that they will find it,” Spike said. “That’s what Rob Thompson did, and what he was instructed to do. That's the kind of manager he is, and you know what? They didn't do it. They didn't hold each other accountable, they didn't realize when it was slipping away and there were several opportunities during the year to get it back. Since the end of May, this team has been on cruise control.”
Winning usually cures all ill, but Spike points to the 18-3 loss in the final game before the break, or when the Braves or Mets made their runs, or even the last week when home field advantage was in their sights, as moments where someone could’ve stepped up and said enough is enough, but it never happened.
“The players didn’t do it, Rob Thomson didn’t do it, and all we heard was that the pressure may have been too much, or it’s hard to play well all season, or Alec Bohm had no doubt he’ll be back even though he got benched and was a baby the entire time,” Spike said. “They do not hold each other accountable. There is not a culture of accountability. It doesn't mean they're not good people, doesn't mean they don't get along with each other, but before they change players – which, by the way, will require players to want to come here or other teams to want to trade for you – the move they can make right now is to move on from Rob Thomson and get a manager in there who is going to help set the culture.”
And that’s because, as Spike says, it doesn’t seem like any of the stars, who others may even look up to, are the kind of leaders to say ‘not in this clubhouse’ when things get too loose.
“We have a bunch of players that get along, but we also have players who accept going up there and having weak at-bats when we know we need to grind out at-bats, and a culture that allows Alec Bohm to mope for weeks and then throw a tantrum after he gets benched,” Spike said. “I don’t think Rob Thomson is a bad manager, I don't think it's on him, but I do think the change starts with that position, and I think they need to move on from Rob Thomson.”