Will Alex Cora Become the New Phillies' Manager?

TL;DR

The Philadelphia Phillies fired manager Rob Thomson after a poor start and considered Alex Cora for the role. However, Cora declined the offer to spend time with his family, leading to Don Mattingly being named interim manager.

Key points

Phillies fired manager Rob Thomson after 9-19 start
Alex Cora declined the managerial offer
Don Mattingly named interim manager
Cora has ties to Phillies President Dombrowski

Mentioned in this story

Alex CoraRob ThomsonDon MattinglyDave Dombrowski

Philadelphia PhilliesBoston Red SoxNew York Yankees

Bryce Harper looks on during a Phillies-Cubs game at Wrigley Field in April 2026.

Photo by George Gaza/MLB Photos via Getty Images

The Phillies fired manager Rob Thomson Tuesday, following the high-priced team’s dreadful 9-19 start. It was believed by many that Alex Cora, who was fired by the Red Sox this past weekend, would immediately slide into the Philadelphia managerial role due to his close ties with Phillies President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski.

Reporter Bob Nightengale quickly silenced that speculation Tuesday morning as he wrote on X minutes later, “Alex Cora was offered the Philadelphia Phillies managerial job before Don Mattingly but declined. He has decided to spend time with his family.”

Mattingly has been named the Phillies interim manager. The former Yankees great has been with the Phillies organization since January of this year, serving as the team’s bench coach under Thomson.

Thomson stated, at least publicly, at the time of the Mattingly hire as bench coach that he was on board.

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“Dave [Dombrowski] and I have been talking about hiring a guy like Donnie with that type of pedigree,” Thomson said at the time, according to MLB.com. “Because as great as our staff is, we don’t have that guy who’s been a star in the big leagues.”

Interestingly enough, Mattingly said in January that he did not have any aspirations to be a manager again.

“I don’t think I have the energy for that anymore,” Mattingly said, according to . “I feel like those days have passed me by. So I don’t have any aspirations to manage again.”