The Philadelphia Phillies have their man. According to a report by The Athletic’s Charlotte Varnes, the Phillies have hired Peter Fatse to fill their vacancy as hitting coach.
The role had been occupied by Kevin Long since 2022, who took over for Joe Dillon following the 2021 season. Long oversaw a decline by most of the Phillies' hitters in 2026, leading an offense ranked 28th in wRC+ (92), 22nd in OPS (.707), and 23rd in OBP (.312). The Phillies scored 719 runs; only three National League teams (the New York Mets, San Francisco Giants, and Cincinnati Reds) scored fewer.
Fatse previously coached the Boston Red Sox and had served as their hitting coach since the 2022 season under Alex Cora. Following the Red Sox 11-17 start to the season, Fatse was among the wholesale firings of Cora and his staff.
A ploy to entice Alex Cora?
Though Cora turned down the Phillies for their open managerial position a second time this October, Fatse could serve as an olive branch to the former Red Sox. Cora promoted Fatse to assistant hitting coach in December of 2021. If things don’t work out with manager Don Mattingly this year—he's only on a two-year deal, after all—working with a former partner could be an ulterior motive to entice Cora to Philadelphia.
That said, Fatse has merits beyond being a key to the Alex Cora puzzle. Under Fatse, from 2022 to 2025, the Red Sox ranked second in the AL in runs scored, just 100 behind the first-place New York Yankees. They had the fourth-best OPS (.741), second-highest HardHit% (41.7%), and fifth-ranked wRC+ (104).
If there’s one thing to be concerned about, it's chase rate. Over that span, Red Sox hitters ranked 24th in MLB in BB/K. For a Phillies team that’s already struggled with swing-and-miss, that’s worth monitoring.
Since July, Fatse has been working with the Tampa Bay Rays as a hitting consultant for the team’s research and development group. The Rays finished the season as the American League’s fourth-ranked offense and currently trail the Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series two games to zero.
With the lockout approaching, Fatse will not be able to communicate with the Phillies' hitting corps the way most coaches do during the offseason. Communication between team officials and players is prohibited during lockouts. Fatse will have to hit the ground running when spring training begins, if, of course, there is spring training next year.
Add us as a preferred source on Google