Philadelphia is one of the toughest sports cities to play in. The fans are as passionate as they come and aren’t afraid to let the players know what they think of their performance whether it’s good or bad. It isn’t any easier on the coaches either.
Phillies owner John Middleton is the type of owner who wants to win all the time. He’s not just a guy who invested in a franchise because he had the money to do so, he’s also a big Phillies fan. He’s committed to doing what it takes to bring a World Series championship back to the City of Brotherly Love.
Did Phillies owner John Middleton just put Rob Thomson on the hot seat?
The Phillies have struggled over the last month, this isn’t a secret. They started the season playing so well up until the All-Star break. They were on pace to finish the season with the most wins in franchise history before the prolonged losing stretch.
The slump hasn't only frustrated Phillies fans, but it's also left Middleton wondering what happened to the dominant team from the first half of the season.
“I think you have to be pushing. And pushing people to rethink what they’ve been doing,” Middleton said about the Phillies’ poor play over the last month, per Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. “That’s coaches and that’s players. Everybody has to step back and say, ‘What are we doing wrong? Why is a team that was winning at a .700 clip for 3 1/2 months now playing at a .325 clip for the last five weeks?’”
The Phillies had a 61-32 record through July 11. They were winning series, the pitching staff was among the best in the majors and the lineup was producing day in and day out. They’re 12-19 since then and have been one of the worst teams in baseball over that span.
What has been the issue with the Phillies? It seems like almost everything has gone wrong during this rough patch. The pitching staff hasn’t been as dominant consistently as they were in the first half of the season, and the hitters have been experiencing their own slumps at the plate. Who’s to blame for the cold streak?
“He's a smart guy,” Middleton said about the Phillies president of baseball operations, Dave Dombrowski, per Zolecki. “He has high standards. He just doesn’t accept people who don’t do their jobs well. So he’s pushing everybody. That’s what needs to happen.”
Was this a hint that Phillies manager Rob Thomson is on the hot seat?
Thomson took over as manager of the Phillies during the 2022 season when Joe Girardi was let go. Thomson went on to lead the Phillies to the World Series, and just one win shy of forcing a Game 7 against the Houston Astros. He led the Phillies back to the NLCS in 2023 in his first full season as manager, and he has the team atop the major league standings in 2024 with 38 games left to play in the regular season.
This Phillies team has high expectations. Middleton has spent a lot of money and resources over the last few years to make the Phillies a World Series-caliber team. The time to win is now. Even with a 228-169 record and likely three straight playoff appearances, Thomson could be the fall guy if the Phillies fall short of a championship this year.