The Philadelphia Phillies’ season-opening tailspin has put manager Rob Thomson firmly on the hot seat. The once-beloved savior of the team has allowed the clubhouse atmosphere to grow sour by refusing to hold his players to any sort of standard. The even-keeled Canadian put yet another nail in his coffin on Sunday night with a clueless quote regarding his own responsibilities.
A disinterested and unwatchable Phillies team sunk to a new low on Sunday, as the division-rival Atlanta Braves completed a three-game sweep in Citizens Bank Park. The Phils continued to show their offensive ineptitude, while rookie Andrew Painter looked quite mortal, coughing up three earned runs in only four innings of work.
When questioned about his team’s continual failures during the postgame press conference, Topper fell back onto one of his usual tone deaf responses, claiming that the players were simply, “trying too hard.” Clearly, if the players put less effort into their work then they would magically perform better.
What does a manager actually do, if not manage? Don't ask Phillies' Rob Thomson.
OnPattison’s Tim Kelly pressed the fifth-year skipper, asking how Thomson stayed positive during such a wretched stretch of baseball. Thomson responded in his usual clueless manner, stating, “That’s my job.”
We’ve sunk to a new Phillies low folks. Rob Thomson doesn’t even understand what his duties consist of for a job he’s been performing for a half decade.
Any casual baseball fan knows what a team’s manager is supposed to do. Crafting lineups, deciding when to rest players, making crucial in-game decisions about pinch-hitting and relief pitching. Basically, run a baseball team. It seems Rob Thomson never got that memo, as he thinks of himself as more of a court jester, just there to keep spirits high.
Famed managers like Earl Weaver, Lou Piniella, and even the Phillies’ own Dallas Green captured World Series trophies despite having prickly personalities to say the least. There are lots of different ways to be a leader, and sometimes that requires being tough on grown men who are paid millions of dollars. Sometimes tough love is the only way to get through to a group that has become far too complacent.
Thomson did make a passing reference to this portion of his job description, claiming, “There are times when you have to straighten some people out… and in a way we’ve done that. But, for the most part you’ve got to stay positive.” Unfortunately, despite his vague eyewash on the subject, Topper has failed miserably at the accountability portion of his vocation. The lack of discipline surrounding clubhouse cancer Nick Castellanos last season says it all.
The Phillies are off to a worse start than anyone could have imagined, and they have no one to blame but themselves. Heads need to roll in order to get things back on track, and Rob Thomson is racing towards the front of the line for the guillotine.
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