Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos raised some eyebrows again over the weekend. His post-game comments regarding Phillies manager Rob Thomson left little to the imagination on Friday.
After an 8-2 win, Castellanos ripped into Thomson over the lack of communication he's received over the years. The take was not only surprising but also partially confusing, given how well the clubhouse seems to gel night after night. On the surface, communication seemed like the least of their worries, but not for Castellanos.
“I don’t really talk to Rob all that often,” Castellanos stated. "… communication over the years has been questionable, at least in my experience."
Answers from Castellanos tend to be heard around the Philadelphia media, given his brutal honesty and his willingness to say exactly what's on his mind. His comment about the lack of communication seemed silly, however, it did end up warranting a response from Thomson himself.
Rob Thomson responds to Nick Castellanos' comments with a point of his own regarding communication
Thomson was asked the next day on Saturday how he views his current relationship with Castellanos, and Thomson was very honest in his response.
“Well you know. So as far as the communication part of it, with not only Nick [Castellanos], but anybody else in that clubhouse who doesn’t think that I’m communicating enough with them, I’m probably not,” Thomson said. “I have got to do a better job. That’s just being accountable, but there are two ways of communicating and that door is always open, and I’m not a mind reader. I can’t tell the future. I urge players, I want players to come in here and tell me what’s on their mind. So, obviously I need to do a better job.”
Thomson made it known that it's on the players as well to seek out the manager with any issues they may have. He was then asked if he told Castellanos this specifically, to which his response was yes. Thomson was also asked if it was a normal thing for Castellanos to approach him about his place in the lineup before a series, and Thomson couldn't confirm that either.
“No, it hasn’t happened lately, but again, if a guy’s frustrated, I want him to come in,” Thomson said.
Rob Thomson addresses his relationship with Nick Castellanos. https://t.co/u2o8rMDPNg pic.twitter.com/1382sbUvIi
— On Pattison (@OnPattison) September 20, 2025
Castellanos has been dealing with a storm of media attention after his answers about his lack of starting for the Phillies in certain matchups. He started getting benched more and more, and as a result, the questions seemed to grind on Castellanos more and more. It seemed like he embraced being put into a platoon role initially, but comments like these may mean something else may really be going on.
The Phillies are on the precipice of another postseason run, and the last thing they need is to hear that they can't communicate well. Thomson already has enough on his plate without all the commotion. Hopefully Castellanos and Thomson can resolve this quickly because there will be no room for error when the games really start to matter in October.