Phillies manager Rob Thomson on speculation about his dismissal: ‘I’ve never worried about that’

ATLANTA — One day after the Red Sox fired a manager who once got hired by Dave Dombrowski, the Phillies lost for the 15th time in 18 games.

Go ahead and connect the dots.

Rob Thomson gets it.

“That’s natural, right? It’s normal,” the embattled Phillies manager said Sunday after a 6-2 loss to the Braves. “I’ve never worried about that in my entire career.”

» READ MORE: Dave Dombrowski is ‘responsible’ for this reeling Phillies roster. And these decisions helped get them here.

But that doesn’t mean speculation won’t continue swirling, especially going into a day off Monday and with Alex Cora now available after getting let go by Boston. Dombrowski, the Phillies’ president of baseball operations, hired Cora with the Red Sox in December 2017. They remain close.

Despite a top-five payroll in the majors — roughly $317 million for luxury-tax purposes — the Phillies are 9-19, their worst 28-game start since 2002. They snapped a 10-game losing skid Saturday night only to get one hit Sunday against Braves ace lefty Chris Sale and two in all.

When big-money teams with championship expectations struggle, changes usually follow.

“I don’t have time to think about it,” Thomson said. “I’m a person that thinks about other people and what can I do to help them. And it’s out of my control. So, that’s where I’m at.”

Dombrowski was joined Friday in Atlanta by three of his most trusted pro scouts. He also spent time Sunday with former Braves general manager Frank Wren, who was part of Dombrowski’s front office in Montreal, Miami, and Boston.

There’s precedent for Dombrowski to fire a manager in season with the Phillies. But Joe Girardi got 51 games in 2022 before being replaced by Thomson, his bench coach, amid a 29-32 start.

Cora, who managed a Dombrowski-built team to a World Series championship in Boston in 2018, is owed $13 million by the Red Sox through 2027. It’s unclear if he wants to manage again this season.

At 4:12 a.m. Sunday, Cora posted a smiling emoji and a one-word message on social media: “Happy!”

Thomson surely isn’t the only Phillies staff member under review. He gave a vote of confidence to Kevin Long, widely regarded among the best hitting coaches in baseball. Long has allies among the players, including Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Trea Turner, the team’s top hitters.

“Kevin’s one of the best in the game,” Thomson said. “There’s a couple of Hall of Famers out there that will tell you that.”

But the Phillies also rank 27th in the majors in slugging (.362), 28th in scoring (3.64 runs per game) and on-base percentage (.294), and 29th in batting average (.219). Their struggles against left-handed pitching are pronounced, especially among right-handed hitters.

» READ MORE: The Phillies have elite speed at the top and bottom of the order. And it could be key for an inconsistent offense.

None other than former slugger Greg Luzinski posted on X that the Phillies “need a new hitting coach with a different approach because a lot of the young kids stopped improving and some of the others aren’t taking to what approach to use.”

Thomson smiled when asked how he’s handling whispers that his job might be in jeopardy and offered a helpful reminder: He was once employed by George Steinbrenner’s Yankees.

“I worked for a guy for 28 years that has the Seinfield episode, and he’ll tell you he fires people like it’s a bodily function," Thomson said. “And it never bothered me. I don’t have time to think about it.”

Lost amid Zack Wheeler’s return and the Phillies’ skid-stopping win Saturday night was sidearming lefty Kyle Backhus, who allowed the auto-runner to score but stranded two other runners in the 10th inning in his fifth appearance in seven games.

“He’s on fumes right now,” Thomson said. “We’ve used him a lot.”

The Phillies intend to use Backhus more, too. Since being recalled from triple A on April 15, he has allowed two earned runs in 6⅔ innings and worked his way into higher-leverage situations, especially given the struggles of fellow lefties Tanner Banks and José Alvarado.

» READ MORE: What is Zack Wheeler facing in his return from surgery? We asked two pitchers who have done it.

In particular, Thomson said he likes Backhus as a mid-inning option with runners on base, a role filled in previous seasons by Jeff Hoffman. Backhus has stranded six of eight inherited runners. Opponents are 2-for-12 against him with runners in scoring position.

“He kind of thrives in that situation,” Thomson said. “Some guys just do. They like the challenge. He’s throwing strikes, getting both [lefties and righties] out. He’s been really good.”

Banks, on the other hand, has allowed seven earned runs on 13 hits and seven walks in his last six appearances, hiking his ERA to 7.20. He inherited a 3-2 lead in the sixth inning Saturday night and gave up back-to-back doubles and a single to give the Braves a 4-3 edge.

“He’s leaving a lot of pitches up over the zone,” Thomson said. “That’s all it comes down to.”

Sunday’s game featured eight ABS challenges to ball-strike calls by home-plate umpire Dexter Kelley. Six were overturned. ... Righty reliever Jonathan Bowlan (groin) struck out two batters in a scoreless inning for triple-A Lehigh Valley. Bowlan is eligible to come off the injured list Tuesday. ... Country music star Jason Aldean threw the ceremonial first pitch. ... After a day off, the Phillies will open a three-game homestand against the Giants. Jesús Luzardo (1-3, 6.91 ERA) is scheduled to start Tuesday night against righty Tyler Mahle (1-3, 5.26 ERA).

Watch the latest episode

In Trea Turner and Justin Crawford, the Phillies have two of baseball's fastest players at the top and bottom of their batting order. It's a baserunning coach's dream. Paco Figueroa sat down with "Phillies Extra" to discuss his philosophy on baserunning and how the Phillies might be able to leverage the elite speed of Turner and Crawford to boost an offense that has struggled to score runs early in the season. Watch here.

You can also subscribe to the podcast version of Phillies Extra on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Previous episodes: Gage Wood | Scott Boras | Brian Barber | Aaron Nola | Justin Crawford | Garrett Stubbs | Kyle Schwarber | Brad Keller | J.T.Realmuto | Orion Kerkering