The Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson’s relief did not last more than a day. The Phillies finally snapped their dreadful 10-game losing streak over the weekend, only to drop the following match against the Braves. Tied at 9-19 with the New York Mets at the bottom of the NL East, the Phillies dropped their latest series, with a 6-2 loss, on Sunday. As speculation rose about whether he would be the next manager to lose his job after Alex Cora, Thomson finally came forward with a reply.

“Well, I mean, that’s natural, right? It’s normal. And I’ve never worried about that in my entire career,” Thomson told Todd Zolecki of MLB.com.

Thomson has been with the Philadelphia Phillies since 2018, years before he became the manager. The Phillies had initially hired Thomson as a bench coach before he took over as the interim manager in 2022. He succeeded Joe Girardi, whom Dave Dombrowski fired mid-season after a poor 22-29 start.

The Phillies entered the 2026 season with expectations of a deep postseason run after being back-to-back NL East winners. However, after navigating through their worst losing streak since 1999 and being 10 games behind .500, the Phillies sit at the bottom of the NL. With the Phillies’ dreadful start to the season, Thomson’s job appears to be in jeopardy.

In his years as the Phillies manager, Thomson has led the Phillies to the playoffs in four consecutive years, including a World Series appearance in 2022. His run with the Phillies has been successful before the team fell into a slump this year.

While their pitching (5.13 ERA) has not been stellar either, the Phillies’ offensive failures have often contributed to their losses. With southpaw Chris Sale being the latest to shut their offense down, the Phillies now hold a 0-10 record against left-handed starters this season. Their overall hitting (.219) has also struggled, being ranked 29 in the league. Third baseman Alec Bohm has an average of only .143 so far in the season. Against the Braves, he went 0-for-4 on Sunday.

The Phillies’ rotation problems did not disappear with the release of Taijuan Walker. Aaron Nola, Andrew Painter, and Jesus Luzardo all hold an ERA of above 5, except Cristopher Sanchez. Against the Braves, Nola surrendered 6 runs on 7 hits across 4.2 innings.

Despite the poor result so far, the Phillies’ president of baseball operations, Dave Dombrowski, had earlier assured that Thomson’s job is not in jeopardy at the moment. With his managerial contract extending through 2027, Thomson is not thinking about it either.

“I worked for a guy for 28 years [Yankees owner George Steinbrenner] who, as the ‘Seinfeld’ episode will tell you, ‘Fires people like it’s a bodily function,’ and it never bothered me. It didn’t,” remarked Thomson, per Zolecki. “I don’t have time to think about it. 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.”

The 62-year-old manager started his coaching career in 1988 and spent 28 years as a coach in the New York Yankees system from 1990 to 2017. Thomson was a part of the coaching staff that helped the Yankees’ last World Series-winning team. He became their bench coach in 2008, then coached third base from 2009 to 2014, and became bench coach again from 2015 to 2017. During his stint with the Yankees, he worked closely with George Steinbrenner, who famously fired Billy Martin five times. Though Thomson doesn’t pay attention to speculation surrounding his job, he can work to turn the Phillies around and strengthen his position.

Amid the turmoil, Phillies’ star slugger Kyle Schwarber has spoken about managerial change within the organization, pushing back on the notion that a new face would solve the team’s problems.

Kyle Schwarber addresses speculations about Rob Thomson’s firing

With the Boston Red Sox firing Alex Cora in hopes of getting a fresh start to the season, speculations surrounding Rob Thomson’s job have reignited. Furthermore, Dombrowski’s familiarity with Cora has also sparked questions about whether the Phillies will be Cora’s next destination if Thomson exits.

Thomson holds a spectacular 355-270 record as the Phillies’ manager, and Kyle Schwarber thinks a new face as the Phillies’ manager won’t solve their current problems.

“I feel like we have the right people here, and we’ve got the right people to figure it out,” Schwarber reportedly said. “You know, it’s not like [we’re] saying that we think a change is needed, you know? You as a player, feel responsible for that. We’re the ones who are out there.”

The Phillies’ offense is struggling, and Schwarber is hitting only .196, despite leading the team in homers (9). In terms of runs, they are ranked 28th in the league, having put together a total of 102 runs in 26 games. In contrast, their latest opponents, the Braves, top the league with 166 runs.

With the Phillies’ hitting struggling spectacularly after they ranked second in 2025 with a .258 average, questions surrounding hitting coach Kevin Long’s abilities have also risen. However, manager Thomson was quick to dismiss it.

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

The last managerial change in the organization turned the season around for the Phillies, which took them to the World Series. If they don’t improve soon, Dombrowski might opt for a repeat.