Phillies May Already Have Their Don Mattingly Replacement

Back in April, the Philadelphia Phillies fired Rob Thomson and replaced him with Don Mattingly on an interim basis.

The early results were tremendous, as the Phillies — who were 9-19 at the time of the move — went on a 37-17 run to re-establish themselves as playoff contenders in the National League.

Since then, however, Philadelphia has faltered, and it's now looking more and more like Mattingly's stay in the City of Brotherly Love will only be temporary.

So, who could the Phillies seek as his potential replacement?

Well, one name has already emerged: former Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora.

Cora revealed on the "Dirt From the Dugout" podcast with Karl Ravech that he is interesting in managing again, and appropriately, Bleacher Report immediately identified Philadelphia as a potential landing spot.

Cora's latter days in Boston did not exactly go very well, which led to his dismissal earlier this season. In fact, the Red Sox have been surging under interim skipper Chad Tracy.

But the 50-year-old did guide Boston to a World Series title in 2018, and he went 620-541 across two stints in Beantown (he and the Red Sox parted ways after 2019 following an electronic cheating scandal; he then returned in 2021).

Prior to 2026, Cora was widely viewed as a strong manager, and he has shown he can handle a big market.

The Phillies will obviously need to find someone who can connect with Bryce Harper and the rest of the roster, and it should be noted there were some concerns with Cora in that regard. Particularly during his final days in Boston.

But perhaps a change of scenery would do Cora a whole lot of good.

Of course, Philadelphia also needs to determine which direction it desires to proceed as a whole heading into the winter.

The Phillies are an aging ballclub who may need to make some sweeping changes this offseason, particularly if they miss the playoffs or are bounced early in the postseason again. That will almost certainly affect who they choose as their next manager.

That being said, there is no doubt that Cora's name will regularly be attached to Philadelphia in the coming months.