Phillies fire Joe Girardi in desperate Dave Dombrowski backtrack
Philadelphia Phillies fire Joe Girardi, promote Rob Thomson to interim manager for remainder of 2022 season
I said recently that it wasn’t a matter of if the Philadelphia Phillies would fire Joe Girardi, but when.
Friday, June 3, is when.
Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia broke the news ahead of a home series hosting the Los Angeles Angels on Friday night:
Hearing much buzz that Phillies could make change at manager today.
— Jim Salisbury (@JSalisburyNBCS) June 3, 2022
Less than ten minutes later, the Phillies made it official.
The Phillies have relieved Joe Girardi of his duties as manager today. Bench coach Rob Thomson has been named interim manager for the club through the end of the 2022 season. In addition, coaching assistant Bobby Meacham was also relieved of his duties. pic.twitter.com/lVL60RrSnJ
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) June 3, 2022
The firing is a stunning pivot for the Phillies, not because it wasn’t inevitable, but because of how quickly their public-facing sentiments changed. Earlier this week, Girardi attempted to convince everyone that he wasn’t worried about his job security:
"“I don’t worry about my job. I’ve never worried about my job. I don’t worry about my job. I’ve got to do my job. It’s the business of being a manager. I don’t worry about it.”"
Days before, Dave Dombrowski had shut down firing rumors:
"“I don’t ever get into evaluating managers during the season. As I’ve always said to people, Joe’s been fine. I talk to Joe and communicate with him all the time and I’ll just say this: My support of a manager is that they’re managing. If I didn’t support them, they wouldn’t be managing.“Joe’s our manager and I’m happy to be working with him. Hey, we’re all in a position that we’re not happy with the way the club has played, Joe, myself, the players. We have to be better.”"
It wasn’t a ringing endorsement by any means, but it’s still surprising that the tune changed so quickly.
That said, Dombrowski was always going to want his own man in the dugout. That much was clear when he accidentally revealed that he was unaware of Girardi’s 2023 club option last fall.
Fans have been clamoring for Girardi to get the ax for months, complaining about everything from his integrity to his bullpen management. However, the Phillies’ many issues predate Girardi, and it’s almost entirely unlikely that firing him will magically solve every problem.
Instead, it only makes the Phillies look desperate.