Don Mattingly’s job just one of the potential changes the Phillies must now consider following another postseason disappointment

ATLANTA — Don Mattingly entered the interview room on the floor level at Truist Park and sat down in front of a microphone. He placed a water bottle — with the label of his brand of choice taped over — on the table. Then, he began to answer questions, with the “interim” part of his managerial title still in place at the end of the Phillies’ season, just as it was 156 days ago.

After a disappointing 6-2 loss in Game 3 of the National League Wild Card Series that saw Atlanta take control from the first inning, Mattingly’s role in the organization is in question. He was named interim manager in April, helping lead the team to its fifth postseason appearance in a row. But following another early exit, Philadelphia could be looking for another manager for 2027.

Only eighteen minutes removed from the start of the Braves’ celebration, Mattingly was not ready to address his future.

“It’s not the time to talk about anything like that,” Mattingly said. “I’m not concerned about myself in this situation. I want the Phillies to do what they need to do to set themselves up for success. My stuff doesn’t really matter.”

The Phillies went 79-55 in the regular season under Mattingly before falling in two of three playoff games. The 65-year-old took over for Rob Thomson after a 9-19 start to the year. They wanted a new voice in charge of the underperforming club. The move improved their fortunes.

No, Mattingly was not their first choice to become the 57th manager in franchise history, which president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski admitted openly at the time; he contacted Alex Cora shortly after he was dismissed by the Red Sox. Dombrowski and Cora won the 2018 World Series together in Boston, and the veteran executive reached out about a reunion. Cora, however, felt it was not the right time.

So with the Phillies in need of a manager for at least the rest of the season, they looked to their first-year bench coach, the 1984 American League MVP and a baseball icon with the New York Yankees. Mattingly had cachet and 12 previous years of managerial experience; he also happened to be the father of general manager Preston Mattingly. He became the man for the job.

Philadelphia quickly turned around its season. With Zack Wheeler back in the mix as well, the team rallied under Mattingly. With 88 wins, the Phillies earned a postseason spot for the fifth year in a row.

“We love Don,” right-hander Aaron Nola, who took the Game 3 loss, said. “We played good, and he’s a good manager. We know the type of player he used to be. He knows the game really well. So that’s not my call, but Don was great.”

But it was hardly perfect with Mattingly at the helm. Although the Phillies cleaned up their play in the immediate aftermath of the switch, their mistakes and flaws were apparent at many times. The bullpen often looked taxed, a clear consequence of both Mattingly’s aggressive managerial style and the thin relief corps Dombrowski assembled. And near the end of the regular season, when the Phillies hoped to line up their biggest strength — their starting pitching — for the playoffs, they stumbled into a four-game losing streak, forcing them to use Nola on short rest and Wheeler for a full start just to clinch the No. 6 seed in the NL on the final day.

Perhaps that came to bite them in Game 3, as Nola and Wheeler both gave up huge home runs. It certainly made the Wild Card Series more difficult to navigate.

“No question,” Mattingly said. “You’d love to be able to set your pitching up and them be rested and all that kind of stuff. But that’s not the way it went. We had to fight to get ourselves in. And to do what we had to do to get in, we had to do what we had to do basically every game in the series.”

In the end, they could not go on the road and win two games over a division rival. It will soon be time for decisions, likely starting with Mattingly.

“I liked him a lot,” shortstop Trea Turner said. “He’s just calm, man. He was easy to talk to. You can talk to him about anything hitting. He just seemed like a cool guy that wanted to be here. If he needed to let you know something was wrong, he’d let you know. So I appreciate the honesty, and I feel like he was super easy to talk to. I enjoyed him, and I thought he did a good job for us.”

“I have the utmost respect for Donnie,” catcher J.T. Realmuto said, “and we’d love to have him back.”

Mattingly said he hadn’t yet worried about his status for next season or talked to Dombrowski about it. He has been more focused on the team and trying to win. Now that it’s over, he knows he still wants to work in baseball. He’s just not in a rush for an answer from the Phillies.

“I’m comfortable with whatever they want to do,” Mattingly said. “Again, I want the best for the Phillies. I loved being in Philly this year. I actually like playing in that environment. I like the environment. It’s a rough environment, but it’s good. Again, I think you let the organization evaluate, talk about what they think moving forward, what they should do, and that dictates a lot of different things.”

Aside from Mattingly, the Phillies probably need changes. The roster felt more top-heavy than ever in this turbulent season. Only two regulars, Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper, were above-average hitters, according to OPS+. The team went into the Wild Card Series with only two relievers it really trusted. The lack of rotation depth was glaring down the stretch.

Longtime pieces like infielders Alec Bohm and Edmundo Sosa and reliever José Alvarado are set to hit free agency. So are players like Luis Arraez, the trade-deadline acquisition who struggled and missed the playoffs with a sprained ankle, and left-hander Tim Mayza, who had a solid year after re-signing on a minor-league deal. There will be opportunities to mix up the fringes of the core — or maybe do more, if the Phillies can swing something they deem favorable.

“I’d imagine this team is going to look a lot different next year,” Harper said.

Maybe that’s true. But the Phillies also have quite a bit of expensive, veteran players locked in. It could be hard to find too many places to make changes. But if Dombrowski has interest in Cora — or his first real, external search since he was hired by the Phillies — the first place to look could be the manager’s office.