The Rob Thomson Story Is Great But Hardly Blameless

Nobody is going to be perfect trying to manage a baseball club in the course of a 162 game season, that includes Rob Thomson. The old adage from HOF manager Sparky Anderson was that every team would win 50 and lose 50, leaving each team with 62 chances to decide their fate. The manager probably truly affects the outcome of a game about 10-12 times a year. They can oversee an excellent record over the course of six months and still leave a fan base with questions. Thats OK. You aren’t going to be perfect.

A lot of the regular season doesn’t reflect what post-season baseball is like. Mostly, the opposition will be excellent every night against you. Those decisions matter then in a magnified way they don’t during a June contest. So let’s review the facts without “opinion”. Rob Thomson has been amazing, but is he truly beyond approach?

The salvage job that Rob Thomson did in 2022 for the Phillies was one of the greatest I’ve ever seen. The team was floundering seven games below .500 right after Memorial Day weekend. He brought a sense of calm to a tenuous situation and the team responded beautifully. He gave the professionals a comfortable stage to perform on. It was a brilliant change of culture. The players loved it and the wins followed.

They still needed the Brewers to go 4-10 down the stretch for Philly to secure the final wildcard berth. A season earlier that extra wild card didn’t exist, so their run to the World Series was even more outlandish.

With the World Series hanging in the balance in Game 6 at Houston, Zack Wheeler was removed from the game and the rest was history. The Phillies lost and Wheeler was not happy with that decision. It was the last game of the season and Thomson didn’t trust his best pitcher. He ended up losing with a 2nd option.

It will forever be a decision that haunts Wheeler, Thomson and the fan base. Every manager pushes a wrong button, but this one cost them in a horrible spot.

The regular season was again one where the Phillies didn’t live up to their potential. They never competed in the NL East, but this time they secured the top wildcard spot.

Red October would open this time in Philadelphia. They trounced the Marlins and then once again dispatched of the heavily favored Braves. Home field advantage in the NL Championship series was a dream that became a reality.

The Diamondbacks this time around were that upstart final wildcard team and after falling behind 0-2 after the first games in Philadelphia it appeared the Phillies were heading back to the World Series. After losing Game 3 in Arizona the Rob Thomson choice was to go with a bullpen game. He didn’t trust Christopher Sanchez to get more than 7 outs in the start even when he looked like a stable option.

What followed was an 8 pitcher effort that culminated in a disastrous performance from the struggling Craig Kimbrel. The series was tied after a 5-2 lead in the seventh was blown. Once again the team's bats went cold and the lineup was left to try and hit themselves out of it. It never happened. 2023 ended much like 2022. A lead in a big series and the team collapsed. Pitching decisions were a major factor.

At 45-20 Rob Thomson delivered on an off-season promise. He said in the Spring that this team wanted to win the NL East and take the shorter path to a title this time around. This team has delivered early on with magnificent play. He’s once again created a great work environment but they are seeing the regular season winning results this time around.

Related: Don’t Repeat The Charlie Manuel Mistake With Rob Thomson

Individual games like yesterday will bring familiar questions to the forefront. Thomson made the strange decision to go to Gregory Soto with every other bullpen option available rested and ready. It wasn’t just a substitution, it was a high-leverage situation with a 3 run lead and after just two batters the game was tied. It took a game completely in their control and gave the Mets life. It also changed the bullpen plan for the rest of the game. Once again, a familiar storyline grabs the headlines.

No manager is, but it’s OK to discuss when a manager makes mistakes. If you are killing Rob Thomson over it, you sound dumb. If you keep credibility and discuss things honestly, you can say that a great manager had a bad day. You can also ask the question if he has learned from his previous mistakes?

A man with many talents has shown that it’s fine to wonder whether he will push the right buttons in October pressure this time around.

The Phillies are finally done waiting. After years of seemingly avoiding putting players from the 2008 Phillies team that won the World Series on their Wall of Fame (except for Pat Burrell and Charlie Manuel who went on early), the Phillies are finally breaking the seal. Jimmy Rollins will go up on the Wall this summer before the August 1st game vs the Detroit Tigers.

Related: Jimmy Rollins Will Be Inducted Onto Phillies Wall OF Fame Aug. 1st

The 2008 Phillies are 1 of only 2 teams in Phillies history that won a World Series. The city itself has a few more thanks to when the Athletics played here, but the Phillies themselves only won in 2008 and 1980.

Anyone with a pulse has already made it from the 1980 team. That well is now dry. They have also put in nearly every player worthy, and perhaps some not so worthy, between 1980 and 2008. The time was coming that they had to start going to the guys from the 2008 team, and now they are finally moving on to the rest of the 2008 guys.

Jimmy Rollins is the first, but a lot of guys from that team are worthy. Especially by the standard we have seen them apply to the 1980 team that won it all. It should give them material to work with for the Wall Of Fame for a long time.

They might have some trouble after that when they have to find guys between 2012 and the Bryce Harper era. There was not much good going on in that decade.

But before we have to worry about that, let's look at that 2008 team, and who could make it. We know Jimmy Rollins, Pat Burrell, and Charlie Manuel will, because 2 of them are already on it, and 1 is going on it this year. But whose else

As mentioned, Pat Burrell, Charlie Manuel, Harry Kalas, and Pat Gillick are already up on the wall. So that makes it 4. And you can’t argue against any of them deserving the spot. Charlie is the winningest Manager in Phillies history. Pat Gillick oversaw the 2nd World Series in franchise history, Harry Kalas was the best sports broadcaster period,  and Pat Burrell is up there amongst the best Power Hitters in the history of the team.  

Jimmy Rollins is next. He is the best SS in team history, and should honestly be in the Hall of Fame. 470 steals, 231 HRs, 115 triples. He is one of just 4 players to ever hit 20+ homers, 20+ doubles, 20+ triples, and steal 20 bases in a single season. For me, he was always the best guy on that team.  

His career started too late and ended too soon. But in that 5-year stretch from 2005 to 2009, there was no better power hitter in the world. Howard finished his career with the 2nd most HRs in Phillies history. He also won an MVP, Rookie of the Year, and made 3 All-Star games. It is a shame that injuries ruined the end of his career. Because with how good he was, he should be a 500 HR guy and in the Hall of Fame.

The last of the trifecta. Jimmy, Ryan, and Chase. The Sabermetrics would tell you he was the best of the 3 too. His WAR, if you go by that stat, is the 5th best in team history. Personally, I still say Jimmy is better, but no one will argue that Chase isn't also a legend. And as of now, he stands the best chance to make the Hall of Fame, getting 39.8 % of the vote in just his 2nd year on the ballot.

Being on teams with Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee, people sometimes forget how great Cole Hamels was. But he is genuinely one of the best pitchers in team history. In 10 seasons with the Phillies, he has an ERA of 3.30. The one blotch on his time with the Phillies was that 2009 season. Every other year, he was an Ace, including 2008 when he was the World Series MVP.

Brad Lidge’s time here was short. Just 4 seasons, and one of them, 2009, was awful. But honestly, even if 2008 was his only year here, he would be worthy. A perfect season is not easy to accomplish, but he did it. And yeah some of those saves weren't so perfect, but he got it done with a Sub 2.0 Era. Then of course he got the save in the Final Game of the World Series to seal it for the Phillies. 

Chooch was not always the best with a bat in his hands. He had his moments, but he was usually the last guy in the lineup. What makes him special is what he did as a catcher. If it was not for Yadier Molina having a Monopoly over Gold Gloves in the NL in that era, Ruiz would likely have a lot of them. He was a steady presence behind the plate for the Phillies for that whole run. 11 years as the Phillies catcher.

The Flying Hawaiian. Equally beloved as he was at times frustrating. Shane won 3 Gold Gloves in Center with the Phillies, made two All-Star teams, and of course won a World Series in 8 seasons with the Phillies. He also hit .279, stole 179 bases, hit 88 HRs, and came just 2 hits shy of 1000 hits with the Phillies. Of course, he also has that legendary Grand Slam in the 2008 NLDS. He needs to go on the Wall at some point.

Werth spent just 4 seasons with the Phillies and was only the full-time right Fielder in 3 of them. But he was one of the Phillies' best hitters for those 3 seasons. He hit 99 doubles, and 95 HR with a .282 average. Fans were initially bitter when he understandably took a big paycheck from the Nationals, but that hatchet has since been buried and Werth is back to being a beloved figure in Philadelphia. And people never should have been upset with him taking the biggest contract anyway.

The case for Ryan Madson being on the Wall comes from someone who was just recently inducted. Ron Reed. Madson was the setup man for a World Series team, and so was Ron Reed. Reed spent 8 seasons here, and Madson spent 9. Reed was a bit better than Madson, but only a bit. And if Reed made it, Madson may one day as well. He just might have to wait almost 30 years like Reed did.

Most fans may not know this name. That’s because he goes by a different name when he is on the field. You may know him better if he was covered in green fur and had a snout. Tom is the Phantic, or as they like to put it, “a friend of the Phantic.” He has been a friend of the Phantic since 1994. So should he someday go onto the wall? Why not? He has nearly 30 years of service time and has become an inseparable part of what people think of when they picture the Phillies.

Wheeler was right there next to Harry Kalas, who is already on the wall when Harry called the final out of the 2008 World Series. If Wheels went on, he would become the 3rd broadcaster to go onto the wall, but that is counting Richie Ashburn who was also a Hall of Fame Player. Wheeler has been involved with the team in some capacity since 1977. I could definitely see him going on for service time alone.

The fifth Ace from the Four Aces. Blanton was never a shutdown guy. But he ate innings, and as far as 5th starters go, he got the job done. But 5th starters don’t get on the Phillies Wall, at least not yet. The Phillies are more than willing to put mediocre hitters on the wall but have not extended that grace to pitchers just yet. The World Series HR may help his case though.

Can one moment get you onto the Wall of Fame? Looking only at the numbers, Stairs does not deserve it. He was only ever a pinch hitter here after all. But he does have one of the greatest hits in team history. Every Phillies fan knows the words “Stairs Rips One Into the Night.”

The one guy in the lineup who may not make it is Pedro Feliz. His defense was great, but he was not much of a hitter. He also spent just 2 seasons here. His one saving grace is that he drove in the game-winning run in game 5 of the World Series. Is that enough to get him onto the Wall? You would think not, but it's not impossible.  

We already talked about how mediocre Pitchers have not gotten the same grace mediocre hitters do when it comes to the Phillies Wall of Fame. And Brett Myers also has some personal baggage holding him back. But he was on the mound when they clinched the NL East in 2007. So it's not impossible.