Dave Dombrowski Keeps Any Off-Season Plans To Himself

After the way this season ended, and how 2023 ended, people were hoping Dave Dombrowski would come out and say big changes are coming. Big changes do need to come. This roster is talented, but they have now choked in similar ways in each of the last two seasons. You can't watch that and run it back again.

But at least publicly, Dave Dombrowski is not committing to any changes. If you listened to his marathon 45-minute press conference, you may think there will be few changes. He already said the whole coaching staff is returning, they extended Rob Thomson through 2026, and any chance he had to talk about a player he talked about them like they would be on the team next year.

That has left many fans disappointed. And that is fair. Running this exact team back would be a major mistake. But expecting the GM to come in and say anything like that was never reasonable. Dave was always going to keep any plans to himself, and offer only GM speak publicly.

Things need to change. There need to be some new faces, and some old faces need to go. Which ones will go? We don't know. But Dave was never going to let on who that might be. He did a bit last year. You could hear his disappointment in Nick Castellanos. They spent the off-season trying to trade him, and no one wanted him.

As frustrating as that press conference was, we need to pay attention to what he does, not what he says. If they do run it back, go ahead and rip the Phillies apart, they will deserve it. But don't read too much into his tight-lipped press conference. He can sound like he is going to keep things the same, and still take a blowtorch to the lineup.

What will matter is what they do in November, through the off-season. Just because Dave didn't spell out his plan, doesn't mean changes won't be made. Just because he said nice things about players like Brandon Marsh, does not mean they are bringing him back.

How many times in pro sports have we seen a team say they have full confidence in a coach, and then turn around and fire him? Or they say they are committed to building with a player, but then they trade him?

What Dave Dombrowski says doesn't matter. He was never going to say anything. Only what he does will matter.

After the Philadelphia Phillies broke a long playoff drought with a wild card berth in the MLB Playoffs in 2022, the city suddenly remembered the euphoria of postseason baseball at Citizens Bank Park.

An unexpected run from the sixth seed in the National League reignited Red October like nobody could've expected after 11 years of disappointment.

The Phillies swept the St. Louis Cardinals in "Baseball Heaven" to get things started. They stunned the heavily favored Atlanta Braves and convinced an entire fan base to believe.

The incredible momentum continued through a dramatic series win against the San Diego Padres to clinch the National League pennant.

Although they couldn't finish off the Houston Astros in the World Series, the city of Philadelphia will always remember the 2022 Phillies for a miracle October ride that coincided with success for the Eagles, Union, Flyers, and 76ers during the best month in Philadelphia sports history.

Relive the whirlwind of an unforgettable October with rally towels waving in the autumn air, the tension of living and dying with every pitch, and one of the best runs in Phillies franchise history.

October 7, 2022
National League Wild Card Series Game 1 at Busch Stadium
Phillies 6, St. Louis Cardinals 3

October 14-15, 2022
National League Division Series, Games 3-4 at Citizens Bank Park
Phillies 9, Atlanta Braves 1; Phillies 8, Atlanta Braves 3

October 18, 2022
National League Championship Series Game 1 at Petco Park
Phillies 2, San Diego Padres 0

October 23, 2022
National League Championship Series Game 5 at Citizens Bank Park
Phillies 4, San Diego Padres 3

October 28, 2022
World Series Game 1 at Minute Maid Park
Phillies 6, Houston Astros 5

November 1, 2022
World Series Game 3 at Citizens Bank Park
Phillies 7, Houston Astros 0