MLB Rumors: Top Candidates For Next Phillies Manager

Rob Thomson has the reigns of the Philadelphia Phillies for now, named interim manager after the firing of Joe Girardi last Friday. He's been given assurances that he'll complete the season as well. But that doesn't mean the Phillies' braintrust isn't starting to think long-term about who to move into the future with. 

Brittany Ghiroli of The Athletic writes about some top candidates for the next full-time Phillies manager. Let's have a look at three of the top names.

Mike Scioscia

While it's true that he hasn't managed in the majors since 2018, this wouldn't be the first time in recent years that a veteran manager has been brought out of 'retirement' to return to a big league dugout. Tony La Russa with the Chicago White Sox, Dusty Baker with the Houston Astros, Buck Showalter with the New York Mets have all enjoyed a fair amount of success in their returns. 

Scioscia managed the Los Angeles Angels for 19 years and compiled a .536 winning percentage.

Brad Ausmus

Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has hired Ausmus before, while with the Detroit Tigers. Ausmus also has managed the Angels, and currently serves as bench coach with the Oakland A's.

In five years as a manager, Ausmus owns a .486 winning percentage.

Joe Maddon

Now this is an interesting one. Maddon was just fired on Tuesday as manager of the Angels. Expectations were high for the Angels this season, and reeling in a 12-game losing streak, Maddon paid the price. But he's already earned his stripes as a major league manager, leading the Chicago Cubs to a World Series win in 2016, and guiding the low-budget Tampa Bay Rays to a number of successful seasons.

The Phillies did have Maddon high on their list of managers to hire before he was scooped up by the Angels in 2020.

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