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Dec 9, 2025
Mutual interest between Phillies, Don Mattingly in bench coach role
The New York Times
ORLANDO -- There is mutual interest between the Phillies and Don Mattingly in the club's bench coach vacancy, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said Monday at MLB's Winter Meetings. Should they hire Mattingly, the Phillies will get what they sought in a new bench coach: managerial experience and a fresh perspective.
"I think it'd be awesome," manager Rob Thomson said Monday. "He's a perfect fit for our ball club -- just his intelligence and presence and experience."
Mattingly appears poised to become Philadelphia's bench coach after he and the club work through final, contractual details.
It is a somewhat unusual arrangement given general manager Preston Mattingly is Don's son. Dombrowski said he discussed the situation and comfort level with both of them.
"We feel very comfortable," Dombrowski said. "We have a great relationship communication-wise with the clubhouse, so I'm not worried about anything coming from the clubhouse up to us that shouldn't. That is not a concern. ... (With) Don and Preston, you're talking about two people that have immense credibility. So there's nothing that's going to come down there. Confidentiality is still confidentiality."
Mattingly is replacing Mike Calitri, who had served as Phillies bench coach since 2022. Calitri will remain on the coaching staff as major-league field coordinator, a role in which he'll run spring training and advanced meetings and assist Thomson.
Joining the Phillies would mark the latest chapter in Mattingly's long baseball career. He most recently served as bench coach for the Toronto Blue Jays, whom he reached the World Series with for the first time ever after 36 years as an MLB player, coach and manager. On Sunday, he fell short of the 75 percent threshold needed for election to the Baseball Hall of Fame via the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee's vote.
There were many stops before then: a respected playing career as a first baseman with the New York Yankees, coaching with multiple c
