Don Mattingly has officially landed in Philadelphia.
The Phillies announced Monday that Mattingly had been hired as the team’s next bench coach, something that had long been expected after his departure from the Toronto Blue Jays.
Mattingly will replace former bench coach Mike Calitri, who moved into a new role as a major league field coordinator.
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Mattingly last spent time with the Blue Jays, who hired him ahead of the 2023 season. He served as the team’s bench coach and offensive coordinator, and helped it reach the World Series last season. The Los Angeles Dodgers ended up beating the Blue Jays 4-3 to win their second straight title.
Mattingly said ahead of the season he felt it was going to be his last with the organization.
“My job is really just to be another set of eyes and ears for [manager Rob Thomson],” Mattingly said, via MLB.com. “Be managing along in the game, try to stay ahead a little bit — I know it gets busy and fast at times when you’re thinking about your pitching, then you’ve got a pinch-hit situation and all those things get fast. So, really just try to be another set of eyes, try to stay ahead with him and just try to lighten the load for him.”
Mattingly has managerial experience of his own. He led the Dodgers to three straight NL West titles while running the team from 2011-15, and then he spent seven seasons with the Miami Marlins. Mattingly led the team to the playoffs in 2020, ending a 17-year drought and won NL Manager of the Year honors that season.
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The Phillies went 96-66 last season, the third under Thomson, and reached the playoffs for a fourth straight season. The Dodgers knocked the Phillies out in the NLDS 3-1.
