Philadelphia Phillies Manager Defends Costly Blunder vs. Nationals

Rob Thomson burned the Philadelphia Phillies with his horrendous managing on Sunday.

Jul 7, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson makes a pitching change. / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Matt Strahm officially took the loss for the Philadelphia Phillies' 6-4 defeat against the Washington Nationals on Sunday, but Rob Thomson deserves much of the blame.

The Phillies fell short in a frustrating loss during Sunday's series finale at Citizens Bank Park, blowing their chance at a rare four-game sweep. Thomson bears much of the responsibility for that, as he failed to put his team in the best position to win with his head-scratching moves.

Heading into the bottom of the ninth, Philadelphia trailed 6-4 with the bottom of the order coming up. Edmundo Sosa singled off Washington closer Kyle Finnegan, bringing Cal Stevenson as the tying run to the plate with nobody out.

While Stevenson was 0-for-3 in the game at the point and is a career .152 hitter, Thomson had much better options on his bench. Bryce Harper and J.T. Realmuto were both available to pinch-hit after sitting out of the starting lineup for rest reasons.

Bizarrely, Thomson did not insert either All-Star for Stevenson, who promptly grounded into a rally-killing double play. Thomson did not pinch-hit for No. 9 hitter Garrett Stubbs, either, who grounded out to end the game.

For reference, Harper's OPS this season (.902) is nearly as high as both of theirs combined (.998).

After the game, Thomson gave a ridiculous explanation for keeping two of his best players in the dugout with the game on the line.

Rob Thomson on why he didn’t use Bryce Harper and J.T. Realmuto in the 9th inning ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/zvBs00Aec5

— Phillies Tailgate (@PhilsTailgate) August 18, 2024

"I wanted to give both (Harper and Realmuto) the full day (off)," Thomson told reporters during his postgame press conference, even though the team already has an off-day on Monday. "I'm thinking long-term as well."

Is he, though? The Phillies haven't been playing too well lately, and they need every win they can get these days. Winning a game now could mean clinching a playoff spot earlier and getting more rest in September.

Furthermore, Harper and Realmuto are highly paid professionals. One at-bat isn't going to ruin their rest day after sitting on the bench all afternoon, and it will have absolutely zero effect on their performance in September or October (unless they suffered an extremely unfortunate injury). If anything, giving them an at-bat could help them maintain their rhythm at the plate and avoid an ill-timed slump.

The postseason will be here before long, and Philadelphia must start showing a greater sense of urgency if it wants to move past its recent slump. That starts with Thomson, who shouldn't casually throw away winnable games like this.