(Philadelphia) The Philadelphia Phillies fired Joe Girardi on Friday over a poor start to the season, becoming the first major league coach to lose his job this season.
Bench trainer Rob Thomson was promoted to interim manager for the remainder of the campaign.
The Phillies, who were supposed to be vying for first place in the National League East, are 22-29 this season and trailing the leaders, the New York Mets, by 12 games.
“It’s been a frustrating season for us so far, and we feel our club is not playing to its full potential,” Phillies President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski said in a statement.
“We are all responsible for this disappointing start to the season, but I felt that a change was needed and that a new voice had to be heard in the locker room to revive the team. We have a talented workforce that has the power to get us back on track, and I am confident that Rob, with his experience and long history with us, is the right fit for us going forward,” he added.
Girardi took charge of the Phillies for the 2020 coronavirus-shortened season. They went 82-80 last season and he finished his time in Philadelphia with an overall record of 132-141. Girardi led the New York Yankees from 2008 to 2017 and the Florida Marlins in 2006.
