Phillies, Don Mattingly have ‘mutual interest’ for bench coach job

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Phillies and Don Mattingly have “mutual interest” in the idea of bringing in the former MVP first baseman and big-league manager for the club’s open bench coach position, Dave Dombrowski said Monday inside the team’s suite at the Winter Meetings in Orlando, Fla. The two sides have not yet reached an agreement, but there have been discussions.

“We still have some final details we’re working through, so it’s not official,” Dombrowski, Philadelphia’s president of baseball operations, said. “But we are really focused on speaking with Don and trying to make that happen, and we’re hopeful that it will.”

The 64-year-old Mattingly played 14 seasons with the Yankees, winning the 1985 American League MVP and having his No. 23 retired by the franchise. He became the hitting coach in New York in 2004 and stayed there for three seasons before coaching with the Dodgers for three more. Mattingly served as manager in Los Angeles from 2011 to 2015 and managed the Miami Marlins from 2016 to 2022. He spent the last three years as the bench coach for the Blue Jays.

After falling short to the Dodgers in the National League Division Series in October, the Phillies decided that they would expand their coaching staff by moving Mike Calitri to field coordinator and hiring a new bench coach — preferably one with managerial experience. Mattingly has had that role and has plenty of cachet within the game, making him an obvious candidate.

“I think it’d be awesome,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson, who previously worked with Mattingly in the Yankees organization, said. “I think it’s a perfect fit for our ballclub and just his intelligence and presence and experience. It would be a really good fit.”

If the Phillies do indeed hire Mattingly, it would make the baseball lifer’s new job a family affair, as his son, Preston, is Philadelphia’s general manager. Dombrowski said that he’s talked with both Don and Preston about that situation and making sure that everyone involved would be comfortable. The executive doesn’t believe that the possibility of having a father on the coaching staff and a son in the front office would create any issues in the clubhouse.

“When you start talking about Don and Preston, you talk about two people that have immense credibility, so there’s nothing that’s going to come down there. Confidentiality is still confidentiality,” Dombrowski said. “They probably have dinner (together) a little bit more than most general managers and bench coaches would have, but that’s acceptable.”

Preston Mattingly, the Phillies’ former farm director and assistant GM, was promoted to his current position last offseason. By the sounds of it, his dad could be joining him with the team this winter.

“I’m excited, honestly,” the younger Mattingly said. “We’re still trying to work through different things, but, obviously, we share a common goal with everybody in the organization. We just want to win a world championship. I think he fits our roster really well and our staff.”