Why Don Mattingly Could Have Won NL Manager of the Year

Don Mattingly , 2026 manager of the year award finalist in the National League, took over the Philadelphia Phillies mid-season. Mattingly became interim manager after Rob Thomson was fired on April 28. The Phillies had a 9-19 record under Thomson this season, then enjoyed a 79-55 record under Mattingly. Under the guidance of Donnie Baseball, the Phillies made it to the postseason and lost to the Atlanta Braves in the NL Wild Card Series. Mattingly put together a strong performance for an interim manager and was recognized by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. Mattingly has since been named the Phillies manager for 2027 and is under contract through the 2028 season. This is similar to what happened when Thomson took over for Joe Girardi in the middle of the 2022 season. Thomson had the interim tag removed during the Phillies’ run to the World Series that year. It is not unprecedented for a manager who took over a team mid-season to win the Manager of the Year award. Jack McKeon won the award with the Miami Marlins in 2003 after taking over in the middle of that season. However, the Marlins won the World Series that year, unlike the Phillies this year. Mattingly 2026 Manager of the Year Award Case That Fell Short Who Actually Won the Award Milwaukee Brewers manager Pat Murphy has been named NL Manager of the Year for 2026. It was his third straight year winning the award. Mattingly finished third in the voting, behind Murphy and Walt Weiss of the Atlanta Braves, who led the Braves to the NL East title in his first year at the helm. History With Prior Awards for Mattingly Mattingly won NL Manager of the Year with the Miami Marlins in 2020. If Mattingly, the 2026 manager of the year candidate in the NL, had won, this would have been his second time winning this award. Mattingly could have joined the short list of managers who have won manager of the year with multiple teams. Now Mattingly will have to wait another year to join that exclusive group of managers.   Past Phillies Winner of NL Manager of the Year Award Larry Bowa is the only previous Phillies winner of this award in 2001. Bowa led the Phillies to an 86-76 record in his first season at the helm, finishing second in the NL East but missing the postseason. Thomson did not win the award after the run in 2022, and Charlie Manuel never won the award during the Phillies’ streak of winning five consecutive NL East titles from 2007 through 2011. The Last Word It is impressive that Mattingly, 2026 Manager of the Year finalist in the NL, was even in contention for the award given that he took over the Phillies mid-season. This recognition from the BBWAA shows that people outside of the Phillies fanbase view Mattingly differently than they do. Mattingly had a case for his second NL Manager of the Year Award and even received one first-place vote. However, the Brewers had too historic a season for Mattingly to have a realistic chance to beat out Murphy for the honor.   More Baseball News: Will Venable Wins AL Manager of the Year Jacob Misiorowski Wins NL Cy Young Award Report: Phillies Interested in Ha-Seong Kim   Main Photo Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images