The Phillies are back in the market for a manager, and Alex Cora is once again not part of the answer.
Cora has been the name Dave Dombrowski wanted, but Philadelphia has now been turned away twice - first in April, when the club went with Don Mattingly, and again now in October. With that door shut, the Phillies are moving on to a wide-open field that includes outside candidates, internal voices and a front office that may be ready to reshape the coaching staff after five straight years of playoff regression.
There’s no shortage of names to sort through, starting with a pair of fan-friendly possibilities. Raúl Ibañez, now the vice president of baseball development and special projects for the Los Angeles Dodgers, was mentioned on Seattle Sports’ Wyman & Bob show last week by Jon Morosi in connection with the Mariners’ opening. The former Phillie has been in managerial chatter for years, and at 54 he could finally decide to step into the mix.
Chase Utley is the other name that will always get attention in Philadelphia, even if the fit looks remote. He lives in Los Angeles and works there now as a special assistant for the Dodgers, so if he ever manages, it will probably be with that club.
Still, he remains tied to the Phillies, having been added to the Wall of Fame in August. It’s a long shot, but it would absolutely light up the fanbase.
Then there’s the veteran crowd - the kind of no-nonsense, old-school options that would immediately change the temperature around the dugout. Bruce Bochy stands out first.
The 71-year-old is a four-time World Series champion, has won 57 playoff games since 1995 and owns a .606 playoff winning percentage. If the Phillies want someone with the résumé to get them over the postseason hump, he fits the bill.
Joe Maddon brings a different kind of cachet. The Phillies beat his Tampa Bay Rays in the 2008 World Series, and he later guided the Chicago Cubs to the title in 2016. The 72-year-old Hazelton, PA native would be close to home, and his track record makes him an obvious name to watch.
Buck Showalter is also available after his run with the New York Mets. At 70, he has never won a pennant in 22 years as a manager, let alone a World Series, but he has the kind of edge that has often been missing from Phillies skippers since Charlie Manuel.
Ron Washington is the oldest of the group at 74, and he’s also the only one still working in an on-field role, serving as the San Francisco Giants’ infield coach. His reputation is built on a lifetime of defensive expertise, something the Phillies have sorely lacked in recent years.
The internal candidates come with their own appeal. Howie Kendrick has been on the staff since 2021 as a special assistant, but he’s been a visible dugout presence and has long earned respect around the game. He would bring a youthful energy to an aging roster, along with the sort of postseason pedigree that made him a clutch player.
Caleb Cotham is probably the most valuable coach in the organization. Since becoming pitching coach in 2020, he’s helped revive the careers of nearly a dozen Phillies pitchers, including Jeff Hoffman and Zack Wheeler.
The hurdle is obvious: pitching coaches don’t often become successful big league managers. Bryan Price’s stint with the Reds went sideways, while John Farrell remains the last notable success story, leading the 2013 Boston Red Sox to a title.
Dusty Wathan is another name that deserves a real look. He’s the winningest manager in Phillies minor league history, and while that doesn’t guarantee anything at the major league level, it does give him real experience.
He’s also been around the organization through its highs and lows. If he isn’t the manager in 2026, this could be the end of his time in a Phillies uniform, especially since a new manager would likely want to choose his own bench coach.
A couple of younger rebound candidates also belong on the list. Brandon Hyde, 53, managed the Orioles through their rebuild but couldn’t get them a playoff win in either 2023 or 2024, when Baltimore was swept by the Texas Rangers and then the Kansas City Royals. He has been out of a job since 2025, though the Orioles’ drop-off seems more tied to the front office and development side than to Hyde himself.
Rocco Baldelli is in the same lane. The 45-year-old spent seven seasons running the Twins, but the results never really caught fire. Like Hyde, though, he’s not the easiest manager to pin the blame on after Minnesota’s front office stripped away what felt like half the roster in 2025, including Jhoan Duran, who was sent to Philadelphia.
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