Jun 18, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson congratulates outfielder Nick Castellanos (8) after his walk off RBI double ninth inning against the San Diego Padres at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports Bill Streicher
Whit Merrifield struggled in just 53 games with the Phillies in 2024, before ultimately being released before the trade deadline. There was a ton of respect for the three-time All-Star, it just turned out that he was at the end of the line, as that ended up being his final MLB season.
Still, his brief time with the Phillies makes him an interesting perspective to consider when trying to understand how the relationship between Nick Castellanos and Rob Thomson went so sideways that the team now plans to either trade or release him before Spring Training, rather than carrying the two-time All-Star for the final season of a five-year/$100 million contract.
Not only was Merrifield a teammate of Castellanos, but he dealt with Thomson during a period in which he perhaps wasn't playing as much as he hoped. But in an appearance on "Phillies Extra" with Scott Lauber, Merrifield had nothing but positive things to say about Thomson.
"I've told people, I think Rob Thomson was the best manager I've ever had — my favorite manager of all time. I loved him. In any job, there's times you're gonna disagree with your boss. Your boss has ultimately got to make a decision, and there's times where you're gonna disagree. I thought that coming into it, I had a chance to compete for an everyday outfield spot. And after the Spring Training I had, I thought maybe I had earned a good run to start the year. I didn't quite get it, but Thomper was very upfront with me about what was going on. And hey like, 'you're gonna be playing three days this week. We've got you two games this series. Hey, we're gonna try to get you into the Sunday game in this series, but it depends on if this guy needs a day off.'
"I felt like he was very upfront with me. And if he wasn't, he's got a lot going on. Look, his worry is not catering to me and worrying about my playing time. He's got a lot going on. But if I was at a point where I needed some knowledge of what they were thinking, he was the easiest guy to go in and talk to. It was never uncomfortable to knock on his door and [go], 'Hey Thomper, you got a second? What's the deal, what's going on? I haven't played in three days, is that what's happening?' He was, I thought, very communicative."
In one of the multiple moments last season where it was clear that Castellanos' relationship with Thomson had reached the point of no return, he said during a September interview that he didn't talk to the manager "all that often," and that "communication over the years has been questionable, at least in my experience.”
Nick Castellanos was asked if he understands why he hasn’t played as often.
“I don’t really talk to Rob all that often … Communication over the years has been questionable, at least in my experience.”
(via @GraceDelPizzo) pic.twitter.com/ucqEiWadSL
That was surprising to hear from Castellanos, because since Thomson took over as manager in June of 2022, players have generally spoken very positively about the skipper's communication skills. While Merrifield was with the Phillies for a much shorter period than Castellanos has been, it's clear that even as a multiple-time All-Star who wasn't playing as much as he hoped, he does not share the same perspective as his former teammate.
Merrifield did touch on the dynamic between Castellanos and Thomson specifically, and even compared him to another one of his former teammates that could be headed for Cooperstown in a few years.
"I don't know how he and Casty's relationship was. I think Casty is a genuinely good-hearted dude. He's a little different ... and he'll tell you, he's just a little different. He's a little different guy. And he handles things a little differently. He's very, very blunt. He'll tell you exactly how he feels. There's a little Zack Greinke in him, where he just tells you what he feels. There's usually not like malicious intent behind it, but it can sound like that sometimes. And I think there were just some things that happened that Casty didn't like along the way, and he's not the guy to hide his feelings or sugarcoat it. And I think it just kinda came to a head."
There are, of course, major differences between Castellanos and Greinke. While Castellanos has accomplished quite a bit in his career, Greinke is one of the best pitchers of the last 25 years. Starting pitchers also are only taking the mound once every five games, as opposed to position players appearing in most or all games, or at least having the chance to. Kansas City is also a very different media market than Philadelphia.
Whenever it is that the Phillies move on from Castellanos — seemingly, it will be soon — there will be quite a few think pieces on what went wrong, and who is to blame for the deterioration of his relationship with Thomson and the organization. It's probably not a black and white situation, all parties involved likely could have handled things in a better manner. But Merrifield's thoughts on Thomson do suggest that Castellanos was in the minority with how he felt about the manager.
