PHILADELPHIA - APRIL 18: A general view of Citizens Bank Park as the Philadelphia Phillies take on the Montreal Expos on April 18, 2004 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies defeated the Expos 5-4. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
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The Philadelphia Phillies seemed to be spiraling to open a highly anticipated season, but a big change might have corrected the course.
After the team parted ways with long-time manager Rob Thomson and appointed bench coach Don Mattingly as his replacement, it has seen a surge in the standings, including a sweep of the San Diego Padres in its latest series.
“Mattingly has guided the Phillies to a 20-8 turnaround since Rob Thomson was fired with a 9-19 record to start the season,” Reuters noted on Friday.
But it’s hard to pinpoint what exactly Mattingly has changed to spark the reversal. He has made some lineup tweaks and the front office continues to shuffle the middle-relief group. Perhaps the most impactful decision Mattingly has made since taking over was to give struggling third baseman Alec Bohm a reset.
Bohm got a two-game rest shortly after Mattingly took over, then returned to the lineup to go four-for-four against the Cincinnati Reds. Though he is still slashing just .212/.273/.328, that return might have given Bohm something to build on for the rest of the season.
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Aside from his struggles at the plate, though, Bohm has had to contend with an ongoing off-field issue this season. Shortly before Opening Day, he filed a lawsuit against his parents, alleging that they defrauded him. Bohm has earned nearly $30 million in his career, including a $10.2 million salary for this season.
Bohm’s parents have refuted those claims and the two sides are still attempting to determine where the court battle will proceed.
“Attorneys for Bohm clashed with representatives of his parents, Lisa and Daniel Bohm, over whether Philadelphia was the right venue for the litigation,” The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Nick Vadala and Abraham Gutman reported after the latest proceedings took place in front of a judge in Philadelphia’s City Hall on Thursday.
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On Thursday, a representative for Bohm’s parents argued that “to the extent that there is harm, he didn’t feel it on the field in Philadelphia, but in his bank accounts in Florida,” per Vadala and Gutman.
Meanwhile, Bohm’s legal team pointed out that the Phillies’ home stadium of Citizens Bank Park played a key role.
“Anthony Twardowski, a Zarwin Baum attorney representing Alec Bohm, said the parents inappropriately transferred funds from Bohm’s account while he was playing on the field at Citizens Bank Park,” Vadala and Gutman added. “Arbitration decisions are generally not reviewable by judges unless there was abuse in the process, the attorney said, so allowing the proceeding in Florida to continue could be detrimental to Bohm.”
Ultimately, the Philadelphia judge decided he would need to hear more evidence before deciding whether to pause arbitration proceedings that are ongoing in Florida. The two sides are set to reconvene in September.
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