4 Philadelphia Phillies to blame for Game 7 loss against the Diamondbacks

Rob Thomson's miscues were too much for Phillies to overcome

Rob Thomson had a few gaffes in Game 7, few more notable than letting Johan Rojas hit with the bases loaded in the early innings. Rojas was the worst hitter in the Phillies lineup this series, but Thomson believed in him enough to allow the outfielder to waste one of the only real opportunities the Phils received.

When Thomson finally did pull the trigger and remove Rojas in favor of his replacement, Cristian Pache, the former Braves top prospect earned a walk and spurred another rally, which Trea Turner and Bryce Harper wasted.

Add in that Thomson allowed Ranger Suarez to face the likes of Corbin Carroll for a third time in a critical game when he was clearly not up for the challenge, and the Phillies manager has a lot to answer for. Thomson is a players manager, and by no means is on the hot seat for losing this series. He will be back, but fans are right to put him under the microscope for a number of costly choices once the Phils returned home with a 3-2 lead.

Baseball can often be a game of inches, and managers have a huge impact, especially in the playoffs. Seemingly every move Thomson made en route to the NL pennant in 2022 worked. This season, it was the opposite. That's just sports, sometimes.