Citizens Bank Park waited 11 years for the return of postseason baseball. Both NLDS games against the Atlanta Braves sold out, and countless moments from Game 3 and the clinching Game 4 sent the stadium into a frenzy that seemingly never died down until well after the final out.
Zach Eflin, Brandon Marsh, Bryson Stott and most of the Phillies’ younger core had never been there, so they were probably easier to impress. But it’s clear Phillies fans brought it this weekend when the player with the most postseason pedigree on the NLDS roster ranks it above any atmosphere he’s experienced that early in the playoffs.
“No offense to any fan base because they’re all amazing, but this is by far the best Division Series I’ve ever seen at a home field — just how electric it was,” Kyle Schwarber, whose six prior postseason appearances include a World Series run, told The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Scott Lauber. “They’re in tune with every single pitch in every big spot. It was just electric.”
Schwarber has quite the knowledge base to pull from. Counting Philadelphia and Atlanta, he’s now played in eight different stadiums in the Division Series, in front of several fanbases known for their passion for baseball: St. Louis, Chicago and Boston are examples.
But all you need to do is watch the third inning of Game 3 to see what Schwarber’s talking about. There were the obvious moments, like Rhys Hoskins’ three-run homer and Bryce Harper’s two-run shot to break it open. But even the reaction to Stott’s RBI double that began the scoring felt like the crowd had been waiting a decade to erupt.
After all, it had.
“When you see the alumni coming back, and they all talk about it — from the ’80 and ’93 team — they talk about what this city does and how they get behind you, how fiery and passionate they are,” Harper said after Game 4. “I think every single night we see that. For them to come out the last two days it’s so much fun.
“I said it yesterday, it was ‘Whoa, this is incredible, it’s insane, it’s electric.’ We have the best fans in baseball. I’ve never heard a stadium louder than that. It’s incredible to see.”
Phillies interim manager Rob Thomson — who has spent quite some time in postseason dugouts over the years himself — concurred.
“To see what 46,000 people can do to motivate a club and just the passion they have for the ballclub, it was incredible. So loud. And from the first pitch of the game to the last pitch of the game, they never — they were like the club,” Thomson said after Game 4. “They were just relentless, and just kept going and going. And it helps the players so much. It motivates them. It gives them confidence. It was a really special couple of days. Can’t wait to get back.”
The Phillies will indeed get back. Winning the Wild Card Series in St. Louis unlocked postseason baseball at Citizens Bank Park this weekend, and the NLDS win over the Braves has unlocked yet more. There will be at least two more opportunities for Phillies fans to continue building that reputation — and, if they go all the way, that number could reach as high as six.
If their team keeps on giving them reasons to lose their minds (but honestly, perhaps even if they don’t), all the rally towels, built-up anticipation, heckling of opposing players and 46,000-strong “Dancing On My Own” choruses will give way to marveling quite like Rhys Hoskins’ after Game 3. He summed it up about as well as one can, given that what transpired in South Philadelphia the last two nights somewhat transcends words:
“God,” Hoskins said, “it was loud.”
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