The silence was deafening.
More than 42,000 came early and loud to the South Philly Bank, credit and debit cards in hand, anxious to make a lifetime memory deposit of their beloved Phillies in what seemed sure to be a second consecutive trip to the World Series. But in the end, they were snake-bit.
As the fly ball off the bat of pinch-hitter Jake Cave settled harmlessly into the glove of Arizona’s right fielder Corbin Carrol, perhaps announcer Jack Buck’s call of Kirk Gibson’s dramatic home run in game one of the 1988 World Series, “I can’t believe what I just saw,” was apropos. Indeed, the ‘bedlam at the bank’ party was over.
Somehow, exceeding almost everyone’s expectations outside the Diamondback’s own locker room, the sixth-seeded upstarts from the desert overcame a 2-0 Phillies lead in the NLCS to win four of the last five games and advance to their first World Series since defeating the Yankees in 2001. This was a team that lost 110 games in 2021, had a losing record last season, and became the first National League team in history to win the pennant while being outscored during the regular season.
Seemingly void of any known stars to anyone living east of the Mississippi River, the boys from Chase Bank field cashed in all their chips at the more famous Citizens Bank Park counterpart.
After defeating the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS, which was a home run feast by the Phillies, Bryce Harper told the media, “This is what you spend the money for, to get the stars.”
But remarkably, non-household names like Merrill Kelly, Brandon Pfaadt, Ryan Thompson, Kevin Ginkel, and Paul Sewald managed a total eclipse of those stars during games six and seven at the Phillies’ own madhouse. In those final two deciding games, those stars, Harper (27.5 million), Trea Turner (27.2 million), and Kyle Schwarber (20 million), were a collective 1-19 at the plate. Additionally, Nick Castellanos (20 million), who played brilliantly against the Braves, was 0 for his last 23 at-bats against Arizona.
By contrast, Arizona second baseman Ketel Marte, who was named the NLCS MVP and has hit in a record 16 consecutive playoff games, tops the Diamondbacks payroll at 11.6 million.
Call it lucky. Call it a fluke. Call it whatever you’d like, but as has often been seen in competitive sports, it is not the size of your bankroll that wins — it’s the size of the fight in the dog that matters. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said it more succinctly when he stated prior to game six, “We didn’t come back east to get our #*@+% kicked.” They didn’t.
Proving all the nay-sayers wrong was a motivating factor in their uphill climb to the World Series, and spraying each other in the traditional bubbly champagne at Citizens Bank Park must have been extra sweet for the new NL champs.
It’s hard to pinpoint when the silliness of spraying champagne joined peanuts and Cracker Jacks as a baseball staple, but one source carries its beginning back to 1953 when the Brooklyn Dodgers clinched the pennant earlier than any team in history.
As the story is told, Dodger pitcher Don Newcombe got into a post-game shouting match with center fielder Duke Snider, who had gotten beer on Newcombe’s suit and poured beer into one of Newcombe’s hats. Newcombe told Snider, “Don’t you throw that beer on me because I take care of my clothes, and I don’t want them ruined.”
One of the earliest live televised celebrations that could be compared to today’s over-the-top antics occurred when the Minnesota Twins won the American League pennant in 1965. When the players reached the clubhouse, they proceeded to grab bottles of champagne, spraying it around, and pouring over heads. Twins announcer Ray Scott cautioned the players, “Hey, fellas, the microphone won’t work if you do that.”
Recent additions to the celebrations have been swimming and ski goggles. Players wearing goggles might be shocking to traditionalists; it’s more than a fashion statement. The alcohol content during such silliness can cause corneal abrasions that could last up to 48 hours.
MLB policymakers have gotten into the policing of such celebrations. Their policy states, “No alcohol is permitted outside the clubhouse or at any time on the field of play. Each player is only supposed to have two bottles of champagne. Budweiser products are the only beer allowed during post-game celebrations, and Budweiser logos are prominently displayed on the plastic covering the player’s lockers.”
Local fans may want to keep their eyes on Texas Rangers their base coach, Tony Beasley, while watching the World Series.
Beasley has ties to Williamsport as he began his managerial career with the Crosscutters in 2001. He led the club to a 46-26 regular season record and a first-place finish. The team was declared co-champions of the NYPEN League along with Brooklyn when the 9/11 attacks caused the cancellation of the league playoffs. He has served as a Rangers coach since 2015.
Former MLB player and announcer Joe Garagiola once wrote a book, Baseball is a Funny Game. While Phillies fans aren’t laughing, it is a reminder baseball’s a game and anything can happen. You can bank on it!
