A celebratory dog pile in baby blue? That's among the World Series range of possibilities now that the Philadelphia Phillies, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, are planning to their power-blue throwback uniforms for Thursday's Game 5 against the Houston Astros.
During the regular season, the popular ensemble, which was actually the team's road uniforms from 1972 through 1986, was the uniform for every Thursday home game. Game 5 of the World Series would occasion the Phillies' first Thursday home game of these playoffs. Going into Game 4, the Phillies lead the best-of-seven series by a count of 2-1, so if they're able to win Game 4 and take a 3-1 lead, then Game 5 would be a potential clincher. Visions of that dog pile on the mound evoke the likes of Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, and Garry Maddox.
Also of note is that there wasn't originally supposed to be a Thursday World Series game. Monday's rainout of Game 2 pushed the schedule back a full day, and Thursday became an occasion for Game 5 instead of a travel day back to Houston.
As Matt Breen notes in the Inquirer story, if Thursday's plans proceed as expected, then the Phillies will have donned their full complement of colors this October/November:
If the Phillies wear blue, they'll sport every look — white, gray, cream, red, and blue — this postseason.
Because of supply-chain issues, the Phillies this season didn't receive their powder-blue throwbacks until near the end of April. They wore them for the first time in 2022 for their 7-1 win over the Rockies on April 29. Scan the entire schedule, and you'll find that the Phillies were 6-3 while wearing those powder blues during the regular season. Place your Game 5 bets accordingly.
