PHILADELPHIA – In the outfield concourse on Wednesday night, the Citizens Bank Park crowd went through some of the routines that have become commonplace in the last few weeks. Phillies fans flocked to section 104, where tall cans of Budweiser were being passed out in a superstitious effort to keep the vibes strong. Others sat above the visitors' bullpen, armed with more one-liners after they seemingly paid off the night before.
Phillies fans are making sure their team gets every advantage possible at home during this improbable World Series run, and the playoff ride at Citizens Bank Park was going perfectly – until Wednesday's Game 4. The Phillies were on the wrong end of World Series history against the Astros as Cristian Javier and three relievers combined to throw just the second no-hitter ever in the Fall Classic.
The Game 4 defeat was the Phillies' first loss at home in seven playoff games at Citizens Bank Park. They'll host their eighth and final game of the 2022 postseason on Thursday night. After 11 playoff-less years and 13 years between World Series trips, the final nine innings will not be taken for granted.
Postseason baseball's return to Philadelphia has not disappointed. It's featured booming reactions to 17 homers hit by the home team and the kinds of full-throated October (and early November) boos you'd expect for the likes of Ronald Acuña Jr., Juan Soto and the American League juggernaut visiting for the first time since the franchise's cheating scandal.
"Have you seen the place? It's mayhem," Phillies fan Gavin McHugh said Wednesday. "You won't find this environment in any other city. You know why? Because Philly fans care the most."
McHugh became a World Series social media star after Game 3 when he posted a video of himself heckling Astros starter Lance McCullers Jr. in the bullpen minutes before his first pitch.
McCullers then became the first pitcher to allow five home runs in one World Series game in a 7-0 Phillies win. "There's a reason why the bullpen for the away team is higher -- for all the fans to chirp," McHugh said.
The chirping continued when Javier warmed up Wednesday ("you're throwing enough hangers to fill a closet!"), though it did not have the intended effect.
There were three dedicated hecklers surrounding No. 53 on the Astros. A few feet away, there were more more fans huddling around a No. 17. Jayme Hoskins, wife of first baseman Rhys Hoskins, was running up another large bar tab.
During NLCS Game 5, Hoskins posted up in section 104 and bought 50 beers for the first 50 fans to show up (and have their IDs checked by security). The Phillies clinched the NL pennant in that game, so she did it again in the World Series. Donning a Phillies red blazer with No. 17 on the back on Wednesday, Hoskins posed with any fan who wanted a selfie and laughed in disbelief as the crowd chanted her name.
Rhys Hoskins has been giving fans plenty to celebrate with his five homers at CBP in the playoffs, and Jayme has been making sure they have something to drink.
"I've been hearing about Red October for seven years and it has not disappointed," she said. "It's been amazing."
Stephen Pianovich/CBS SportsBill Branin, a Phillies fan from Millville, N.J. (yes, the hometown of Mike Trout), was one of the recipients of a free Hoskins beer on Wednesday and said this Phillies run has created "a family environment" between the team and fans.
"You never saw this level of connection between players and the fans before. There's a better connection this year," Branin said. "Like when (Alec) Bohm said 'I f—ing hate this place.' He 'fessed up and the next day he got an ovation. It was like 'we still love you.'"
Citizens Bank Park's postseason home-field advantage is more than just anecdotes. The Phillies are 6-1 this year and 22-10 all-time in the playoffs at the stadium. It's the best home record for any team in the playoffs since CBP hosted its first playoff game in 2007.
"We're all a family here, man," Phillies star Bryce Harper said earlier in the week. "We all try to come in here and play the best baseball we can knowing that we have a whole city behind us and that we have a whole organization behind us as well. That's all you can ask for as a player."
Phillies fans won't have the chance to see a title-clinching win in World Series Game 5 like they did 14 years ago against the Rays, and there's no guarantee on when the next World Series game will be played in Philadelphia. But there's no doubt the crowd will be doing everything it can to send the Phillies to Texas with a 3-2 World Series lead.
