That Balls Outta Here
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Phillies Fumble Ryan Howard Ceremony Every Which-Way

By George Stockburger

Oct 1, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard (6) watches the ball after hitting a two-run home run during the fifth inning against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Derik Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 1, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard (6) watches the ball after hitting a two-run home run during the fifth inning against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Derik Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports /
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As only the Phillies could, the Ryan Howard ceremony felt like it was lacking something, including a live stream of the ceremony

Ryan Howard gave an emotional speech and thanked the fans at his final home game in Philadelphia. Other than that, there was nothing special about the ceremony honoring one of the greatest players in franchise history.

To the dismay of everyone living outside the Delaware Valley (such as myself) there was no live stream produced by Comcast Sports Net or the Phillies. Beat writers quickly caught on and attempted to create their own grainy streams.

The Phillies later jumped in and attempted to Facebook live the ceremony, but it quickly crashed and failed to show the entire event.

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Besides there being no stream on CSN, MLBTV, or the Phillies website, the Phillies were very underwhelming with their gift (singular) to Ryan Howard for his years of service. While David Ortiz was being treated like a king up in Boston, Howard’s ceremony felt like the birthday party for the step-child no one wanted.

How Mike Schmidt, Jimmy Rollins, or Charlie Manuel were not somehow involved is beyond me. Schmidt was at the park for the broadcast, as was Matt Stairs. Very surprising to me how there were no former teammates like Bobby Abreu or Mike Lieberthal for at least a photo op.

How there was no video messages from Chase Utley, Cole Hamels, or Carlos Ruiz is beyond me.

John Middleton and David Montgomery presented Howard with a painted glove featuring Howard stepping on home plate. If this were Jimmy Rollins or Chase Utley I’d understand a glove, but Ryan Howard? Why not an engraved bat or something that actually represented his career.

The Phillies also placed a plaque where Howard’s 58th home run from his MVP year landed. It’s cool, but it’s in the middle of a row of seats where someone is going to rest their beer during the seventh inning stretch. Looked like a coaster to me.

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And that was it. Again, it felt thrown together at the last minute when watching the beat writers stream. I could not hear Howard’s speech, but by all accounts it was emotional.

I was expecting much bigger things for the Big Piece today. He deserved so much more than a cheesy highlight video and a glove that means nothing.

Only the Phillies could have fumbled this, and they did on the goal line when everything was on the line.

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