Chase Utley will make his final appearance at Citizens Bank Park this week with the Phillies set to play the Dodgers. Here is how you can watch.
Chase Utley, one of the few players left from the 2008 World Series champion Phillies, announced earlier this month that he will retire at the end of the 2018 season. He returns to Philadelphia Monday night for one last series in the stadium he spent most of his career in.
Utley said during his press conference Monday afternoon that he will indeed be in the starting lineup Monday night in the series opener. Starting third baseman Justin Turner went to the disabled list Monday, allowing Utley to start just his 31st game this year.
Here is everything you need to know about Utley’s final homecoming Monday night and how to watch:
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Date: July 23, 2018
First Pitch: 7:05 PM ET
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Stadium: Citizens Bank Park
Pitchers: Zach Eflin (7-2, 3.15 ERA) vs Ross Stripling (8-2, 2.08 ERA)
Radio Station: 94 WIP, WTTM 1680 (Philadelphia), AM 570 LA Sports, KTNQ 1020 (Los Angeles)
TV Channel: NBCSP (Philadelphia), Sportsnet LA, SNLA Spanish (Los Angeles)
Live Stream: NBCSP Live (subscription needed), MLB.tv (FREE)
As indicated above, tonight’s game is free to stream for everyone.
With the Utley storyline surrounding the game and two first-place teams matching up, it was a great choice by those who run the service.
At the press conference, Utley said he wanted to announce his pending retirement before he returned to Philadelphia:
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"“I’ve been thinking about this a while now and trying to figure out how I wanted to go out,” Utley said. “I thought it was important to let the Philadelphia Phillies fans now that this is going to be the last time that I’ll have the chance to play in this ballpark. It was a huge factor in the timing of the announcement.”"
When Utley first made his return to Philadelphia in 2016, he received a huge ovation from the attending crowd.
They even cheered him on when he helped lead the Dodgers to a victory, to the chagrin of some. His initial ovation Monday should likely be even bigger, although with Philadelphia now in contention, fans won’t be happy if he helps the Dodgers win again.
Next: Philadelphia looking to upgrade their bench
Unless the two squads meet up in the playoffs, this will be the last time Utley will be introduced at Citizens Bank Park with “Kashmir” blasting in the background.