Raul Ibanez ‘thankful’ for Phillies fans, city’s intensity
By Matt Rappa
Appreciating the Philadelphia fan
Ibanez got to experience “Red October” first-hand, just one year later in 2009. He says way before that, however, it did not take long for him to understand the Philadelphia fan mentality.
Early on in spring training, Ibanez had a bad game that was followed by a meet and greet down in Clearwater. One fan asked Ibanez what happened on a play, and that he should have been able to catch the ball.
Ibanez says he replied to the fan: “Dude, this is spring training. Take it easy; relax.” While he could have taken the fan’s comments the wrong way, the slugger understood the Philadelphia fan mentality, and grew to appreciate the intensity that came with it.
“That type of intensity was actually so powerful. I’m so thankful for it because the energy that it provided for the next three years of my career was something that I never experienced,” Ibanez says. “I’m so thankful for it and the fanbase.”
The energy down in Clearwater did not take long to travel north to Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. The 300-plus-career home run hitter says he remembers all of the emotions that came with running onto the field after doing something good late in the game to help the team win. He says Phillies fans made him feel “elevated off the ground” because of their intensity.
“It was just a powerful place and I love it. It’s amazing,” Ibanez says. “It’s something that I’d never experienced up until that point — postseason and hitting a walkoff.”
Ibanez says the thing he likes the most about Philadelphia is its honesty and genuine nature: “There’s no pulling punches; they tell you right to your face how they feel and that’s how it should be — you waste no time. I love Philadelphia.”