Phillies Let the Marlins Babysit the Phanatic

The Phillies and Marlins opened up a new series on Tuesday night, and the Phillie Phanatic was just really happy to be a part of it!

Baseball’s most chaotic and beloved (and newly-vaxxed!) mascot was thrilled to welcome the Marlins to Philadelphia, waddling over to give an under-the-jersey hug to the Marlins’ social crew.

And because content is king in sports nowadays, the Phillies took the opportunity to ask the Marlins if they could babysit (mascot-sit?) the playful mascot during this week’s series.

The Phillies mascot and the Marlins have a sweet history

This isn’t the first time the Marlins have had fun with Phanatic. He had a special relationship with the late José Fernández, the young Marlins pitcher who was tragically killed in a boating accident in September 2016. Just months before, he had pranked the Phanatic by stealing the keys to the mascot’s beloved ATV. The Phanatic got revenge by handcuffing Fernández and leading him back to his dugout.

When the 60-game schedule came out last summer, the Marlins had some fun with a fan whose dog had eaten a stuffed Phanatic toy.

At the beginning of the 2020 season, when the Phanatic was all alone in the stands at Citizens Bank Park, he tried to liven things up for everyone watching at home.

And then when the Marlins came to Citizens Bank Park for the series, the Phanatic gave their players a warm welcome:

The two teams might be division rivals, but everybody loves the Phillie Phanatic.