NBC broadcast's hilarious tribute lays legendary Phillies-Pirates scorebug to rest

The Philadelphia Phillies' NBC Sports Philadelphia broadcast team had a little fun before Friday night's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Right before a one hour and 48-minute rain delay, during which no rain fell, delayed the first pitch, broadcaster Tom McCarthy delivered an important message that baseball fans had been wanting to hear.

Legendary Phillies-Pirates 'P00P' scorebug will live forever thanks to NBC Sports Philadelphia's viral tribute

McCarthy gave an unexpected eulogy after the opening to Friday's Phillies-Pirates broadcast on NBC Sports Philadelphia. Just after opening the broadcast with John Kruk, the cameras cut away as this pre-prepared message was narrated by McCarthy.

This, of course, is referring to the scorebug that NBC Sports Philadelphia used from 2022-2024 reading "P00P" when the Phillies play the Pirates and the game is scoreless. The internet immediately started having fun with it, all the way until the scorebug was controversially removed by the station this spring in favor of the current one, which is more minimalistic and missing logos.

The delivery by McCarthy was great, and that entire surprise 30-second clip was hilarious. Whoever came up with the idea deserves a raise, as it may have gone more viral than the actual scorebug itself. People from all corners of the internet were having fun with it, and it reminds many of the "People Order Our Patties" joke from SpongeBob SquarePants.

Even those at Citizens Bank Park who didn't see the broadcast came to the park with signs to commemorate the scorebug. Here are some of the best ones:

As for the game itself, the Phillies handled business against Pittsburgh with an 8-4 victory after their offense sleepwalked through the first six innings, before the Pirates gifted them four runs in the seventh inning in a way only their pitching could have. After four walks, a hit batter, and one hit that should've been caught, the Phillies had a 5-3 lead that they wouldn't relinquish.

The Phillies clinched the MLB Rivalry Weekend series victory with a 5-2 win on Saturday, as ace Zack Wheeler dominated an overmatched Pirates lineup. Sunday afternoon’s intriguing matchup between the Pirates' electric Paul Skenes and Phillies top prospect Mick Abel, who made his MLB debut, ended with a Phillies' 1-0 win and a series sweep in the first matchup of the post-P00P era.

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