The only thing better than the Phillies right now is their fans
Phillies fans have turned out to support this year's record-setting team, and the Phillies have noticed.
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The Philadelphia Phillies continue to receive an ongoing show of support from their fan base in 2024. The appreciation from fans began to increase substantially in 2022 when the team made the postseason for the first time since 2011.
Phillies fans' enthusiasm reached a whole other level during the 2022 NLDS versus the Atlanta Braves. Game 3 of the series marked the first playoff contest at Citizens Bank Park in over a decade. As the No. 6 seed, the Phillies went on an unexpected run.
With their enthusiastic fans, Philly rode their postseason momentum to their first World Series since 2009, providing many exciting memories during their Cinderella playoff run. The biggest was during Game 5 of the NLCS versus the San Diego Padres. Bryce Harper's eighth-inning home run gave the club the lead and sent Citizens Bank Park into a frenzy that radio play-by-play broadcaster Scott Frenzke coined "Bedlam at the Bank."
The only thing better than the Phillies right now is their fans
Fans continued to show their support last season and have done so in 2024 as well — the attendance at Citizens Bank Park has not gone unnoticed. Following the Phillies 5-2 win over the Texas Rangers on Tuesday, manager Rob Thomson and first baseman Bryce Harper each commented on the passion shown by Philly fans.
"It just shows you the passion of our fan base, and how much they like coming here and watching these guys play. And I know our guys appreciate it," Thomson said. "They love having a full ballpark here. And I think it energizes them. It gets them going. And it's really neat, we're drawing a lot and [it] just shows how good our fan base is."
Harper echoed his manager's sentiment.
"It's been incredible. Obviously being able to win games and do that," Harper said. "Our fans are going to show for us and we applaud them for that because they make us that much better. Each team that comes in here and plays against us. They know we got a fan base on our side and [it's] just a lot of fun. That's what we signed up for. They show up and it just makes me happy, makes me smile."
"It makes me smile." 🤝
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) May 22, 2024
Keep showing up Phillies fans! ♥ pic.twitter.com/sOHrVFZrtg
Other players, like designated hitter Kyle Schwarber and reliever Jeff Hoffman, took to social media to thank the fans following the series sweep of the Rangers.
Heading into the weekend, the Phillies trailed only the Los Angeles Dodgers in total attendance this season, with 1,171,863 fans accounted for through 30 home games. They're also second to the Dodgers in attendance per game, with 39,062 fans.
42,377 behind us on a Thursday afternoon in May.
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) May 23, 2024
Philadelphia, you're the best ❤️ pic.twitter.com/tNB0BHlFeC
Any fan base loves a contender and Phillies fans are no different. Citizens Bank Park was full regularly when the team made the playoffs from 2007 to 2011. After several down years, the crowds returned in 2019 following the team's signing of Harper in free agency.
Since 2022, the enthusiasm last seen during the mid-2000s has returned. Total attendance at The Bank in 2022 was 2,276,736. That increased to 3,052,605 in 2023. This year it looks like the Phillies are well on their way to another packed house for 81 games.
The passion now has arguably surpassed the excitement fans had for the Phillies teams from over 15 years ago. The fan base will continue to attend the ballpark to see a club that is off to its best start in franchise history.
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