Phillies Fans Still Apparently Buying into the Team’s Success

It appears that Phillies fans are still skeptical of the team’s ability to contend this year for a postseason berth. The last time the Phillies made the playoffs was 2011. They were 81-81 the next season and then had five straight losing seasons, including a 66-96 mark last season.

Now, just past the midway point, the Phillies entered the week 45-37 and were three games behind the Atlanta Braves in the National League East. If the season ended on Sunday, the Phillies would have been in the playoffs as the second wildcard team.

Of course, a lot can happen in the final 80 games, but the Phillies have been winning while still not getting consistently great offensive performances from most players. The bullpen, which sparkled over the weekend against Washington, has been up and down.

Yet getting last year’s Phillies all-star representative Pat Neshek back from season-long injury on Sunday, will be a major boost.

Still, the fans have yet to catch on. Yes, the Phillies have shown improvement at the turnstiles. According to ESPN.com, the Phillies began the week 17th in MLB with an average home attendance of 26,610, which his 61 percent capacity of Citizens Bank Park.

Last year the Phillies finished 24th in attendance, averaging 24,118 while drawing 1,905,354 fans.

Yet a closer look at this year’s attendance shows that the Phillies got a major boost last week when the Yankees came to town for three games.

Those three games drew 129,732, but there were estimates that half the fans were there to support the Yankees.

Still, it was good to see the ballpark full, the way it used to be when the Phillies were winning five straight East Division titles, two NL pennants and the 2008 World Series.

The Phillies also had a sellout on Saturday when they scored a 3-2 win over the Washington Nationals, but a big assist goes to the post-game fireworks, always a major attraction.

The next day for the Sunday afternoon 4-3 win in 13 innings over the attendance was 22,051.

Maybe the fans of Philadelphia have been spoiled by the Eagles Super Bowl win, Villanova’s second NCAA title in three years, and the playoff seasons of the 76ers and Flyers.

The Phillies have exciting young everyday players such as leftfielder Rhys Hoskins, centerfielder Odubel Herrera, likely all-star pitcher Aaron Nola and electrifying closer Seranthony Dominguez.

Sunday’s win over Washington completed a brutal 16-game stretch against Milwaukee, St. Louis, Washington, the Yankees and then the Nationals again. The Phillies went 10-6 in that stretch.

They appear as if they are in the race for a playoff spot for the duration. There will likely be meaningful September baseball. Whether the fans are coming more frequently by then remains to be seen.

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Author: Marc Narducci; Photo by Marc Narducci