The Phillies already credit their fans for giving them an advantage in the postseason at Citizens Bank Park. On Wednesday, they’ll see if the fanatics who turn South Philly into “four hours of hell” can help them get ready for October.
The Phillies, like they did last year, will scrimmage on Wednesday night as they await Saturday’s opener of the National League Division Series. But this year, they’re bringing the noise to Citizens Bank Park.
They sold 29,500 tickets to the practice after putting them on sale Saturday for $10 with proceeds going toward Phillies Charities. The Phillies expect to sell out the limited remaining tickets.
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The Phils thought maybe they would fill the lower bowl of the stadium. They soon started selling upper deck tickets and then added standing room only.
The team’s playoff games have been the hot tickets since the Phillies returned to October in 2022 as resale prices skyrocket for entry into an atmosphere that Nick Castellanos called “The jungle.” So it makes sense that even a practice sold out.
“Just think about having a practice with nobody in the stands vs. 30,000 people there,” said John Weber, the team’s senior vice president of ticket operations. “It’s a totally different atmosphere and pretty special. We’re just trying to replicate it as much as possible and the energy our fans bring translates to our players.”
The Phillies thought about selling tickets to last season’s scrimmage but didn’t have enough time to pull it off. They lost in four games to the Mets in the NLDS and looked stale. Maybe a better tune up could have helped them navigate the first-round bye. The team’s baseball operations department wanted fans in the stands for Wednesday’s Phillies vs. Phillies game.
“It says everything that we can send out an email at 8 a.m. on Saturday morning, announce something, and sell 31,000 tickets for an intrasquad game,” Weber said “It says everything about the Philadelphia sports fan and the Philadelphia Phillies fans who have supported us all year long with over 3,375,000. It’s just been incredible.”
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The Phillies will have more fans at their practice than four playoff teams — the Tigers, Guardians, Reds, and Diamondbacks — averaged this season. Yes, the tickets are cheap but there was little notice for this weeknight practice. They still sold out.
“Phillies Charities just awarded 35 grants of $40,000 to nonprofits within the Philadelphia area,” Weber said. “They just had their board meeting a couple weeks ago and this money will go back into the community. That’s so important to our organization and it has been for a long, long time.”