Once again, those in attendance were ultra-boisterous, the fireworks blasted during the national anthem, the red towels waved (though the rally part of them didn’t do much) and the chants drowned out everything at Citizens Bank Park during the Phillies’ Game 2 against the Dodgers in this National League Division Series.
It has been the recipe for four years now during Phillies home playoff games, making CBP the toughest place for visitors to compete in a playoff game.
But guess what? It isn’t just tough on the opposition. It can be quite draining on the home team also. And the sellout crowd on Monday had to be wondering that as the Phillies didn’t get their first hit of the game until second baseman Edmundo Sosa’s bloop single to right on the 72nd pitch by Dodger starter Blake Snell.
The Dodgers went on to win the game, 4-3, while holding the Phillies scoreless for the first seven innings. The big bats at the top of the lineup aren’t hitting, Los Angeles is getting the timely hits, and with that loss on Monday, the Phillies are now 3-7 in their last 10 postseason games at CBP.
So, what gives?
No Phillies players, nor the manager, nor those in the front office will ever complain about the atmosphere that CBP provides during playoff time. In fact, the reaction to the bedlam seems to garner more gratitude each time it happens. But still, something is amiss.
How could it be the Phillies lost the final two World Series home games to the Houston Astros back in 2022, including a no-hitter in Game 4? Can you explain losing two in a row to the Arizona Diamondbacks at CBP after coming home with a 3-2 lead in the NLCS in 2023? Then there was Game 1 against the Mets last season in the NLDS when the Phillies gave up five runs in the eighth and one in the ninth to New York in a 6-2 loss.
And now, two straight losses to the Dodgers to begin this year’s NLDS.
This veteran group of Phillies doesn’t make excuses for losses. That really isn’t their nature. And, again, they crave playing in front of this frenzied crowd whenever they can. But the task is harder than any of us can imagine. Because when the good is good, it is a tidal wave of emotion. But so is the bad.
J.T. Realmuto said after Game 1 that he looked up at the scoreboard at one point and couldn’t believe it was only the fourth inning. He said he was exhausted. Simply because the amount of emotion thumping through that stadium can be as draining as exhilarating.
“I think there are some big spots where I think you’re trying so hard that it just gets you,” third baseman Alec Bohm said. “Everything is so heightened and you’re so hyper-focused that you see something, and you don’t even know why you swung. It just happens. That’s the part of the game where you gotta try to slow it down and stay within yourself. Everybody just wants to help the team win.”
The want is there, no doubt. The effort, too. But when things begin to get pressurized, CBP can be a bit of a difficult place to play for the home team.
“I think that the stadium is good on both sides,” Nick Castellanos said. “When the game is going good, it’s wind at our back. When the game is not going good, it’s wind at our face. So, the environment can be with us, and the environment can be against us.”
Don’t sneer at that quote as an excuse. Instead, think about it. As a fan, you feel the anxiety you have with winning runners on base, two outs and your team trying to tie a playoff series. The heart and head pound. Hands clench and emotions run high. Now think about being a player in that spot. He has to perform. He has the same emotions but has to try to contain them while 45,000-plus rain down their feelings on that player.
“I wouldn’t say that it drains but it can definitely take you out of your center,” Castellanos added. “It’s super stimulating and euphoric if everything is going for us. But then it’s a very uphill climb when you can feel that everything is amplified negatively, like if you do something bad, you’re going to get a negative response. So, it makes it harder to play freely. If everything is going good, and we’re rolling, it’s a b—h to play here if you’re an opposing team because the environment is amazing. But if we roll into adversity and the tide shifts, we’re playing more tight because we don’t want to be reprimanded for something bad and playing becomes more difficult.”
Again, not an excuse, just the reality of something we as observers will never feel.
“Everything in an environment like this is amplified,” Castellanos said. “One run could seem like more than it actually is. When it’s going good, you’re on the expressway. When it’s going bad, it just takes something to take the ball rolling.
“Besides (Jesus) Luzardo, because pitching was phenomenal, as far as an offense we had two times that momentum was being built. So, when those dominoes start to fall, that’s important. Just like on the other side here. When good things start to happen, it’s like a snowball effect.”
No one can imagine saying that getting away from Citizens Bank Park may be a good thing for the Phillies in this series. But right now, it just may be. Not because of the fans’ reaction, but because of the reaction the team is causing with their play. The players know that.
So now, the almost unimaginable task of winning two at Dodger Stadium is right in the Phillies’ face.
“Got nothing to lose now,” Trea Turner said. “It’s not over. … It’s not over and we’re not going to quit until they tell us to go home. We got a great team. We’ve won three games in a row before, we’ve swept good teams. We’ve played good baseball. We got to find that. We’ve got to find it quick. I feel like we’ve played pretty decent these last two games, we just haven’t had enough to get the win. I don’t feel like we’re really beating ourselves. We’re playing good defense, we’re getting some hits here and there. It just doesn’t seem like enough each step of the way.”
If they get two wins in Los Angeles, no doubt Citizens Bank Park will be an atmosphere the players will crave.
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