Philadelphia Phillies Mascot

The Philadelphia Phillies are among the most successful teams in Major League Baseball (MLB). Also known as the “The Fightin’ Phils”, this team has been successful in claiming the World Series Champions twice till now. Besides, they have also won the NL East Division championship a staggering eleven times and achieved the NL pennant eight times so far. The team has its home stadium at Citizens Bank Park, where they have been playing since 2004.

The Philadelphia Phillies is under the ownership of John Middleton who also serves as its President. The President of baseball operations is Dave Dombrowski while Sam Fuld serves as the General Manager and Ron Thomson serves as the manager of the team.

Read More:- Philadelphia Phillies Stadium

Who is the mascot for the Philadelphia Phillies?

Phillie Phanatic is the official mascot for the Philadelphia Phillies in Major League Baseball (MLB). He is described as a weird green creature that wears a Philadelphia Phillies jersey and somehow manages to walk on two legs. He is said to come from the Galapagos Islands and is indeed a very rare specimen to look at. He replaced the previous two sibling mascots for the team - Philadelphia Phil and Philadelphia Phillis. He has been portrayed by David Raymond from 1976-1993. In 1993, the role was taken up by Tom Burgoyne.

Phillie Phanatic’s History

After the 1976 MLB season, Dennis Lehman, who then worked for the Philadelphia Phillies, came up with the idea for a mascot similar to that of the San Diego Padres. Accordingly, the mascot was created by Harrison/Erickson of New York City. Phillie Phanatic was introduced on April 25, 1978, at The Vet in a game between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Chicago Cubs. Soon, he was declared as the official mascot for the team as per the MLB official site.

Since then, the Phillie Phanatic has been carrying out his responsibilities for the Philadelphia Phillies. He mainly rides around the field in an ATV and during games, he taunts the opponent team by dancing in front of their dugout, mocking their actions or smashing or stomping on their baseball equipment like batting helmets. He also stands up on top of the Phillies dugout for “The Phanatic Dance” during the half of the seventh inning. He remains on the top to “hex” the opponent pitcher. He shoots hot dogs from a pneumatic gun and polishes the heads of bald fans sitting near him. He also pranks the commentators by pouring popcorn on them, serving them Philly cheesesteaks and spraying Silly String on them. At times, he warms up at the team's bullpen.

Phillie Phanatic has a mother named Phoebe Phanatic who sometimes appears with him on the field. He also has a younger cousin named Phred and a girlfriend named Phiona, who are rarely seen. The Phillie Phanatic is one of the most dedicated mascots in the MLB. He became a Mascot Hall of Famer in 2005 as per the Mascot Hall of Fame.

This is a look at some of the important information about Phillie Phanatic himself:

Phillie Phanatic’s Funny Incidents

On February 25, 2017, the Phillie Phanatic was scheduled for a meeting at the ESPN office as per ESPN on YouTube. While there, he was made to wait. However, after waiting for a long time, he went into rage mode and hilariously destroyed everything in the ESPN office and made a mess of it. Finally, he was called in for the meeting. However, he later assaulted an ESPN office staff member.

On August 5, 2015, during a Philadelphia Phillies game, the Phillie Phanatic strode towards the commentary booth like Santa Claus as per MLB on YouTube. The commentators were worried that he, as usual, would be up to no good. Likewise, the Phanatic pulled out sombreros from his sack and put it on the commentator’s heads.

On July 24, 2014, the Phillie Phanatic decided to have fun by mocking the San Francisco Giants players as per MLB on YouTube. He approached Hunter Pence who was practicing his swing and then decided to mock him with his usual antics. Later, he also mocked how Pablo Sandoval felt while trying to catch a ball in the previous game.