For First Time In 294 Days, Phillies Baseball Was Played At Citizens Bank Park
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- For the first time in 294 days, the Phillies played a baseball game at Citizens Bank Park Sunday night. And even if it meant nothing in the standings, it meant something for the guys in red pinstripes.
Some of it was similar. The flags are still there -- '80 and '08 aren't going anywhere. And there was baseball and plenty of Dan Baker.
But the 43,000 empty blue seats were not the same.
Andrew McCutchen had to stop his first at-bat until the stadium could fix a feedback issue from the live broadcast.
Zack Wheeler's first action resulted in four-plus innings, allowing two runs, but he was inconsistent in a 5-2 loss to the Orioles.
"The interesting thing is it feels fairly normal now what we're doing. I don't think it's like something that's totally strange to us," Manager Joe Girardi said.
It was a surreal experience the players will now have to get used to as the MLB readies itself for a 60-game sprint to October.
The Phils are up in the Bronx Monday for their final exhibition game against the New York Yankees before opening the season at home against Miami on Friday.
