Tommy Lasorda Versus The Phillie Phanatic… Who Ya Got?

As the Dodgers-Phillies NLCS got brought back from the doldrums with an LA win last night, there was never anything boring about the long-brewing rivalry rekindling between the teams’ two mascots–the Phillie Phanatic and Tommy Lasorda. The battle has been going on for 20-plus years as the Phanatic, being insufferably true to his Philly roots, has been the bane of Lasorda’s visits to the east coast. Actually, the mascot has been the bane of most teams visiting the city of Brotherly Love to the point where Joe Torre once told former Phanatic Dave Raymond, while he was Phanatic-ing around, that he knew people that could break his legs. But Lasorda seems seriously annoyed by the mascot, and even called him out in an 2005 blog entry. Really? We don’t know what’s more amazing–that he called out a collection of fabric wearing a Phillies hat out for being a jerk, or that Lasorda had a blog in 2005.

Lasorda wrote in 2005, in a blog for MLB.com, how “one of the worst incidents was perpetrated by the Phillie Phanatic. . . . It got a hold of one of my jerseys. It took the jersey, put it on a dummy and ran over the dummy again and again. That type of a display should not be shown in ballparks, especially in front of children. It exhibits violence and disrespect.”

Yeah, but according to the former Phanatic Raymond, who perpetrated the offense, Tommy seemed to be the only Dodger angered by his antics because it was Steve Sax who used to bring him Lasorda’s jerseys to stuff and demolish in front of the crowds. But the incident blogged about was the last straw, according to Raymond…

“[Lasorda] grabs the dummy away from me. He beat me over the head with it. The first time ever, my chin strap fell off, my head almost came off. . . . He’s trying to pull the four-wheeler into the dugout. He threw the dummy in their dugout. He’s screaming at me, cursing at me. I’m just worrying about my head pulling off. For a brief moment, Tommy and I were struggling, each on one side of the four-wheeler. He’s trying to take it into the dugout. I’m like, ‘You’re going to delay the game.’ “

While that was going on, Raymond said, Sax threw the dummy back out on the field.

Oh Steve Sax. Between winning Rookie of the Year, your two World Series rings, singing in a satin jacket and this… we’re going to go with the imagery of your throwing an effigy of your coach as he fights with a mascot as the highlight of the your Dodger career.
Playing the Dodgers Phanatic-style [Philly.com, via The 700 Level]
Image [Philly.com]