Top 10 moments in Citizens Bank Park history

PHILADELPHIA -- Maybe real Phillies fans will replace cardboard cutouts and artificial crowd noise at Citizens Bank Park in 2021.

If they do, fire up the deep fryers at Federal Donuts.

MLB.com’s top 10 moments in Citizens Bank Park history would not have been the same without fans in the stands.

Here is a look back:

1. Game 5 of 2008 World Series
“The 0-2 pitch. Swing and a miss! Struck him out! The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 world champions of baseball!”

2. Roy Halladay’s no-hitter in Game 1 of 2010 National League Division Series
A strong argument can be made that Halladay’s no-no in the first postseason start of his career deserves the top spot. After all, a World Series champion is crowned every year (albeit only two in Phillies history), while there are only two postseason no-hitters in baseball history. Phillies fans witnessed one of them.

3. Jimmy Rollins’ walk-off double in Game 4 of 2009 NL Championship Series
A clutch moment for J-Roll. Scott Franzke’s call on this is fantastic.

4. Shane Victorino’s grand slam in Game 1 of 2008 NLDS
Fans must remember that CC Sabathia was nearly unbeatable in 2008. He went 11-2 with a 1.65 ERA in 17 starts for the Brewers down the stretch. (The Phillies tried to acquire Sabathia from the Indians in July, but fell short and got Joe Blanton instead.) The Phils were nervous facing Sabathia in Game 1. But Victorino’s slam in the second inning calmed their fears and provided the first inkling that 2008 could be a special one.

5. Phillies clinch NL East on final day of 2007 season
The best part of this game is what happened before Jamie Moyer threw the first pitch against the Nationals.

Before fans streamed video and audio from smart phones, they relied on the out-of-town scoreboard in right field for updates. They roared the moment it showed the Marlins take an early lead against the Mets at Shea Stadium. They never stopped cheering as the Phillies clinched their first division title since 1993.

“We walked onto the field in ’07 and it was like 3-0 Marlins,” Jayson Werth said a couple of years ago. “And then it flipped to 7-0. The place went bananas 20 minutes before the game. That was the buzz the whole day.”

6. Aaron Rowand crashes into center-field fence
We could pick 10 postseason-related games for the top 10, but what is the fun in that? Rowand’s face-breaking catch in an otherwise meaningless May 2006 game against the Mets is one of the most replayed moments in Phillies history. So is Rowand’s quote that followed: “For who? My teammates. And for what? To win.”

7. Bryce Harper's walk-off grand slam
The Phillies have had few memorable moments since Chris Carpenter outdueled Halladay in Game 5 of the 2011 NLDS, but Harper’s walk-off slam against the Cubs in August 2019 is one of them. First, it allowed Phillies fans to dream for a moment that they might make the postseason again. Second, it was Harper, one of the game’s biggest stars in his first season with his new team. His race around the bases was great. Third, John Kruk’s reaction the moment the ball left Harper’s bat is priceless.

“Oh, my God!”

There are two home runs I’ve personally seen that replays never do justice: Matt Stairs’ pinch-hit homer in Game 4 of the 2008 NLCS at Dodger Stadium and this one. Two towering bombs off the bat.

8. Game 3 of 2008 World Series
Carlos Ruiz, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard each homered, but the Phillies needed Ruiz’s chopper up the third-base line to score Eric Bruntlett in a ninth-inning walk-off win to give them a 2-1 Series lead over the Rays.

9. Game 4 of 2008 World Series
Howard homered twice and Werth homered once, but most fans remember this one as the “Joe Blanton Game” because Blanton ripped a solo homer to left-center field to give the Phillies a 6-2 lead in a 10-2 win.

10. Chase Utley’s speech after 2008 World Series victory
Nobody said this top 10 needed to include games. Utley’s address to Phillies fans at the ballpark and watching live from home is easily one of the most memorable quotes in Philadelphia sports history. Maybe Philadelphia history? Pretty sure Ben Franklin would agree, even though he might not have used such salty language.