If You Come to See a Game in Philly — You’ll Love to Bump Into These Guys.
This month is mascot day, Philly. Suppose you aren’t from Philadelphia and come into town for a Phillies Game .
In that case, you might have wondered what that green giant is who runs around the stadium taunting opponents, kissing babies and parents alike, and wagging his stomach triumphantly into the air.
If you’ve seen it for the very first time — you may be thinking — well that is pretty damn weird.
Yup — that’s our Philly Phanatic.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies’ first mascot dates back to 1883. The Dani “Dancing” Dutchman would serve as the Phillies first mascot. And the first iteration of the Phanatic appeared when Phil and Phillis became the team’s mascot in 1971.
In 1978 , the Phanatic took over and has been a fan favorite in the City ever since.
Philadelphia Eagles
You might have thought that the firing of the Eagles‘ mascot was a booed version of Santa Claus , but it actually was a husband and wife team. When John Horton was drafted into the Army in the late 1960s , his wife continued the tradition.
You might think that Swoop was a staple at Eagles games since 1933 , but he has only attended games since 1996.
Starting with Challenger in the mid-1990s , a live Eagle has flown at games.
Philadelphia 76ers
The Sixers have been cheered by Big Shot, Hip Hop, and Franklin the Dog. Big Shot — who was an unknown blue creature with red hair and sunglasses — served between 1982 and 1996. Hip Hop (the rabbit) was the mascot from 1998 to 2011.
Finally , we had Franklin the Dog, who debuted in 2015.
Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers‘ history of mascots is as straightforward as it gets. Gritty has been gracing Flyers games since 2015. Slapshot was the original mascot, dating back to 1976.
Philadelphia is home to some of the most recognizable mascots in America today. After a season of seeing Gritty, Franklin the Dog, Swoop, and even possibly the Temple Owl?
The Phanatic doesn’t actually look so strange.
PHOTO: Kyle Ross/Imagn Images
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