At the ballpark, fans savor overdue victory

The two friends from Somers Point arrived at the ballpark at 1:30 in the morning. They spent the night in line, got their standing-room-only tickets at 9, had their faces painted and hair dyed red by 10, and were in the stadium by 11, watching batting practice.

"I can guarantee a victory," said Zach Marple, 19, who had staged the all-nighter with his friend Anthony Landolfo, 20.

This was pure faith, because the Phillies had been crushed the day before and had to win yesterday or face ugly options, including elimination.

Yesterday, the last of 162 regular-season games, was Fan Appreciation Day. Twenty minutes before the first pitch, Susan Solomon of Northeast Philadelphia, a fan, was given a chance to win $10,000. All she had to do was hit the baseball out of the park. She started out standing in dead center field. The Phillie Phanatic moved home plate all the way to the warning track. Now she had only to hit the ball a few feet. On her third and last pitch, she did.

It pretty much was that easy for the Phillies.

Literally a minute before the game began, an enormous cheer broke out at Citizens Bank Park. The out-of-town scoreboard showed the Florida Marlins beating the New York Mets, 7-0 - in the first inning.

A day earlier, when the Phillies game began, the Mets were leading 8-0, and the fans felt the pressure. But a new day brings a new situation. That was the story of this season.

In the bottom of the third inning, with two out, Ryan Howard batted with the bases loaded.

The Big Guy spit into his hands and rubbed them together.

The scoreboard flashed "Make Some Noise."

An epic swing and a miss.

"Ohhhhhhhhhhh," from 44,800 fans moaning and sighing.

Again. Howard spit and set.

Foul tip.

Make-some-noise sign again.

Foul tip. Foul ball.

Finally, Howard singled to right, two runs scored.

People danced and kissed and hugged.

Music blasted. "Rock & Roll, Pt. 2" by Gary Glitter filled the arena.

"Ba-na-na-na . . . Hey! Ba-na-na."

Phils up 3-0.

"We got the momentum," said John Pelaggi, 45, from South Philadelphia, sitting well behind the Phillies dugout. "And the Mets don't deserve the playoffs."

In the sixth, Jimmy Rollins - who had set the tone for the day with two stolen bases in the first inning - tripled, knocking in another run, giving the Phillies a 5-1 lead. Fans were on their feet, chanting "MVP."

Terry Pier, 53, of Ambler, an usher with the Phillies since 1991, was so upset after Saturday's loss that she stopped for a hot fudge sundae on the way home. She's normally a healthy eater, but she needed comfort food.

As the seventh inning began yesterday, she rubbed her hands nervously. "I had Maalox between innings," she said. "That helped. And the score."

Then Ryan Howard homered off the Bud Light sign in right field, making the score 6-1.

Pier hugged fans, pounded fists with them.

"Oh, boy," she said. "Life is good."

Before the ninth inning began, the stadium played "Rock and Roll" by Led Zeppelin. The crowd was really rocking now. The game - the season - belonged to them. It had been a long time - 14 years - since the Phillies had been to a playoff game.

In the ninth inning, the out-of-town scoreboard flashed the Mets final score: 8-1. Jubilation!

The ninth inning went quickly. When Brett Myers struck out the last batter, tears welled in the eyes of Terry Pier and countless other Phillies fans. She just wiped them away and watched the exuberance around her.

But the end seemed almost anticlimactic. This was not a nail-biter, as the season and the final games had been. But fans savored it. After the team rushed the field, Rollins took the microphone. "Bless the city," he said. "Bless the fans. World Series. Let's do it."