Diamondbacks' Merrill Kelly Doesn't Expect Phillies Crowd in NLCS to Top WBC

Opposing players keep riling up the Philadelphia Phillies and their fans.

This time, Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Merrill Kelly—who will take the mound in Game 2—said that he doesn't expect the Citizens Bank Park crowd to be any more raucous than what he faced as a member of Team USA during the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic against Venezuela:

These are the sort of moments that Philly fans live for. If providing bulletin board material to a fan base is a thing, Kelly earned front and center billing:

Since last postseason, the Phillies are 10-2 at Citizens Bank Park in the playoffs. The home-field advantage has been real. And Orlando Arcia, he of the ill-fated "attaboy Harper" moment, can attest to the very real dangers of giving these Phillies or their fans any excuse to be petty.