20 Best Bloopers of the 2012 Philadelphia Phillies' Season
After watching the Washington Nationals celebrate a National League East title from the opposing dugout, the entire 2012 season must have felt like one giant blooper for the Philadelphia Phillies.
They came into the season as a favorite to win not only the NL East, but contend for a World Series as well. With the regular season in the books, the Phillies were one of the season's biggest disappointments, barely finishing above .500.
Well, they say laughter is the best medicine.
The 2012 regular season was full of memorable moments for the Phillies and their fans and we've collected the best of them to brighten your day.
Here are some of the funniest, strangest or just plain weird moments from the Phillies' season.
Can She Play Third Base?
1 of 20Video: Ballgirl Makes a Great Catch
The Phillies have quite a few holes to fill this offseason. One of them happens to be third base and after the way this ball girl snags a line drive, the Phillies may want to give her a call.
After all, they were willing to let Ty Wigginton man the hot corner at times this season. What's the worst that can happen?
Someone Didn't Do His Homework
2 of 20Didn't anyone tell the Phillie Phanatic that you have to do your homework to dance with a group as popular as the Jabbawockeez?
Well, apparently not, but the mascot inserted his own moves into the routine and was probably more entertaining than the professionals.
Maybe being big, fuzzy and green has something to do with it. Who knows?
Chooch's Clone
3 of 20Video: Fan Dressed as Catcher
I've heard the saying "they're cut from a different cloth" used to describe Major League closers more than once, but I'm beginning to wonder if this guy is cut from that cloth too.
What inspires you to wake up one morning and go to the game that night dressed as Carlos Ruiz? And when I say "dressed," what I really mean is "fully equipped."
This guy has everything from the Carlos Ruiz jersey to the full catcher's equipment, but what really makes this priceless is that the fans around him seem like they couldn't care less.
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I Got It, I Got It...
4 of 20Video: Fontenot Loses the Ball
Mike Fontenot's time with the Phillies was short, but interesting.
In the long run he's just a name that will be forgotten along with the disappointing 2012 season, but in the short term, he was a solid replacement player.
A left-handed hitter who handled right-handed pitching rather well, Fontenot also gave the Phillies a few options defensively. Now, whether or not they were good options is another story.
I'll let you be the judge of Fontenot's third base prowess.
Nice Grab
5 of 20If you're not going to abide by baseball code and bring your glove to the game, the least you can do is have sure hands, and this guy has sure hands.
After missing the foul ball on the initial bounce, the fan in question was saved by a speaker just below his seat. The ball bounces off of the speaker and gives him a second chance to catch the foul ball, and he succeeds.
Now that's good baseball. Nice grab.
Where'd It Go?
6 of 20Video: Fans Search for Homer
There is a big part of me that's into conspiracy theories. They're just something interesting to take the focus off of the factual events of everyday life. (Don't judge me!)
That part of me wants to believe that whatever happened to Jim Thome's historic home run ball just wasn't natural.
In a game against the Minnesota Twins earlier this season, Thome mashed a home run into the flower bed at Target Field and the ball suddenly disappeared. None of the fans could find it. It would find its way into Thome's possession a few days later.
Speculate what you will, but that's strange baseball voodoo.
What Was the Count Again?
7 of 20Video: Umpires Confused by Count
Being an umpire can't be a simple job, right?
I mean, there is a lot of complex mathematics involved—like counting to four.
But sometimes, even the best of us get a little confused. These umpires are tasked with keeping the game organized, but my goodness—if they are the "be all, end all" in the baseball world, we're doomed.
Lee Takes a Tumble
8 of 20Video: Lee Takes a Tumble
This is an amusing video on several fronts.
First, watching Cliff Lee at the plate is an excellent experience that has provided us with amusement on more than one occasion.
Second, if Lee doesn't make the best, nonchalant facial expressions in all of baseball, then I have no idea who does.
Third, how in the world does Lee not swing at that pitch before tumbling to the ground? They wouldn't have appealed that if it had been Ryan Howard.
Frandsen's Jedi Mind Tricks
9 of 20Video: Frandsen Avoids the Tag
It didn't take Kevin Frandsen long to bond with Phillies fans.
After toiling away in Triple-A for most of the season, Frandsen spent his time in Philadelphia playing their brand of baseball, and fans love that. He's the type of guy who never has a clean uniform and will do seemingly anything to reach base.
Just ask Miguel Cairo.
After a ball nearly hit Frandsen square in the face on a bunt attempt, he managed to get the bunt down through sheer self-preservation.
Cairo had the misfortune of fielding the bunt and Frandsen made him pay with some kind of Jedi mind-trick that forced him to stop, drop the ball and allow Frandsen to reach first base.
Hubo's Pitch Is Just a Bit Outside
10 of 20Anyone who fears a future robot takeover may want to skip this slide. They're getting closer—at least to playing baseball.
The good folks at Drexel University have engineered a robot—affectionately named Hubo—who is capable of throwing out the first pitch.
Now they just need to develop a program that throws strikes. His first pitch to the Phillie Phanatic is just a bit outside.
The Phanatic Makes It Rain... Hot Dogs?
11 of 20Is it me or is there something genuinely unnerving about a giant pig giving away hot dogs? It's like he's trying to tell us something.
Anyway, the Phillie Phanatic refuses to let another mascot have all of the fun and Hatfield's Smiley had no chance.
After nearly beheading the pig to steal the tray of hot dogs, the Phanatic returns only to make it rain hot dogs from the broadcast booth, much to the enjoyment of Tom McCarthy and Chris Wheeler.
Keeping Keith Awake
12 of 20Video: Phanatic Visits SNY Booth
There will be no falling asleep on the job while the Phillie Phanatic is around.
Who better to keep those New York Mets announcers up to the task than the one and only Phanatic? This video is particularly amusing because he pulls out all the stops here—weird tongue, head buffing, hand motions. This one has it all.
And he calls Mr. Met so-so, which is amazing.
Chad Qualls Eats Dirt
13 of 20Chad Qualls' short tenure with the Phillies was memorable for all the wrong reasons.
The reliever was less than effective with the Phillies, posting an ERA of 4.60, and had an all-time low moment in a game against the Baltimore Orioles.
With a runner on first, Qualls tries to get sneaky and pick him off, but he slips on the good old imaginary banana peel in the process and lands on his backside.
Shane Victorino's Center Field Circus
14 of 20Thanks to John Stolnis (@FelskeFiles on Twitter) for reminding me of this one and providing the link.
Shane Victorino is an excellent center fielder with a strange and alarming propensity for making comically bad plays in the outfield.
I'm not quite sure how it's possible, truthfully, but before he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the trade deadline, Victorino gave us this comedic nugget where he gets a beat on the ball, trips, falls down, gets a new beat on the ball and then falls back down as it sails over his head.
Comedy gold.
The Phanatic Hates Hot Dogs
15 of 20Video: Phanatic Takes Out Runners
What is this weird obsession that the Phillie Phanatic has with obliterating meat products?
I mean, sure, at a glance this looks to be an act of heroism by the Phillies mascot. He is clearing a lane for a young runner who is somehow being outrun by three hot dogs.
But is this the first time that the Phanatic has tackled a hot dog? Will it be the last? I'm not so sure.
The Padres Are Confused
16 of 20Believe it or not, the San Diego Padres wound up playing some pretty good baseball this season. They really put the wheels in motion after the All-Star Game and gave fans some hope for the future.
Earlier in the season, hope was a scarce resource.
The Padres seemed to reach an all-time low on this play, when Yonder Alonso forgot how to handle an infield fly and the Phillies made him pay for it.
I'll let you watch the video for the full effect, but let's just say that Carlos Ruiz mastered the ever-challenging ninja effect of blending into plain sight.
Smart Baseball by Josh Thole
17 of 20Just the way Bugs Bunny drew it up.
After somehow finding his way to first base, Josh Thole believed that reaching second would be simple. R.A. Dickey was at the plate ready to bunt him over. All he needed to do was wait for the right moment and be safe.
But Thole was too safe. Or maybe he was just a little nervous.
Dickey got the bunt down and the Phillies recorded the out at first base, as Thole moved into second. But Jimmy Rollins was a bit too witty for Thole, as he motioned back towards first base and caught the New York Mets catcher napping.
Whoops.
Schmidt Shooting Hot Dogs
18 of 20There is just something unnerving about Phillies legend and Hall of Fame third baseman Mike Schmidt firing hot dogs into the stands out of a cannon shaped like a giant hot dog under the watchful guidance of the mysterious Phillie Phanatic.
Even Tom McCarthy was left speechless as the normally stone-faced Schmidt got a surprising amount of pleasure out of shooting the meat product into the crowd. Weird.
Lipstick Girl
19 of 20Okay. So this video legitimately gives me the creeps.
There is just something that's not right about spending an entire baseball game coating thick layers of red lipstick all over your face. Even the most hardcore fans should take notice. This is not okay.
This girl winds up looking like she could be Gumby's sidekick. That's just not a natural color.
Look Out, Sammy!
20 of 20Hunter Pence ran into Juan Samuel so hard this season that he's coaching first base now.
Before joining the San Francisco Giants at the trade deadline, the former Phillies outfielder gave us something to remember him by when he bowled over Samuel—who was oddly standing right in his path.
Samuel wasn't happy about it, but the entire Phillies' dugout got a good chuckle out of this one and I still haven't stopped giggling about it.
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