Some wrongdoings don’t get the benefit of a statute of limitations. And much to the dismay of Philadelphians, booing Santa Claus appears to be one of those offenses.
No matter how much time passes, Philadelphia sports fans are constantly reminded of that fateful day when they booed Santa Claus, with Ron Darling providing the latest reminder. As the eighth inning came to a close during Game 2 of the National League Championship Series between the Phillies and Arizona Diamondbacks Tuesday night, a TBS camera panned to Santa Claus sitting amongst the Philadelphia crowd.
Ron Darling reached for the low hanging fruit pic.twitter.com/sdmLzVqN4W
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 18, 2023
“SANTA!” play-by-play voice Brian Anderson yelled playfully, sort of in the vein of Will Ferrell’s Buddy the Elf. Darling, however, couldn’t let well enough alone. “You, know they booed Santa,” Darling said just before the broadcast went to commercial, undoubtedly irking Philly fans.
It’s been nearly 55 years since Philly fans infamously booed and threw snowballs at Santa Claus during an Eagles game against the Minnesota Vikings in 1968. More recently, Philly fans attempted to right their past wrong by cheering Santa when he appeared at Citizens Bank Park to root for the Phillies in the World Series last season.
Even Tuesday night, Santa was sitting amongst the crowd as the Phillies led Arizona 10-0. And he was seemingly enjoying the ambiance without a boo in auditory range.
But Darling still opted to reach for the low-hanging fruit. Because when it comes to seeing Santa at a Philly sporting event, cheering is not the memory that stands out.
Lesson learned. Don’t boo someone as beloved as Santa Claus and expect others to forget it.
[TBS]
