Freddie Freeman stood on the red carpet at Citizens Bank Park on Tuesday night and heard the boos. Loud, sustained, passionate boos. The kind Philadelphia specializes in. And he smiled through every single one of them.
Because for Freeman, that noise is part of why he loves this place.
“When I first came up with the Braves, this was my favorite place to play,” Freeman said, according to 94WIP. “I love The Bank. It wasn’t fun to play because it was Halladay, Hamels, Lee every time when we were playing against them, but it was packed every night. It’s a great place to play, great city.”
Freeman has 113 regular-season games at Citizens Bank Park under his belt. He’s racked up 65 RBI and an .842 OPS there. Last October, during the NLDS, he collected hits in both games in Philly. The guy performs. The booing doesn’t bother him. It never has.
Why Philly fans keep booing Freeman
It’s not complicated. Freeman spent a decade with the Atlanta Braves, and the Braves and Phillies have real history. Then he joined the Dodgers, who knocked Philly out of the playoffs last year and are building something that looks like a mini-dynasty. So now he’s on his second team that fans here absolutely despise.
The All-Star Game was just another chance for the crowd to remind him where he stands in the local popularity rankings. Freeman took it in stride, even noting that the fans were actually “pretty nice” during the red carpet introductions. Which, coming from him, sounds like genuine surprise.
The funny thing is, Freeman keeps winning here anyway. The Dodgers have the best record in baseball coming out of the break. He’s hitting .290 with an .862 OPS, and he’s the active leader in career runs, hits, and RBI. The Hall of Fame case builds itself at this point.
Could the Phillies see him again in October?
Don’t rule it out. Philadelphia fired Rob Thomson earlier this season and handed the reins to Don Mattingly on an interim basis. The team has responded. They’ve clawed back into the playoff picture. If they keep going, there’s a real chance the Dodgers come back to South Philly in October with a third straight World Series on the line.
Freeman will be ready. The stadium will be loud. And he’ll probably love every second of it again.
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