Phillies Season Opener: Play Ball

On Sunday March 30th at 10:30 p.m., FOX 29 will be airing a half-hour long special called Phillies Season Opener: Play Ball hosted by Don Tollefson. (See Phillyist's interview of Don here.)

This news special aims to show how the Phillies are shaping up at the start of the 2008 season by taking a look not only at the expectations of the fans but also at what the players think and what they expect of themselves. Certainly pre-season prognosticators have already formed their opinions, so this special focuses on what the Phillies anticipate from themselves in 2008. Realizing that part of that process is competition, the special will also evaluate the Division and analyze where the Phils stack up in relation to the other teams in the National League East.

Be sure to tune in to see many personal thoughts, including an interview with Andy Reid in which we will get to see a side of Andy that we rarely see—a boyish baseball fan. Some of Andy's clips from the show include:

On what opening day meant to him growing up in Los Angeles: "I remember sneaking up to Dodger Stadium—the excitement, the electricity—the nine innings seemed to go faster than it ever went during the regular season. It was just a great atmosphere."

On opening day in Philadelphia: "I will bet there are more peanuts sold on that first day than there are the whole year."

On watching the Phillies in the post-season last October: "I was into it. I loved watching it. I talked to Charlie (Manuel) a few times...what a great guy he is. To watch the players rally around him...he went through a tough period of time here. I say he got christened by Philadelphia. Then all of a sudden he came out and put this team together, and the guys rallied around him... they had a great thing going. I think they're just going to pick up from where they left off. The sky's the limit for them."

Phillies Season Opener: Play Ball
Sunday, March 30, 2008
10:30 p.m - 11:00 p.m.
WTXF FOX 29