Sep 26, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies catcher Garrett Stubbs (21) celebrates with first baseman Bryce Harper (3) after the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports Kyle Ross
Despite losing three of four games to the New York Mets at Citi Field over the weekend, the Phillies will return home to Citizens Bank Park Monday needing just one win to clinch their first NL East title since 2011.
While the Phillies locked up a playoff spot with a win Friday night over the Mets, they elected to save their champagne celebration until after the division was clinched. With a win over the Cubs Monday, the party will be on at Citizens Bank Park.
One of the more intriguing storylines is whether Callum Scott's version of "Dancing On My Own" will again be the anthem of the postseason run for the Phillies. Phillies Nation's Destiny Lugardo asked Stubbs that question Sunday, and got an interesting response.
"Stubbs, the team’s DJ, said the song makes an appearance on the team’s new postgame remix playlist that has yet to be publicly released. Judging by the sounds coming from the Phillies clubhouse after wins, the new playlist, which the team began using earlier in the year, also includes familiar songs from the Phils Win playlist, from 'Love Tonight' by Shouse to 'Dicked Down in Dallas' by Trey Lewis."
Ultimately, Stubbs seemed to indicate that the belief inside the clubhouse is that after coming up just short of a World Series title in consecutive years, fans are ready to move on from the song.
“We’re all good from moving on from it if that’s what people are into,” Stubbs said. “At the end of the day, we’re gonna do whatever feels good because that’s how it got out there in the first place. It was just we genuinely enjoyed it and had fun with it.”
That may be true, although the fans in attendance at Citizens Bank Park for the Savannah Bananas game Saturday certainly didn't seem to mind it.
Dancing on my own. pic.twitter.com/KEZ09tupOc
There's definitely an argument to be made for embracing a new song after two years of using the same one. At the same time, if the new playlist includes "Dancing On My Own" and the team sings it at any point during the NL East-clinching celebration, it's going to end up being recorded and televised, and likely embraced yet again. You can't soft retire the song — it's either done or not.
