The Phillie Phanatic Will Come to Your Kid’s Birthday Party (If You Win This Auction)
If you have the cash, the Phillie Phanatic will come to your birthday party.
We are still a ways from baseball season, but that sounds like quite the deal. Baseball’s winter meetings are this week, with representatives from all 30 teams meeting in Baltimore for discussions, trade talks, and various award ceremonies. As part of this year’s meetings, MLB and the clubs are holding a charity auction in memory of Mets media relations exec Shannon Forde. Forde, well liked by reporters, fans, and players alike, died of cancer at 44 earlier this year.
Proceeds from the auction, which you can reach at MLB.com/Shannon, will go to fund the renovation of a youth field in Little Ferry, Bergen County, New Jersey.
And, yes, one of the prizes you can bid on is having the Phillie Phanatic come to your birthday party. Here are the details from the Phillies:
Be the envy of every parent by having the Phanatic appear at your child’s birthday party. In addition to the 30-minute appearance, 20 children’s party bags will be provided to the winning bidder. The party location must be within a 50-mile radius of Citizens Bank Park and be held on mutually agreed upon date/time. (The Phillies strongly encourage the party to be for children over the age of three).
Yes, the Phanatic is apparently inappropriate for fans under the age of four. Is it too hard for the Phanatic to see little tykes around because of his rotund belly? Does the Phanatic eat children? So many questions.
The Phillie are also auctioning off a chance to dine with Charlie Manuel and Chris Wheeler before a game, then sit with them to watch a game in a private executive box.
The auction runs until Thursday. Currently, bids are at $550 for the birthday bash and $650 for dinner with Cholly and Wheels. If you have a hole burning in your pocket and a kid who wants to brag about his birthday party to his friends, you know what to do.