Why Yankees Fan Rich Is Now Rooting for the Philadelphia Phillies

Rich has, against every instinct in his Yankee-rooting body, announced he is now pulling for the Philadelphia Phillies.

The reason has a name. Donald Arthur Mattingley. Donnie Baseball. One of the greatest human beings, in Rich's estimation, to ever walk planet Earth. As of this week, the Phillies' interim manager.

The show opened with Rich laying into producer Mike Del Tufo over a Yankees-Mets dual-fan hat that New Era apparently dropped on April 1st. Rich is still convinced it was an April Fools prank that nobody got the memo on. Which makes the next request even more uncomfortable for him to admit. Rich now needs a Yankees-Phillies hat. He hates the visual. He has no choice.

The trigger for all this is the state of the Phillies. The team has fallen and cannot get up. The only thing keeping Philadelphia out of the National League cellar is the New York Metropolitans, who are 10 games under .500. The standings on screen confirmed it. Mets at nine and 19. Phillies treading water in roughly the same neighborhood.

The Red Sox have won three in a row. Two of those came after Boston bounced its manager. Rich floated the same potential bump for Philadelphia under Donnie Baseball.

Then came the Yankee numbers. New York is 19 and 10. Top prospect Elmer Rodriguez has just been called up to pitch on Wednesday. Gerrit Cole is coming back. Carlos Rodon is coming back. Max Fried, if not for Jose Soriano, is the AL Pitcher of the Month for April. Cam Schlittler has joined the rotation. Aaron Judge has 11 home runs. Ben Rice has 10. Together that is 21 home runs from two Yankees, which the show was quick to note is more than the entire Mets team has hit collectively.

"Blackjack," Rich said.

The full circle moment lands on Mattingley. Rich was a Don Mattingley fan as a kid. He still has the baseball cards. He showed Mike two full sheets at one point. The fandom ran deep enough that his daughter's middle name is Mattingly. Mike's middle name, for the record, is Sixer.

There is also a family wrinkle. Don Mattingley's son, Preston Mattingly, is the Phillies' Vice President and General Manager. So Donnie Baseball is now the interim manager working under his own kid. Rich and Mike workshopped the bit immediately. Dad, I need these reads. Dad, you got a pillow read. Dad, you missed it. Are you a passionate Rams fan, Dad? Are you a passionate Lakers fan?

Which brought the conversation back to the actual problem with rooting for Philadelphia. The Mets and Phillies still have to play each other. Rich, even when softening, could not quite let go of his lifelong allegiance.

"I won't be as mad," he said. "I guess I'll still be mad. Just not as mad."

The show closed with the operational question. How is Carlos Mendoza still hanging on as the Mets manager? Rich did not have an answer beyond suggesting Mendoza must just be a really good person. The Wags of the Mets organization, whoever that is, has not made the move yet.

For now, Rich has a new National League team. Reluctantly. With caveats. With math.