Phillies

UPDATE: Is $1,000 Worth it to Run onto the Citizens Bank Park Field and Get Banned for Life?

By Kyle Pagan

Published: Oct 5th, 2023 · 11:46 AM EDT

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A Phillies fan ran on the field last night for $1,000:

My friend just send me this…

HOLY SHIT

I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING 😳 pic.twitter.com/ekLlHyIngO

— Philly Sports Sufferer (@mccrystal_alex) October 5, 2023

After the game the kid posed for a picture. In one hand was his payout and in the other a letter from the Phillies banning him from the ballpark:

 

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A post shared by Barstool Philly (@barstoolphilly)

So I gotta ask – is $1,000 worth it to potentially miss a live, in-person Red October? I think in this kid’s situation the answer is yes.

Here’s why –

I never understood how CBP, the Linc, or Wells Fargo Center can police who can and can’t come in. They’ve kicked out hundreds of people in the history of their stadiums. Sure, they have a database of all the mugshots, but security isn’t holding up a picture and checking every single fan to make sure they’ve never been escorted out before. If that’s the case, the Linc would only be half full every game. So yea technically you’re banned, but you can still come back in. You think the guy who got tased on the field hasn’t been back to a game at CBP? Of course he has. My guess to why the Phillies go through all this trouble is because if you do something again that gets you kicked out of the stadium, then they can throw the book at you with trespassing and other charges that will put a dent in your wallet.

I think it would be an interesting interview talking to a person who went through the whole process of running on the field and what happens from initial takedown to release.

So back to the initial question – Is it worth it? I did some digging and this kid is in high school. $1,000 in high school might as well be $100k as an adult. Cash. He’ll pay the initial fine and have enough soda pop money for the next month. Not to mention, this dude is the talk of the lunch table today. No one can put a price on being the BMOC in high school. This dude just got labeled with the “dangerous” title and that’s all you need to take home the prom queen.

Is it worth it to people like you and I?* No. But this kid? Absolutely. Story for life. Parents are probably pissed off, he’ll get the two weeks grounded, but they’ll be laughing about it in a couple years when he’s in college. Hell, the dude will probably be in the building for the World Series with a ticket paid for from the bet he won. That’s just good business.

*Kinkead – speak for yourself. $1,000 would get me a full week of childcare and maybe half the grocery bill.

 

UPDATE – I just spoke to my sources and they said it’s a $5,000 fine for running on the field. After running the numbers and testing the hypotheses I’m going to have to backtrack on my answer and conclude it is in fact not worth it. Even my dumb Temple brain knows $1,000<$5,000.

Still a story for life and the kid is a rockstar until he graduates high school, but next time someone bets you to run on the field make sure the offer starts at $6k so you have some wiggle room.