Pete Mackanin expected to be booed Thursday afternoon when he walked to the mound in the seventh inning of a 3-0 win over the New York Mets.
That would be OK, the Phillies manager thought, because the crowd would then cheer when it realized he was not removing starting pitcher Jerad Eickhoff. Mackanin was instead met with virtual silence. There were few fans there to react.
The announced paid attendance - 13,238 - was the lowest in the history of Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies decided on Thursday to move up the game to the afternoon before a forecast rainstorm hit.