If the final regular-season games in Washington, D.C. meant anything to Phillies fans, Jayson Werth acknowledged that he would hear boos from the Philly faithful in his home park. The team plays its final game tomorrow (1:05 p.m. at Nationals Park).
“But I doubt that many Phillies fans will make the trip down to watch due to the circumstances,” Werth said.
The circumstances are that the Phillies will enter the offseason without playing a postseason game for the first time in six years. A D.C baseball team is going to the playoffs for the first time since 1933.
Boos for Werth will be minimal until his next trip to Philadelphia. Werth says he doesn’t mind wearing the black hat.
“I don’t care what anyone says or thinks,” Werth said. “They can boo as much as they want.”
They are the Phillies fans and during the last home stand they booed Werth worst than J.D. Drew or Scott Rolen.
The genesis of the vitriol goes back to when Werth broke his left wrist against the Phillies. After some Phils fans directed nasty remarks at Werth after suffering the injury, J-Dub responded.
“I’m motivated to see to it personally those people never walk down Broad Street again in celebration again,” Werth e-mailed the Washington Post.
After explaining to Werth that the hate comes from a vocal minority, he revealed that a number of Phillies fans actually have his back.
“I haven’t talked about this, but I’ve received a lot of mail and e-mail from Phillies fans apologizing for what those idiots said,” Werth said. “They’ve told me that they wished me luck and I appreciate that because no matter what, you can’t take away what I accomplished here. I wouldn’t trade my time here [in Philadelphia] for anything.”
Werth continued to stress that he doesn’t mind the boos. But it has to have some sort of negative impact. Werth went from one of the most popular Phillies to public enemy number one. Doesn’t it bother Werth a little?
“The difference between me and J.D. Drew is that he never played here for a championship team,” Werth said.
When Werth retires and comes back in 2028 for the 20th anniversary of the 2008 World Series, the odds are that Werth will once again hear cheers in Citizens Bank Park.
“It’s hard to imagine what things will be like then,” Werth said. “All I know is what I hear now.”
