Phanatic doing his best to cope without 45,000 of his favorite people at Phils games

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PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The conditions of professional baseball in 2020 have been a major adjustment for players, and the same applies to the Phillie Phanatic. 

With Phillies fans prevented from attending games at Citizens Bank Park, roughly 45,000 seats go empty at every game. 

Fortunately, Major League Baseball protocol permits the wackiest mascot in the land to be at games — even if his lack of access to then feels slightly restrict his usual tomfoolery. 

“It’s really been strange,” Tom Burgoyne, the 'Best Friend' of the mascot, told KYW Newsradio. “The Phanatic is so used to the crowds and the people and energy.” 

To fill that void, Burgoyne explained, the Phanatic has turned to the cardboard cutouts of fans placed in the seats throughout CBP. 

“To see all these smiling faces — the Phanatic, before every game, just likes walking around the ballpark and looking at the cardboard cutouts. It’s really cool.”

A post shared by Phillie Phanatic (@philliephanatic) on Aug 13, 2020 at 4:02pm PDT

And, for some reason, the Phanatic has been very determined to extract some real-life emotion from these inanimate objects. 

“Well ... he’s a little confused,” Burgoyne said. “He’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer.”

Whose mans is this? pic.twitter.com/6y6WTwX5FE

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 26, 2020

The Phanatic gets an “A” for effort. In fairness, his futile attempt is sometimes more entertaining than the product on the field.

(Oops. Did I say that out loud?)

“I talk to him every night,” Burgoyne said. “He said, ‘I try to get them going. I’m trying to get them clapping and cheering, and they’re a little stiff.’”

Sometimes, the Phanatic runs into a cutout featuring the logo of the opposing team. 

“Frankly, he’s appalled,” Burgoyne said. 

The Phanatic has no patience for someone ... or something ... who isn’t on the Phillies' side. 

❌ @sportsradio94wip

A post shared by Phillie Phanatic (@philliephanatic) on Aug 6, 2020 at 3:12pm PDT

For everyone else who is on the right side but unable to take in Phillies games in person this year, Burgoyne said the Phanatic feels it’s on him to bring their spirits into the ballpark.

“The Phanatic feels like he’s got this a real responsibility to represent all the fans … so he’s really taking this responsibility seriously and wants to put his best foot forward.”

That's a lot of shoes to fill. Good thing his feet are really big. 

But don't ever doubt the Phanatic's ability get into trouble — even if he has pretty much no one around him. 

El Phillie Phanatic lo hace todo, hasta repartir comida. ---- #Corte4 pic.twitter.com/Zfxtenof0Q

— Corte4 (@corte4) August 9, 2020

I mean, he’s the Phillie Phanatic. What else did you expect? 

If anything, with social distancing in play, he has even more room to pull off his antics.

A post shared by Phillie Phanatic (@philliephanatic) on Aug 9, 2020 at 8:01am PDT

A post shared by Phillie Phanatic (@philliephanatic) on Aug 6, 2020 at 8:57am PDT