The night of October 29 and the wee hours of October 30, 2008 were likely a complete whirlwind for Geoff Jenkins. Though an All-Star outfielder for the Milwaukee Brewers for 10 years, the biggest contribution of his career may have come in Philadelphia on the first of those two days, in part two of Game 5 of the World Series between the Phillies and the Rays.
It started somewhat chaotically, with Charlie Manuel informing Jenkins he'd be the leadoff hitter after the two-day rain delay just ten minutes before he came to the plate for one of the biggest at-bats of his career.
"We had myself, Greg Dobbs and Matt Stairs ready to hit off the bench, and I remember vividly — to take the fan into the backyard of what was going on — for two days, imagine thinking that you could be the buy but not knowing you're gonna be the guy," Jenkins said on the "Major League Beginnings" podcast. "I mean, I took 1,000 swings... I think Charlie, in the end, did the best thing he could have done because he waited right before the game to tell us so we didn't lose sleep for two days over it. He's just like, 'hey, let's go, time to get us going.' "
As we all know, he delivered.
But perhaps more chaotic was what occurred after the game, even after the clubhouse celebration had died down. Jenkins took us behind the scenes and into the night (or early morning) that followed an unforgettable World Series victory.
"Now the celebration's over in the clubhouse, no one's going to bed forever, so we're like, 'where are we going?' So everyone's like, 'We're going downtown to Pat Burrell's penthouse,' " Jenkins recalled. "We get up to the player lot, I mean it's like zombies. There has to be, like, 15,000 people that are blocking the gates, I've never seen anything like it in my life.
"So there are some cops up there and we end up — me and my brother and I believe my agent, at the time — we ask one of the cops like, 'hey, would you mind giving us a ride downtown?' "
Of course, he obliged, so Jenkins and his entourage piled into the back of his car — a Ford Explorer, Jenkins remembered. Moving at a snail's pace through the masses, while simultaneously giving high-fives to fans jumping all around the car, Jenkins and his police escort eventually hit the open road and began the journey downtown.
"As we're driving, I actually said, 'God, I wish I had a beer right now.' He goes, 'Well grab one from the back! Get one from the cooler in the back!'" Jenkins recalled. "...So there was a cooler with, like, 40 beers in the back of this cop car. So we each grab two of them, and he goes, 'Hey, what about me?' We give the cop (a beer), he's literally having a beer with us as he's driving a cop car down Broad Street, and then we finally get down there.
"...We only had to go about 50 feet to get to the doors of Pat's place. Here's the best part of the story — we get in the elevator with the cop, we go basically to the top, the elevators open, and every single player had a cop take them up. So we partied with the cops all night. I guarantee they still talk about it being the greatest story because for us, it was awesome to share that moment with these guys that have been around the team, and they consider themselves part of the team because they let us in and out of the building. They protect us every day, they're on the field protecting us.
"...It's just a special moment for us, and it was really special to be with them."
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy Sports
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram