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Gov. Christie calls Phillies' fans "angry" and "bitter", team responds

Published  February 16, 2017 2:09pm EST
U.S.
FOX 29 Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (WTXF) - New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has made it pretty clear that he is not a Philadelphia sports fan.

His Dallas Cowboy fandom is well documented, but this week he extended his dislike of Philadelphia sports to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Wednesday night, Governor Christie made an appearance on SportsNet New York "Baseball Night."

When the topic turned to the Phillies and their use of the Tug McGraw "Ya Gotta Believe" slogan inside the team's Clearwater, Florida facility, Christie had quite the response.

"The Phillies suck," Christie began. "Let's just start with that. They're from Philadelphia. They're an awful team. They're an angry, bitter fan base and it's not safe for civilized people to go to Citizens Bank Park if you want to root for the other team."

The barrage didn't end there.

"Ya gotta believe what?" Christie added "Ya gotta believe we're awful people!"

The Philadelphia Phillies seemed to hint at Christie's comments Thursday afternoon, when they tweeted:

"We love our fans and appreciate their unwavering support as we "bridge" to a bright future!"

Thursday morning, a judge ruled a criminal complaint against NJ Gov. Chris Christie over the Bridgegate lane-closing scandal can proceed, which may explain the reason the word "bridge" was in quotes.

The Mets, who Christie says he has been a fan of since childhood, have not won a World Series since 1986. The Phillies last won a World Series in 2008.