Phillies home opener 2023: Start time, how to watch and stream

The Phillies will finally play their home opener at Citizens Bank Park Friday afternoon against the Cincinnati Reds, where they hope to brush off this season’s disappointing start.

The team returns to Philadelphia with a 1-5 record, their worst start since 2007, and they’re one of only three MLB teams with just a single win — along with the lowly Kansas City Royals and Washington Nationals. The Phillies have been outscored 46-18, mostly due to a pitching crew hammered by injuries.

“[I think] that we played poorly at the start, but I think the last couple of games we’re playing the way we know how to play,” said Phillies manager Rob Thomson. “We’ve just got to keep going. It’s going to be good to get home in front of our fans. Get some energy and get going.”

Taking the mound for the Phillies will be Zack Wheeler, who allowed four runs in 4.1 innings last week during his season debut against the Texas Rangers. The Reds will counter with 23-year-old righty Hunter Greene, who struck out eight batters in just three innings during Cincinnati’s opening-day loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Here’s everything you need to know to watch or stream the Phillies’ home opener against the Cincinnati Reds:

The Phillies’ home opener at Citizens Bank Park is scheduled to get underway at 3:05 p.m. Eastern, and will air live on NBC10.

Calling the game will be Tom McCarthy, in his 14th season as the voice of the Phillies on NBC Sports Philadelphia. Joining him in the booth will be John Kruk, in his sixth season calling Phillies games after 12 years at ESPN.

The game will also air on 94.1 WIP, with Scott Franzke and Larry Andersen on the call. Gregg Murphy will handle pre- and postgame radio coverage.

The game will be available on the MyTeams app and on the NBC Sports Philadelphia website, but you’ll need a cable subscription.

NBC10 is available to stream for free with a digital antenna for viewers across the Delaware Valley. It’s also available on a host of so-called skinny bundles, including Hulu with Live TV, DirecTV Stream, Sling TV, fubo, and YouTube TV.

NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Taryn Hatcher will debut in her new role as an in-game reporter during Phillies home games this season. The network hasn’t had a reporter during Phillies broadcasts since laying off Gregg Murphy as part of cutbacks in 2020.

Hatcher joined NBC Sports Philadelphia in 2018, where she initially hosted studio coverage before and after Flyers games. Since then she’s branched out to other sports, including regularly cohosting Birds Huddle with former Eagles offensive lineman Barrett Brooks. She also acted as a sideline reporter for a handful of Sixers home games this season.

Phillies Pregame Live will air on NBC Sports Philadelphia at 1 p.m., featuring a full house that includes Michael Barkann, Ricky Bottalico, Ruben Amaro Jr., and Ben Davis. The crew will return to host Phillies Postgame Live following the game.

NBC10 will air Welcome Home Phillies at 2 p.m., with Keith Jones and Jacqueline London anchoring live coverage from Citizens Bank Park featuring John Clark, Tim Furlong, Frances Wang, and live weather reports by Michelle Rotella.

Fresh off a Super Bowl appearance, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni will take the mound to toss the ceremonial first pitch.

He’ll be joined by Vincent Ardito, a third-grader at Weymouth Township Elementary School in Pinelands, N.J., and a cardiac care patient from Nemours Children’s Health.

Kane Kalas, the son of late Phillies broadcaster Harry Kalas, will perform the national anthem at his father’s statue behind Section 141.

It’s going to be hard to miss the newest addition at Citizen Bank Park — a new PhanaVision scoreboard 77% larger than the one it replaced. The Inquirer’s Matt Breen wrote the new scoreboard “makes the Vet’s TV look like rabbit ears.”

Citizens Bank Park’s new scoreboard is the third-largest in MLB, and the team boasted it’s the size “of 516 Phillies Phanatics.” As massive as it is, the team passed on the option of installing an even larger scoreboard.

“Had we gone with our largest option, I think it would’ve appeared almost like the entire sky was a board,” Sean Walker, the Phillies’ vice president and chief technology officer, told The Inquirer.

As far as food is concerned, Federal Donuts’ twice-fried chicken tenders and a vegan stand from Greens & Grains are new.

But the headliner is Uncle Charlie’s Steaks, made-to-order cheesesteaks with Herr’s kettle chips on the side named after former Phillies manager Charlie Manuel. The cheesesteaks will feature diced onions with either a Cooper Sharp sauce or Cheez Whiz on a seeded roll from Liscio’s Bakery.

» READ MORE: After 40 years, PhanaVision is part of the Phillies ‘show.’ It just got even bigger.

Nearly every game in April will air on NBC Sports Philadelphia or NBC Sports Philadelphia+, but there are two games this month that stream exclusively on Peacock and Apple TV+.