PHILADELPHIA — Her name is not included in the public team directory. She cannot be found on the field or in the dugout or in coverage of the front office. But Sheree McMullen has a monumentally important job for these Phillies: She is the one who holds the bell the players ring after they win.
This is not one of her official employment duties. (McMullen is actually a massage therapist for the team.) But it’s quickly become her favorite one. The bell started this year as a simple celebration: It was purchased by Phillies designated hitter Bryce Harper, inspired by the light-up Liberty Bell that glows for a home run at Citizens Bank Park, so the players could ring a bell of their own in the dugout after a homer. PH—ING DADDY, the engraving on it reads, EST. 2022. But one day after a victory, “I just grabbed it, and had a bell line when they won,” McMullen says. They all came through and gave it a ring. Then catcher J.T. Realmuto decided, We should do this after every win. It was the perfect celebration—not too big, not too showy, just something they could all do briefly for a moment of joy. And since McMullen was the one who held the bell for that first victory celebration, Realmuto figured, she should keep the gig.
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