Former Philadelphia Phillies reliever Ricky Bottalico goes from Mr. Mom to Mr. Angry

Ricky Bottalico had spent most of his adult life throwing a baseball for a living.

He signed with the Philadelphia Phillies as a 21-year-old and was an All-Star reliever five years later.

But when he was released by the Baltimore Orioles near the end of spring training in 2006, he was 36 and unsure of his future.

“When I took my first year off from baseball, I didn’t know what to do,” Bottalico said last week before being one of the featured speakers at the 60th annual Reading Hot Stovers Banquet at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in Reading. “I had two little girls, and I was like, ‘OK, play with the girls.’ How long could you play with your two kids every day? I mean, I love my girls, but girls 24/7 for 365 is not easy. And I give those stay-at-home moms and dads a lot of credit for that.

“It really came out of boredom. My first job came because I was bored with doing nothing.”

So Bottalico went from delivering fastballs to serving up analysis. He transitioned from Mr. Mom into the self-dubbed Mr. Angry.

He’s become a fixture on the Phillies’ pregame and postgame shows on NBC Sports Philadelphia, popular for being talkative, opinionated and outspoken.

“Think about my job,” said Bottalico, 52, who became a TV analyst for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs during their inaugural season in 2008, then began his current gig a year later. “My job is to go watch a baseball game and talk about it afterwards. Let’s face it, some of the games are long and boring at times. But you know what, it’s a job that if you love the game, you love doing.”

He’s the perfect fit for Philadelphia, where he spent two stints during his playing career (1994-98, 2001-02) and was an All-Star in 1996. He’s not afraid to criticize the team and seems to take losses — especially the sloppy ones — as hard as the diehard fans. All one has to do is listen to one of his postgame rants to see Mr. Angry come to life.

“It doesn’t bother me,” he said. “Because the way I look at it, I feel like I’m talking like the person that’s sitting on the couch. That’s what I try to do. I don’t actually try to be that. That’s just how I am. And I’ve always been like that. If you sit down with me and watch a football game, I’m the same way. So it’s not like, ‘Oh, I gotta change my personality. I’m going on TV.’ That’s who I am.”

Not surprisingly, Bottalico had plenty to say during a nearly 23-minute interview about the state of the Phillies and the game of baseball, which is mired in a labor dispute.

The Phillies did little before the owners locked out the players Dec. 2. Their biggest moves were signing reliever Corey Knebel and utilityman Johan Camargo.

“You have to have a big picture,” said Bottalico, who spent parts of the 1993 and ’94 seasons pitching for the Reading Phillies. “You look at where the Mets are right now with what they’ve done. They’ve stepped up. The Marlins are only getting better. The Nationals, you never know what they’re gonna have, but the Braves are the cream of the crop. You have to get as good as the Braves somehow. Can they do that? That’s the question that they have to answer this offseason.”

And Bottalico wonders if the Phillies will have the time to accomplish everything that’s on their to-do list when the work stoppage ends. It figures to be a mad dash of transactions.

He said he sees the biggest hole the Phillies need to fill as center field. Odubel Herrera, who started the most games at the position last year, will not be back.

“You need somebody that can take control of the outfield,” Bottalico said. “They haven’t had that since, what, (Shane) Victorino (who was traded away in 2012)? When you really look back on it, it’s been a long time.”

The Phillies also need to find a left fielder. They need to figure out the left side of the infield after third baseman Alec Bohm and shortstop Didi Gregorius struggled a year ago.

The bullpen has been historically incendiary for two seasons now.

Bottalico did seem more optimistic about a starting rotation led by Zack Wheeler and supplemented by Ranger Suarez. But Aaron Nola, a disappointment in 2021, is another point of uncertainty.

“They have a lot of work to do,” Bottalico said. “When you really think about it, they have a catcher (J.T. Realmuto). They have a first baseman (Rhys Hoskins); not a great defensive first baseman, but he puts up numbers offensively. You have a right fielder (Bryce Harper). (Jean) Segura is fine at second. Other than that, what do you really have?

“You have to look at your question marks before you look at anything else.”

There are just as many questions about when the game’s focus will shift from the negotiating table to the diamond.

Bottalico has seen the dwindling number of fans in recent years — some caused by the pandemic — and said he doesn’t think people will come back if games are lost to the work stoppage.

“My biggest concern is do they know?” said Bottalico, who was a player during the strike in 1994-95. “Do they have an idea that the fans are gonna leave? This is a different day and age than it used to be. You know what, it’s not the only game in town anymore.”

Bottalico said he sees the main issue as one of stubbornness. In his mind, the players want a salary floor, but not a cap. The owners, obviously, have other ideas.

“Too many battles that nobody’s gonna want to lose,” he said. “They should put them in a room. Stay there until something’s done. Just go. Here’s a convention center. Go use it. Five guys on each side. And see what happens.”

He ranted about other issues he sees in the game.

On replay: “Get rid of the replays and get rid of those stupid (scouting report) cards (players look at on the field), because if you can’t remember what you’re doing, then you shouldn’t be out there in the first place.”

On the pace of games: “They should be able to throw a white flag in these games at times. I’m serious. If it’s after the seventh inning, you’re down 10 runs, throw in a white flag. … How about getting some guys that could throw strikes? That would be good, too.”

And on the rise of analytics: “I just think everything seems to take more time. And it has a lot to do with analytics. … There’s too much information sometimes. Too much. But we had this information years back. It just didn’t come out on the field. We had guys upstairs that would analyze it, break it down and then give it to us. Instead, they see everything. How would you like being a hitter? Your main thing is seeing a 100 mile an hour fastball and reacting. How do you react when your mind is going 100 different places? Think about that for a second. It’s not easy.”

Bottalico’s love of baseball and love of talking is apparent. Broadcasting is a natural fit. But when he was at home playing with daughters Olivia and Sophia all those years ago, wondering what was next, did he envision this future?

“Harry Kalas (the Phillies longtime broadcaster) always said on the planes, ‘Someday we’ll work together,’ ” Bottalico said. “So, you know, I guess maybe I did.”