A squirrel had also appeared on the field during the previous day's game (October 4, 2011). This squirrel was also called Rally Squirrel; some commentators have speculated that the October 4 and October 5 squirrels are the same animal, but this has not been proven.
The Rally Squirrel ran across home plate as Phillies pitcher Roy Oswalt was delivering a pitch to Skip Schumaker. The squirrel then jumped into the stands. Umpire Ángel Hernández called the pitch a ball; Oswalt and Philadelphia manager Charlie Manuel argued, unsuccessfully, that Oswalt had been distracted by the squirrel and that "no pitch" should be called. Manuel later avowed that, had he a firearm available, he would have shot the obstreperous rodent. (This would have been unlikely, as Major League Baseball has prohibited deadly weapons in clubhouses since 2010.)
In Game 5 of the 2011 NLDS in Philadelphia, Roy Oswalt was again accosted by a squirrel before the game.
A Twitter account purporting to the be the Rally Squirrel was activated on October 4, 2011; by October 6 it had 11,000 followers. By October 5, the squirrel had his own theme song. and by October 6 Rally Squirrel t-shirts were in production. Within a few days, these were reported as "flying off the shelves" with "thousands" being sold, while Rally Squirrel costumes were reported as becoming "one of the hot Halloween costumes" of the season.
A squirrel believed likely to be the Rally Squirrel was captured at Busch Stadium on October 8 and handed over to the Wildlife Rescue Center for eventual release in Castlewood State Park. On October 11, 2011, a different Rally Squirrel appeared at a press conference in Kiener Plaza where Cardinal Glennon Children's Foundation announced that it had adopted the Rally Squirrel as its mascot for a fundraising drive. On the same date, the St. Louis Cardinals announced that the Rally Squirrel would be participating in an October 12 team rally and that 40,000 rally towels with a squirrel motif would be distributed at that day's game of the 2011 National League Championship Series. As of October 11, four squirrels had been captured at Busch Stadium. By October 14, 2011, sales of "Rally Squirrel" t-shirts had generated approximately $210,000 for the Cardinal Glennon Children's Foundation.
Fans in Philadelphia in Game 5 of the NLDS taunted the Cardinals by throwing a stuffed squirrel into the teams' bullpen. Cardinals pitcher Octavio Dotel retrieved it, and kept it in his locker. Dotel and teammates toasted the stuffed squirrel and sprayed it with champagne and beer while celebrating their NLCS victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. Dotel said he would keep the squirrel through the 2011 World Series. "They didn't know that it's our good luck; they gave us good luck to our bullpen and that's why the bullpen has been so great lately," commented Dotel about the Philadelphia fans.
On September 4, 2007, a squirrel darted onto the field at Busch Stadium. That squirrel, who was captured and released into the wild, was also nicknamed Rally Squirrel. A squirrel who held up play several times at Progressive Field in Cleveland on August 25, 2004 was also called Rally Squirrel. Other squirrels have appeared on baseball playing fields from time to time, occasionally interrupting play or gaining minor press notice.
The Rally Squirrel ran across home plate as Phillies pitcher Roy Oswalt was delivering a pitch to Skip Schumaker. The squirrel then jumped into the stands. Umpire Ángel Hernández called the pitch a ball; Oswalt and Philadelphia manager Charlie Manuel argued, unsuccessfully, that Oswalt had been distracted by the squirrel and that "no pitch" should be called. Manuel later avowed that, had he a firearm available, he would have shot the obstreperous rodent. (This would have been unlikely, as Major League Baseball has prohibited deadly weapons in clubhouses since 2010.)
In Game 5 of the 2011 NLDS in Philadelphia, Roy Oswalt was again accosted by a squirrel before the game.
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Fans in Philadelphia in Game 5 of the NLDS taunted the Cardinals by throwing a stuffed squirrel into the teams' bullpen. Cardinals pitcher Octavio Dotel retrieved it, and kept it in his locker. Dotel and teammates toasted the stuffed squirrel and sprayed it with champagne and beer while celebrating their NLCS victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. Dotel said he would keep the squirrel through the 2011 World Series. "They didn't know that it's our good luck; they gave us good luck to our bullpen and that's why the bullpen has been so great lately," commented Dotel about the Philadelphia fans.
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