Kalas, the beloved Phillies broadcaster for 38-plus seasons, died Monday at 73 from heart disease.
His white casket sat behind home plate for seven hours yesterday. From 8 a.m. until 12:30 p.m., a continuous stream of fans - the club estimated the number at 9,000 - passed the casket and paid final respects.
Several thousand fans, many wearing Phillies red, some holding signs in Kalas' honor, remained in seats in the lower bowl of the ballpark and listened as friends, family, dignitaries, and former and present Phillies paid tribute to Kalas. Phillies players, manager Charlie Manuel, and the coaching staff attended in full uniform.
The program wound down with the singing of Kalas' personal feel-good anthem, "High Hopes." After that, Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water," the song Kalas had told family members he wanted played at his funeral, was piped over the public-address system. As the song played, Kalas' casket passed through two lines of Phillies players and personnel, past and present, and was placed into a hearse. Kalas was interred immediately afterward during a private burial at Laurel Hill Cemetery in Fairmount Park.
"That was outstanding," said Milt Thompson, a member of the 1993 National League-champion Phillies, one of Kalas' favorite teams, and the club's current hitting coach. "Harry was one of us. He never had a bad word to say about anyone."
Thompson honored Kalas' memory by wearing white leather shoes, bought on Friday. Kalas fancied white shoes and white belts.
Kalas would have used one of his favorite expressions to describe the weather: only perfect. And he certainly would have loved the light breeze that blew from left field to right. Not only was it a perfect home-run wind - and everyone knows how much Kalas liked calling long balls - but it kept the red 2008 World Series championship flag straight and at attention throughout the tribute.
