Tot’s beer-like bottle probably empty, Phils say

Questions continue to swirl about a video showing a small child putting what looks a beer bottle to his mouth during Sunday's Phillies-Padres game at Citizens Bank Park.

Was it a beer bottle? Was there anything in it? Did the adults with the child notice anything? Is this just another Philly fan tempest in a drink container?

Phillies spokeswoman Bonnie Clark today said the team certainly does not condone letting children drink beer - if that indeed was the case.

"We are not able to determine the identity of anyone involved, nor are we able to determine what was in the bottle or whether it was empty," she said in an e-mail.

"Obviously, the Phillies, like everyone else, would not want a child to be permitted to consume any alcoholic beverage," Clark said. "We suspect that this was a very brief event, probably involving an empty bottle. We are confident that our employees and our fans would not allow this to happen if they were aware of it."

Her suspicion about the bottle being empty is supported by the effortless way the child - who appears to be about 3 or 4 years old - swigs the bottle with one hand.

A child that young would be expected to use two hands with a bottle containing liquid. And if something was in it, it seems strange that nothing sloshed out with such a quick motion.

But unanswered questions aside, the video - taken from the official broadcast of Sunday's game - has created a buzz about Philadelphia sports fans and their reputation.

Earlier this season, one fan was tased by police while running on the field in a scene broadcast globally and another has pleaded guilty to vomiting on a police officer and his family during a drunken display in the stands.

What this season needs is another Emily Monforto, the then 3-year-old Camden County girl who got a big hug from her dad last September even after she threw back the first foul ball he ever caught in a scene played over and over again on TV.