Hot take: NJ strikes out by removing Phillies post
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Illustration: Allie Carl/Axios
New Jersey's official Twitter account used to play hardball, but now they seem to be playing softball.
Driving the news: After Philadelphia lost Game 7 of the National League Championship Series, the folks running Gov. Phil Murphy's digital team beaned Phillies fans with a well-timed post on X, formerly known as Twitter — the Spirit Halloween sign imposed over Citizens Bank Park, captioned "RIP."
- It received more than a half-million views and nearly 7,000 likes before being pulled.
Why it matters: What's the world coming to when neighboring states can no longer trade witty sports trash talk on their official social media accounts?

Quick take: This is the type of banter the official Garden State account lives for. It grew a reputation and following with unapologetically Jersey riffs like "your mom."
- That makes the decision to take down the "RIP" post more baffling than another Nick Castellanos strikeout.
- Gov. Murphy has gotten plenty of heat from the GOP about caving to the so-called "woke" mob. But the "choke" mob?
- We reached out to the governor's office for an explanation but didn't hear back.
The bottom line: Shame on both states. Philly fans dish it with the best of them — we need to be able to take it.
- And what of New Jersey? You're rough, tough and gruff. Please, for the love of everything your state embodies, go back to being as unfazed by others' opinions as former Gov. Chris Christie was gleefully tanning on the beach during a government shutdown.
