This story was originally published by The Daily Times on May 3, 2026.
It’s a shirt saw round the world, thanks to the Phillies visit to London but now, a bunch of Delco natives have tied it to the America 250 festivities as the county and country plan to celebrate the anniversary. “A couple years ago, the Phillies played the Mets over in London,” Springfield-native-turned-Boston-stowaway Ryan Cassidy said. “I went over there to watch the Phillies with my two brothers. There was a guy actually wearing one of (Phillygoat) shirts.” That shirt proclaimed “The British Blew a Thirteen Colony Lead.” Jomboy Media nabbed a snapshot of the guy and sales exploded.
“It’s been one of our top sellers,” Cassidy said and now, the business he started with his two brothers, Patrick and Brett, are selling these shirts and another Delco/American flag inspired shirt for $34.99 on America250PADelco’s site in honor of the country’s semiquincentennial.
First, how it all got here. Really, Phillygoat was birthed as a pandemic baby via a magical Mike Schmidt hair. “We started as a way to make ourselves laugh,” one-third of the Cassidy brother clan responsible for this T-shirt mayhem, Ryan, claimed.
Or as the Phillygoat origin story would have it, decades ago when Patrick, Ryan and Brett were younger, the sprightly lads attended a Philadelphia Phillies game at Veterans Stadium and as luck would have it, they met the legendary third base player signing autographs after the game. In that fortuitous moment, one hair from Schmitty’s mustache fell onto a soft pretzel they were holding. Astounded by their fortune, the trio took their treasure and buried in their backyard and tended to it every day. Eventually, the lore says, it grew into a cotton field that begets these whimsical sports-themed shirts loved by Philly fans and hated by others. “Flash forward to today,” Cassidy said, “we have have well over 100,000 online orders. All the different rally houses in the area carry our shirts.’
Andrea Silva, executive director of America250PADelco, explained that while Phillygoat has their merch on the official site, America250PADelco is in the process of highlighting other local vendors with products made in the United States to feature Delco 250 swag. Of Phillygoat, she said, “They are awesome.”
She said immediately in their initial conversations, the company founders offered to give back 20% of their proceeds of these two shirts for Delco’s festivities related to the America 250 celebration. “We took advantage of it,” Silva said, “and we’re actively in conversation with some other local stores to produce 250 Delcoware. We want to find someone who can take care of ordering. If there are other businesses who are making and selling America250 gear, we’re happy to partner with them and promote them.”
Cassidy said he and his bros were happy to oblige.“It means so much,” he said. “This is like part of what a huge reason why we started this brand so we could celebrate our roots. ”The boys — Ryan and Pat now in Massachusetts and Brett in West Chester — hold the golden years of growing up in Delco in their hearts. Ryan recalled spending summer days swimming at the Springfield pool, then heading over to the Bazaar of All Nations to frequent Rick’s baseball card shop.
The trio even returns from time to time since their parents remain at the homestead in Springfield. So, for the Cassidys, being a part of Delco celebrating this country’s milestone was important. “Philadelphia,” Ryan said, “is the birthplace of freedom. Delco definitely represents that as well. ”Plus, this isn’t their first product benefiting a nonprofit. A portion of all of Phillygoat’s sales of their baseball collection are directed to the Darren Daulton Foundation and the Battle Brothers Foundation. “Part of the reason, the ’93 Phillies team was my favorite team of all time,” Cassidy said. “They were such a fun baseball team. ”So, he wanted to honor Daulton’s legacy by supporting his foundation. John Kruk, Cassidy just reached out to him on Twitter, asking him to use his name and image. “He is such a great guy,” Cassidy said, adding that all the player wanted was a piece of the profits going to the Battle Brothers Foundation to help former veterans transitioning back to civic life. To date, Phillygoat has given $50,000 to the Darren Daulton Foundation and another $25,000 to Battle Brothers.
That spirit is also being passed onto future generations as Cassidy’s daughter, Devin, asked if she could pen a design for good. “I want to make something that can help people out somehow,” the 10-year-old said. “She wanted to make a shirt that could help sick kids in Philadelphia,” her dad said and after some sales, they were able to donate $2,000 to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. The work even has the blessing of Springfield Township First Ward Commissioner Edward P. Kelly, who in another iteration is a cousin to the Cassidy boys. Kelly said in his early days, his cousin Ryan was known for his crazy ideas. “When he was talking about doing this T-shirt company, I was, ‘I got to get on board with this,’ ” he said as he wore their creations frequently as a way to support. One of his initial Phillygoat favorites was the Rocky silhouette shirt. “I love that shirt,” Kelly admitted. “That’s one of the shirts people stop you all the time.” Then, it was their “BELIEVE” shirt produced during the 2023 Phillies run. Now, it’s old school with the design of Mike Schmidt holding a bat on fire with flames. “It came with a sticker,” Kelly noted, “and that’s on my laptop case.” “It was amazing,” the commissioner said. “It was a side hustle for him and you see the shirts everywhere now … I’m really proud of him. He’s done great work. ”They even pulled in Kelly’s mom, Marguerite, as she’s now spotted at various local venues donning the Phanatic tee with matching Phillygoat Phanatic shoes. “People love them. Little kids see them and they go crazy,” her son testified.
Soon, Kelly’s going to have to expand his wardrobe. As part of Springfield’s Social Events Committee, he’s involved with coordinating the township’s Fourth of July parade. Relatedly, he expects to be purchasing some of Phillygoat’s 250 Delco line. “I definitely plan to get some of that,” Kelly said. “I’m going to need gear to wear in that parade.” Cassidy said it’s that Delco connection that fuels Phillygoat. “It’s a platform for me to express my true passions and fandom and locally inspired roots and also using my platform for good,” he said. “We don’t make a lot of money. We don’t make a lot of profit. A good amount of what is coming in is going right back out to charities.”
But there are benefits.
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