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John Kruk has some words of wisdom after another Phillies loss

Kruk has become NBC Sports Philadelphia's "emotional support announcer" during a tough stretch for the Phillies.

NBC Sports Philadelphia analyst John Kruk following the Phillies' loss to the New York Mets Tuesday
NBC Sports Philadelphia analyst John Kruk following the Phillies' loss to the New York Mets TuesdayRead moreNBC Sports Philadelphia
    by Rob Tornoe
    Published 

After the Phillies lost their second straight game against the New York Mets Tuesday, is it time to sound the alarm?

Yes, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Michael Barkann.

“They are 4-7 on the road, and this team might have a winning record at 13-11, but they are a below-average team,” Barkann lamented on Phillies Postgame Live Tuesday. “7-10 since that 6-1 start... I …don’t know how it gets fixed here.”

The Phillies’ 13-11 start is certainly disappointing, especially considering it was the Mets who booted Philly out of the playoffs early last season. As Barkann noted, it hasn’t been much of a rivalry lately, with the Mets having won eight of their last 10 games against the Phillies, including the playoffs.

“There is no rivalry between the Phillies and the New York Mets,” Barkann said. “Not when you’re 6-19 in your last 25 games … The Mets are the bullies who have taken the Phillies’ lunch money again and again.”

Enter John Kruk, who spent 10 seasons in the majors and knows the difference between losses in April and September.

“I don’t know how you make up three games in 130-something games left,” Kruk said sarcastically. “It’s going to be tough. You know, when the season’s winding down like it is.”

Then Kruk dropped the act and let his inner curmudgeon loose.

“My god, what are we talking about?”

The Phillies were just two games better at this point last season, 15-9, and went on to win the National League East. In 2023 the Phillies started the season with four straight losses and were 11-13 after 24 games, yet still managed to advance to the National League Championship Series.

“I always looked at it that if you’re above .500 in April, you’re setting yourself up for success when the summer months start to click in,” former Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels, who is calling some games this season for NBC Sports Philadelphia, told The Inquirer.

Kruk seemed to know what he’d be facing on the postgame show during the ninth inning, when he tried to get play-by-play announcer Tom McCarthy to do the TV hit.

“You want me to do the postgame show for you?” McCarthy asked Kruk during the ninth inning.

“There ain’t much to talk about,” Kruk shot back.

Kruk, in his ninth season calling games for NBC Sports Philadelphia, will be back in the booth Wednesday afternoon when the Phillies face the Mets in the final game of their three-game series at 1:10 p.m. Here’s the Phillies’ upcoming schedule:

  1. Phillies at New York Mets

    1. Game 1: Mets 5, Phillies 4

    2. Game 2: Mets 5, Phillies 1

    3. Game 3: Wednesday, April 23, 1:10 p.m.

  2. Phillies at Chicago Cubs

    1. Game 1: Friday, April 25, 2:20 p.m.

    2. Game 2: Saturday, April 26, 4:05 p.m. (Fox)

    3. Game 3: Sunday, April 27, 7 p.m. (ESPN)

  3. Washington Nationals at Phillies

    1. Game 1: Tuesday, April 29, 6:45 p.m.

    2. Game 2: Wednesday, April 30, 6:45 p.m.

    3. Game 3: Thursday, May 1, 6:45 p.m.

  4. Arizona Diamondbacks at Phillies

    1. Game 1: Friday, May 2, 6:45 p.m.

    2. Game 2: Saturday, May 3, 6:05 p.m.

    3. Game 3: Sunday, May 4, 2:05 p.m.

  5. Phillies at Tampa Bay Rays

    1. Game 1: Tuesday, May 6, 7:05 p.m.

    2. Game 2: Wednesday, May 7, 7:05 p.m.

    3. Game 3: Thursday, May 8, 7:05 p.m.

  6. Phillies at Cleveland Guardians

    1. Game 1: Friday, May 9, 7:10 p.m.

    2. Game 2: Saturday, May 10, 6:10 p.m.

    3. Game 3: Sunday, May 11, 7 p.m. (ESPN)

NL East standings

Quick hits

  1. Longtime ESPN announcer Mike Patrick died of natural causes Sunday at age 80. Patrick spent nearly four decades calling games at ESPN, including 18 years on Sunday Night Football, mostly alongside Joe Theismann and Paul Maguire. Patrick might be remembered most for his call of the Music City Miracle in January 2000, when the Tennessee Titans stole a playoff win from the Buffalo Bills on a lateral kickoff return for a touchdown. “Dyson down the sideline. Dyson’s going to go all the way! And there is no flag!”

  1. From the NFL to TV to Congress? Jay Feely, the former NFL kicker-turned-CBS analyst, announced he’s leaving the network and running for Congress in Arizona’s fifth district as a Republican. Feely has been interested in politics for years, but told Fox News the assassination attempt on then-candidate Donald Trump in Pennsylvania last year pushed him to declare his candidacy.

  2. Aaron Rodgers to the booth? If the four-time MVP retires at 41, it might be tough for him to find a network job in the booth or studio, according to The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand. “Does any network really want to take a chance on Aaron Rodgers? I don’t think so,” Marchand said on the most recent episode of his podcast. “And I’m sure Aaron Rodgers would say, ‘I don’t want them anyway.’”

  3. Never complain about your NBC Sports Philadelphia bill again. In Baltimore, some Orioles fans were mistakenly charged $8,999 for MASN+ to stream games, instead of the $89.99 they thought they’d be paying. “Someone forgot the decimal. … that’s criminal,“ one Reddit user wrote.