John Kruk might be known for his one-liners and wild stories on Philadelphia Phillies broadcasts, but he’s capable of making some impressive predictions too.
Monday night, Bryce Harper hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the 10th inning, leading the Phillies to a 3-2 win over the first-place Houston Astros to start their seven-game homestand on the right track. The hit came off Houston’s lefty closer Josh Hader. But more impressive than the actual walk-off hit by Harper, may have been the fact that Kruk predicted a walk-off hit for Harper two innings earlier.
Krukstradamus? pic.twitter.com/AS80Ben256
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NBC Sports Philadelphia gave viewers a close-up camera shot of Harper in the dugout near the end of the eighth inning, prompting Kruk to boldly state, “He’s gonna win the game for the Phillies.”
“Love the foreshadowing,” play-by-play voice Tom McCarthy responded.
If you’re going to predict a hit from someone, Harper is usually a good player to take. But Harper hadn’t exactly been red hot ahead of last night’s walk-off hit, going just 5-32 in his prior eight games. Aside from the fact that there was no way of even knowing whether Harper would get the opportunity to walk if off for the Phillies, it was a pretty bold prediction by Kruk based on recent performance. But in the 10th inning, with the score tied at two and runners at first and second, Harper walked to the plate with the opportunity to win the game for the Phillies.
“What did I say?” Kruk asked as Harper stepped into the box, prompting McCarthy to note his earlier prediction.
“Yep, and it’s gonna be earned against this tough lefty,” Kruk continued, speaking about Hader.
And on Hader’s first pitch of the at-bat, Kruk hit a ground ball into right field that was good enough to score Kyler Schwarber from second, giving Philly a 3-2 win. But more importantly, it won the prediction for Kruk, adding to the lure of one of the most entertaining and popular local analysts in Major League Baseball.
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com