John Kruk recalls getting handcuffed in prank by Tony Gwynn

Those who tuned into NBC Sports Philadelphia’s telecast of Thursday night’s game between the Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies got more than just a baseball game. They also got a story from John Kruk’s past where he remembered being handcuffed and sitting in the back of a police car — thanks to Tony Gwynn.

It started innocently enough, with Kruk sharing that someone in Portland had written him, telling him he slouches. Kruk and play-by-play man Tom McCarthy then briefly discussed whether the Portland in question was in Maine or Oregon. But before going deeper into that, Kruk took the story in another direction.

“Did I ever tell you I almost got arrested in Oregon?” Kruk asked.

“Doesn’t surprise me,” McCarthy matter-of-factly said. “But no, you never told me.”

“Rookie ball. I got arrested, handcuffed, put in the back of a cop car,” Kruk recalled. When McCarthy asked if it was a case of mistaken identity, Kruk explained that it was a prank.

“No, Tony Gwynn had a friend who was a cop out there, and he had me arrested,” Kruk said, with McCarthy laughing. “Scared the, I mean, I was up thinking, ‘Man, I know I had a few beers last night. But what the hell did I end up doing? You got a lot of bad thoughts when you’re handcuffed in the back of a cop car.”

John Kruk: “Did I ever tell you I almost got arrested in Oregon?… Rookie ball. I got arrested, handcuffed, put in the back of a cop car… Tony Gwynn had a friend who was a cop out there, and he had me arrested…” ⚾️🎙️🤣 #MLB

(h/t: @_piccone) pic.twitter.com/E31ubRNN5z

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 2, 2025

So, how did it end? Was Kruk taken into the station for booking? He clarified that it never got that far and that Gwynn’s famous laugh tipped him off.

“They never left the parking lot of the hotel,” Kruk said. “All I heard was Tony laughing. I’m like, ‘That bastard.'”