The Philadelphia Phillies’ bats came alive Tuesday night as the team rode five home runs to a 12-7 victory over the Los Angeles Angels. At the center of the carnage was Bryce Harper, who smacked the 299th homer of his career in the second inning and followed it up with a double later on.
Turns out, Phillies fans have WIP caller “Chuck in Mt. Airy” to thank for that one.
While Harper has been on absolute fire in August, batting .366 with nine homers, 22 RBIs, and a 1.229 OPS, he was apparently looking for a little extra motivation heading into Tuesday night’s contest. And he found it on the local Philadephia sports radio airwaves.
“It’s funny, I was driving in today and I’m listening to WIP like I do a lot. The 2:00 hour,” Harper told reporters after the game. “A guy named Chuck called in and he calls in a lot. He’s hilarious. He was talking about our team and talking about me and stuff. I walked in the training room and I was like ‘I’m gonna go deep tonight for Chuck.’ That guy had me fired up, man.”
https://twitter.com/NBCSPhilly/status/1696702290588008921
The radio show in question is Marks & Reese, with Jon Marks and Ike Reese. Several clips of Chuck’s Tuesday appearance were shared online after Harper’s comments.
Here’s the call Bryce was referring to from Chuck in Mt. Airy pic.twitter.com/LYQjbeMxRN
— SPORTSRADIO 94WIP (@SportsRadioWIP) August 30, 2023
“Now I wanna say something about my man, Bryce Harper,” said Chuck. “Bryce Harper, listen, man, if I don’t do anything before I die, I’m gonna shake that man’s hand one day.”
“Well, Chuck, he could be listening right now as we know his routine is to listen to the Marks & Reese show on his way into the park,” responded one of the hosts.
The Chuck call Bryce was referring to. pic.twitter.com/5SMpbk0bEX
— Jack Fritz (@JackFritzWIP) August 30, 2023
“Bryce Harper, man, might come down as one of the best Phillies ever, know what I’m saying,” Chuck would say later. “And I don’t want to see nobody else win a ring more than I wanna see that guy win one.”
OG Wade and Chuck in Mt. Airy meet for the first time. pic.twitter.com/OvyXijY9Fk
— 94WIP Afternoons (@AfternoonsWIP) October 21, 2022
We have to imagine Chuck is going to have a great appearance on the show on Wednesday. And we have a feeling that handshake might be coming sooner than later.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.