Tuesday night, while the Philadelphia Phillies were leading the Chicago White Sox 6-0 in the sixth inning, commentators John Kruk and Tom McCarthy took a slight detour. McCarthy gave his old high school basketball teammate, who was reportedly a powerhouse on the offensive boards, an on-air birthday shoutout.
McCarthy remarked, “He was a heck of a basketball player,” played in Monmouth and Rider. It’s all because he cleaned up the shots I missed a bunch.
Kruk added, “There’s someone here in Chicago that does that a lot, but I don’t want to say anything.”
Angel Reese, a star for the Chicago Sky, is frequently accused of having exaggerated rebound numbers since she cleans up a lot of her misses, which detracts from her skills. McCarthy anticipated that this specific discussion would be the subject of some tweets.
He was correct. Reese herself provided one as well.
She also shared a message on TikTok that read:
“To anyone who’s ever been rude to me and is now going through a tough time—good.”
The unexpected back-and-forth between Angel Reese and John Kruk wasn’t something anyone could’ve predicted before Tuesday night’s game, yet somehow, it happened. The whole situation is a bit unclear—especially since the birthday shoutout that started it all was about a guy who rebounded others’ missed shots, while Reese is known for grabbing her own rebounds. Still, no one’s letting those small details stop the fun of this unexpected cross-sport feud.