At second base, Queen Latifah? John Kruk’s revelation, broadcast magic highlight Phillies-Braves broadcast

There are two days left in September, but Red October already is in full swing.

The Phillies’ matinee postseason opener on Tuesday featured Phillies analyst John Kruk, Braves analyst C.J. Nitkowski, and Matt Vasgersian on play-by-play for the 5-3 Braves win in Atlanta. “Inside the pitch analyst” Joey Votto and field reporter Ashley ShahAhmadi rounded out the broadcast crew for NBC.

If you were stuck in the office or made the trip to Truist Park for the best-of-three National League wild-card series, here’s what you missed on the broadcast:

Dressed to the nines

Now that’s a sight you don’t see every day. Kruk, usually clad in a Phillies polo shirt and hat, traded in his usual attire for a suit and tie.

Per NBC rules, all broadcasters and analysts are required to wear a formal suit and tie while calling national games. Kruk is no exception.

But while his outfit might have looked a bit spiffier than usual, the man inside the suit was no different. When advertising the new season of The Voice on NBC with judge Queen Latifah, Kruk revealed that she “played second base for [him] one day.” That day seemingly was a ’90s-era MTV Rock n’ Jock softball game.

And just when it seemed the comment would stand alone and the conversation was headed in a different direction, Kruk circled back to say, “She made a heck of a play.”

Practice pays off

Whatever the opposite of the announcer jinx is, the broadcast booth had it on Tuesday.

With Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto up to bat and runners on the corners in the top of the seventh, Kruk mentioned that Realmuto opted to take extra batting practice and has been working on hitting the ball to the opposite field in recent weeks.

Then Realmuto did just that, hitting one to the right-field corner to give the Phillies a 3-2 lead.

It happened again in the bottom of the eighth when Austin Riley was batting against Jhoan Duran. Nitkowski mentioned that when the two faced each other Sept. 6 in Philly, Riley hit a go-ahead RBI triple off Duran on the first pitch he saw. Riley then hit what ultimately was a game-winning three-run home run off the first pitch he saw from Duran.

A blended booth

On the field, the Phillies and Braves were battling things out, but in the booth, the opposing analysts blended well.

Despite joking about calling the game as a homer on X, Nitkowski and Kruk put aside their differences for the broadcast, with a chemistry that worked in the booth.

Both men were complimentary of their opposing team when the moment called for it, while also being unafraid to point out issues with their own teams.

Kruk spent much of Chris Sale’s 6⅓ innings complimenting the left-handed pitcher for his ability to get batters swinging at his pitches in the longest postseason appearance of his career.

The broadcast crew will be back together Wednesday for Game 2, which also will be played at 2 p.m. in Atlanta.