Who is Phillies Karen? All about the 'crazy' woman at the Phillies game who is reminding the internet of Piotr Szczerek

Move over, reality TV! Real life has got its own Karen!

Sports fandom has just delivered real-life drama at a Phillies game , and the internet is all over it. Meet “Phillies Karen,” the woman who’s giving the internet a proper déjà vu moment! How so? When the ‘crazy’ woman at the Phillies game turned a sweet, father-son home run moment into a viral train wreck, the internet became nostalgic (not in a good way) about another cringe-worthy moment a while ago – the Piotr Szczerek saga, where the Polish millionaire did something similar by snatching a signed cap from a child at the US Open.

The world, along with the internet, watched that saga unfold in the last few days. Before that memory fades, the attention has landed upon yet another cringe moment of yet another adult (?) at another game!

Want to know what happened and what Phillies Karen did? Read on!


The “Phillies Karen” showdown: What happened

On September 5 at LoanDepot Park in Miami, Philadelphia Phillies ' outfielder Harrison Bader belts a home run. A proud dad scoops it up and hands it to his 10-year-old son, Lincoln, celebrating his birthday. Cue the warm fuzzies!

But wait… enter “Phillies Karen”, rushing in, insisting the ball was hers because it “landed near her seat.” She demanded it back – right in front of a stunned kid and disgusted social media. Fans quickly dubbed her the “Phillies Karen,” and the video exploded online.


Internet’s take

Naturally, chaos ensues. Social media explodes with fury and chants of “Karen!” Within hours, comments ranged from roast to roast, with fans calling her “disgusting,” “shameless,” and prime Karen material.

On X (formerly Twitter), Dave Portnoy quipped, “That dude got that ball fair and square… put a pin in that moment in that kid’s life.” Quite naturally, the internet sided with the father, saying, “By handing her the ball … he’s teaching his kids a lesson about dealing with crazy people—not bullies.” One internet user put it aptly, “Dad did right and the whole internet is with him.”

But the best possible wrap-up of the whole ‘calling dibs on the ball’ happened when Phillies star Harrison Bader himself gave the birthday boy a signed baseball bat after the game – something the internet hailed as a “total class act!”


The Déjà vu moment

If you think you’ve seen something similar before, you’re not alone – we all have!

Enter Piotr Szczerek, the Polish billionaire.

However, Karen got her band of advocates too. One person took to X to say, “The ‘Karen’ at the Phillies game could’ve handled the situation better, but the internet coming together to destroy her life while willing to accept their president has 34 felonies is crazy to see. Y’all more upset over a damn baseball than your rights,” while another echoed the same sentiment, “It was her seat. This woman has been vilified all over social media when clearly the guy ran over and grabbed it. … I’m so sick of this crap. Why do you think Dad gave it up so easily?”

But the best possible wrap-up of the whole ‘calling dibs on the ball’ happened when Phillies star Harrison Bader himself gave the birthday boy a signed baseball bat after the game – something the internet hailed as a “total class act!”


The Déjà vu moment

If you think you’ve seen something similar before, you’re not alone – we all have!

Enter Piotr Szczerek, the Polish billionaire.

Just days before, at the 2025 US Open, Szczerek – yet another adult – went viral for snatching a cap from a child. This time, it was the Polish CEO of paving outfit Drogbruk, who made the whole world and the internet gasp when he snatched a hat that tennis player Kamil Majchrzak meant to give to a kid! The cap ended up in his possession, and consequently, chaos ensued online.


The internet lit up in fury, calling Szczerek “primitive” and “shameful.”

Szczerek issued an apology a few days later, calling it a “huge mistake,” claiming he thought it was meant for his sons and even arranged for Majchrzak to give the kid another cap. But the damage was done, as critics slammed the apology as tone-deaf and insincere, dubbing it “garbage.” His company, Drogbruk, even suffered online reputational shrapnel, including calls for boycotts.


What awaits the fate of Phillies Karen now? Time shall unveil!