APhiladelphia Phillies fan, dubbed the “Phillies Karen” online, is at the center of a growing social media storm after she forcibly took a home run ball from a young boy during Friday night’s Phillies vs. Marlins game in Florida.
The incident, captured by quick-thinking fans on video, has sparked nationwide outrage, and now a major trading card company has stepped in with a lucrative offer.
Blowout Cards, a leading trading card retailer, announced it is willing to pay $5,000 if the woman returns the infamous ball, but there’s a catch.
The company requires the ball to be signed and personally inscribed with the words “I’m sorry” by the woman herself.
“We want that ball signed and inscribed by her, and only her, whoever she is, so we can simply give it back to the kid,” the company stated. “Our offer is official and the offer is firm.”
The viral footage shows the woman confronting the boy’s father, demanding the ball. “That was ours,” she yelled, as the father reluctantly handed the ball over.
During the encounter, she displayed defiance despite being booed by nearby fans and was even caught on camera flipping the bird.
Public backlash and ongoing mystery
The woman’s actions have ignited a firestorm on social media, generating a wave of memes and widespread criticism.
Yet despite the widespread attention, her identity remains unknown. Multiple women have since publicly denied being the “Phillies Karen,” after internet sleuths attempted to unmask her.
Meanwhile, the young boy who lost the ball, Lincoln Feltwell, expressed his disappointment in an interview with NBC 10 Philadelphia.
“I wasn’t very happy that we had to give it to her, but we can’t win. She was going to get it anyways,” he said.
In a brighter turn, Lincoln later had the chance to meet Harrison Bader, the Phillies player responsible for hitting the home run.
Bader gave the boy a bat as a gesture to make up for the lost ball. “I’m happy I got to get something else. It was very, very fun getting to meet Bader,” Lincoln said.
Lincoln‘s father, Drew Feltwell, described his approach to the tense situation as an attempt to set an example for his son.
“Just trying to set an example of how to de-escalate a situation in front of my son, I guess,” he told NBC 10. Drew added that he did not wish for the woman’s life to be ruined, though he acknowledged she brought the backlash upon herself.
“She brought that on herself,” he said. “I don’t want her life ruined, but she brought that on. She’s going to pay for that, and it is not by hand. I don’t wish any harm on her. Maybe she was in the moment. I’m not going to defend her.”
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