A woman at the Philadelphia Phillies vs Miami Marlins Major League Baseball (MLB) game has gone viral for wanting a home run ball that a Phillies fan gave his son. Since then, the internet has dubbed her Phillies Karen and a lot of ire is being directed towards her as well. However, there are also some who are miffed at the father just giving the ball to the woman.
Many have called him ‘beta dad’ for not standing up to her. Political activist and former US Navy intelligence officer, Jack Posobiec, even drew an analogy between the incident and the ‘death of American manhood’.
The term ‘beta male’ from which ‘beta dad’ has been derived, refers to ‘a submissive, feeble-minded and weak man’, as per Collins dictionary.
‘Beta dad’ slammed online; some rush to defend him
One person went on to analyze the father's body language from his interaction with the woman at the game, and said on X “He's probably a hyper-beta. His flinch tells a lot. Hands went fetal, not defensive, didn't put himself between the psycho and his boy. I'm not bashing him, but he needs to get into a gym or a dojo. I'll bet he's a very nice and thoughtful dad though.”
{{/usCountry}}One person went on to analyze the father's body language from his interaction with the woman at the game, and said on X “He's probably a hyper-beta. His flinch tells a lot. Hands went fetal, not defensive, didn't put himself between the psycho and his boy. I'm not bashing him, but he needs to get into a gym or a dojo. I'll bet he's a very nice and thoughtful dad though.”
{{/usCountry}}“So he did a great thing by not standing up for himself? It’s a good thing to teach your kid to just give people what they want? Beta dad,” ranted another.
Yet another person commented “The dad should have shown his son how to be a man..... Stand up to A-holes and for what's right. Instead he showed him to back down and the first sign of conflict and be a beta.”
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The grouse is that the father gave up the ball without a fight, when many felt he should have gone into a confrontation with the woman to let his son keep the ball. Notably, there is no scientific basis for ‘beta male’ as a personality type in humans.
Given that the handling of the situation is a subjective thing, many have come to the father's defense as well. “Sure, calling for security would also be an appropriate response. But all these douche men calling him beta would not accept that either. The point is he kept his head. She’s the one who looks bad. Good dad,” one person said in defense.
“Stop calling him a ‘beta’ dad. I think he set a great example for his kid by de-escalating a potentially toxic situation and ruining the night for everyone,” commented another.
One person, while stating it was a ‘beta’ move, tried to see logic behind the father's actions. “Okay, I'll step in to defend the dad for a bit. He probably wanted to avoid a worse situation with his son around. No son around, he could tell her to f**k off. Beta move, for sure, but when your kid is around for something like that, avoid it if you can,” they said.
What did the father do | Watch
When the woman approached the father, and got into the confrontation, he first seemed to be jolted. Then, after engaging in an intense conversation, where the two appeared to point to the ball in the young boy's hand, the father gave the ball back to the woman, in an apparent attempt to defuse the situation.
A different video of the incident provides some insight into the woman's side as well, as she can be heard saying that the ball was in her hand, and the man took it from her. Meanwhile, the young boy – Lincoln – walked away with gifts from the Marlins, and a signed bat from Phillies player Harrison Bader, after the unpleasant exchange.