The Baltimore Orioles are in the midst of one of their best seasons in franchise history, holding a win percentage of 62.5% heading into MLB games today. But the chirps heard from Baltimore in recent years prior to their breakout campaign haven’t always been positive. Even though they’re currently on pace to snag the Al East division crown, the Os haven’t won the pennant since 2014.
Recently when Orioles play-by-blay announcer Kevin Brown was rattling off stats regarding Baltimore’s history when playing the Tampa Bay Rays, he also made a few small comments about the team’s struggles at Tropicana Field. We’ll share the clip below so you can hear for yourself. There is no reason for caution, as Brown did not say anything even remotely offensive or vulgar.
It turns out the Orioles organization wasn’t happy with Brown’s remarks from the link above. Even though the game took place back on July 23, Brown has now been suspended indefinitely from appearing on broadcasts in a story that is quickly gaining traction within the baseball community.
What’s interesting about all this is the fact that Brown was just reading a script put together by the Orioles’ public relations staff. This is word-for-word what the game notes stated:
“The Orioles have won three of the first five games at The Trop this season after winning three of the 21 games played in St. Petersburg from 2020-22.”
Baltimore Orioles’ game notes, put together by team’s PR staff
Yet, as The Athletic reports, team ownership didn’t like the statement, noting that they felt it made them “sound cheap.” Other sources indicate the team’s owners have also mandated that all broadcasters strictly wear Orioles gear when on-air. Broadcasters have reportedly even been disciplined for even mentioning past players who are no longer with the organization.
Brown began as a radio broadcaster with the Orioles in 2019 and became the team’s leading play-by-play announcer at the start of the 2022 season, where he had remained since the suspension. While Brown has yet to return to the TV booth, he did cover the game via radio on July 24, the day after the incident.
The Orioles have yet to make a statement about Brown’s suspension or how long the penalty is expected to last. The team-owned TV broadcast station MASN has also refused to address the situation publicly.
Related: See where the Baltimore Orioles land in Sportsnaut’s updated MLB power rankings