Baltimore Orioles announcer Kevin Brown was removed from the team’s broadcasts over a comment he made on July 23 during the Orioles’ series against the Tampa Bay Rays, multiple sources briefed on the decision confirmed to The Athletic on Monday. Awful Announcing first reported the news.
He is expected to return to the broadcast booth Friday, sources briefed on the matter told The Athletic.
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Brown pointed out during the on-air broadcast on MASN that the Orioles had won more games at Tampa Bay’s Tropicana Field in 2023 than the last three years combined. The comment was backed up in the July 23 game notes, which are put together by the team’s public relations staff. “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,” the game notes said.
Despite it being in the game notes, ownership took exception to Brown pointing it out, sources said, believing it made them sound cheap. Baltimore ranks 29th in Major League Baseball in payroll.
Brown, who started as a radio broadcaster for Baltimore in 2019, has been a popular fixture on Orioles telecasts for the past two seasons. MASN heavily pared down its on-air staff with a shakeup prior to the 2021 season that saw Gary Thorne, Jim Hunter, Rick Dempsey and Mike Bordick — among others — not returning to the Orioles and Nationals’ shared regional sports network in favor of younger talent. Brown has not returned to the MASN booth since his comments, though he did do radio the following series in Philadelphia.
Brown’s agent declined comment.
This isn’t the first time Orioles ownership has taken exception to what it views as critical comments. Public address announcer Ryan Wagner was dismissed hours before the home opener in 2021, with some of his tweets a primary reason.
A MASN spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Orioles, who own MASN, declined comment.
The Orioles are in first place in the American League East this season, reaching 70 wins on Sunday. But it hasn’t been all positive vibes. Multiple sources briefed on the decision say ownership has enacted a new policy mandating that their broadcasters wear only team gear when on-air, which has rankled some. That snafu led to Brown filling in on radio after his comment in the Rays series because another broadcaster got in trouble. Broadcasters have also been reprimanded previously for mentioning past Orioles players who are no longer with the team.
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