Oakland A’s broadcaster Glenn Kuiper was fired Monday following his on-air utterance of a racial slur during a pregame show on May 5.
A described the abuse on the day of the incident as “unacceptable”. NBC Sports California suspended him indefinitely a day later. network on monday issued a statement Announcing that he had been fired:
“After an internal review, the decision has been made for NBC Sports California to end its relationship with Glenn Kuiper, effective immediately. We thank Glenn for his dedication to Bay Area baseball over the years.”
The incident occurred during the pregame show of an A’s game at the Kansas City Royals. Kuiper and fellow broadcaster and former A’s pitcher Dallas Braden were discussing a visit to the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City. Kuiper mentioned his visit to the museum, but casteist slur in place of the name of the museum.
Kuiper said, “We had an extraordinary day today: the N***** League Museum and Arthur Bryant’s barbecue.”
quipper issued an apology During the sixth inning of an A-Royals game.
Kuiper said, “A while back on the show, I said something that didn’t turn out the way I wanted it to.” “I just wanted to apologize if it sounded different from what I meant to say. Like I said, I wanted to apologize for that.”
He made an additional apology the day after he was suspended.
“I couldn’t be more sorry and appalled by what I said,” Kuiper said via a statement released by NBCSC. “I hope you will accept my sincere apologies.”
Following Cooper’s suspension, Bob Kendrick, president of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, addressed the incident in a tweet.
“I welcomed Glenn to the NLBM yesterday and know he was really excited to be here,” Kendrick wrote. “The word is hurtful and has no place in our society. And while I don’t pretend to know Glenn’s heart, I do know that my heart is forgiving. I hope you all find it in yourselves to do the same!”
Braden, who sat next to Kuiper during the broadcast, also issued a statement Addressing Kuiper’s lack of response to the on-air slur after receiving criticism for not addressing it this time.
“Many people have questioned my lack of response to an issue that occurred on air…” Braden wrote. “I believe my silence has been misinterpreted.
“At the time of the incident, I was not aware that anything was wrong with the broadcast. The nuances of live television mean that sometimes we, as broadcasters, miss some of what you, our viewers, see and hear. … I missed the live commentary, and I wasn’t aware of it until the sixth inning with Glenn Kuiper apologizing.
Kuiper, 60, has worked with the A’s in broadcasting since 2004, where he started as an on-field reporter. He took over as the primary TV play-by-play announcer in 2006 and held that position until his suspension and subsequent dismissal. He played two seasons of minor league baseball from 1985–86 as an infielder.
