OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Oakland Athletics broadcaster Glen Kuiper was let go by NBC Sports California after using a racial slur during a telecast while describing a trip to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.
Kuiper was suspended by the network following his slur that aired during a pregame segment of an A’s game against the Kansas City Royals on May 5. Kuiper talked about a trip to the museum with colleague Dallas Braden but seemingly mispronounced the word “Negro,” making it sound instead like a slur.
“Following an internal review, the decision has been made for NBC Sports California to end its relationship with Glen Kuiper, effective immediately,” the network said in a statement Monday. “We thank Glen for his dedication to Bay Area baseball over the years.”
A person familiar with the investigation said “the decision was based on a variety of factors, including information uncovered in the internal review.” The person spoke on condition of anonymity and didn’t divulge specific details because the network had not publicly disclosed the results of the investigation.
Kuiper apologized on the air later in that game without getting into specifics, saying he said something that “didn’t come out quite the way I wanted it to.” He later issued a statement through the network when he was suspended, saying: “I could not be more sorry and horrified by what I said. I hope you will accept my sincerest apologies.”
A’s manager Mark Kotsay said the decision wasn’t made by the team and that he sympathizes with Kuiper.
“I can’t imagine being in his shoes right now,” Kotsay said. “I think personally, we missed an opportunity here maybe to use this as an educational platform. But as you said, I don’t make decisions and this isn’t a decision I was involved in and nor was the organization really. This was a decision made by NBC.”
Kuiper has been calling A’s games in the Bay Area for the last 20 years. He is the younger brother of former major leaguer and Giants announcer Duane Kuiper.
