Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Update: 6/2/21, 2:30 p.m. 

Arizona Diamondbacks color commentator Bob Brenly has issued the following public apology to Marcus Stroman for his comments during the broadcast of last night’s game.

Mets manager Luis Rojas was also asked about Brenly’s comment during his pre-game Zoom meeting with the media today and he said the following.

Original Post:

Last season, everyone was shocked when long-time play-by-play announcer Thom Brennaman was caught on a hot mic making a homophobic slur during the broadcast of a Cincinnati Reds game.

Brennaman was immediately let go from his duties announcing NFL games with Fox and would eventually resign from his position with the Reds, after being informed that he would not be returning to the booth for the 2021 season.

Ultimately Brennaman was held responsible for his actions, as there is no room for hate speech on any broadcast. With that precedent in mind, MLB and the Arizona Diamondbacks need to hold Bob Brenly accountable for the comments he made during last night’s game.

For those who may have missed it, Brenly made a comment about Marcus Stroman‘s du-rag during the Diamondbacks broadcast of the game saying, “I’m sure that’s the same du-rag that Tom Seaver used to wear when he pitched for the Mets.”

While Brenly does not blatantly use a racial slur in the same way that Brennaman uttered a homophobic one, the racial undertones in what Brenly says are still apparent. But unlike Brennaman, Brenly knew he was on the air and still chose to make this racist comment.

Brenly has a history of making remarks such as this one as well. In 2019, he commented on the necklace Fernando Tatis Jr. was wearing saying, “It would probably be easier to run the bases without that bike chain around his neck.”

Both of these instances show that Brenly is a man out of touch with what is acceptable to say in 2021. Major League Baseball cannot simply ignore Brenly’s comments and chalk them up to him being a 67-year-old from a different time.

If they really want to show that they stand with people of color, and are against the hate speech that has permeated in their sport for far too long, they must hold Brenly accountable.

The way that Brenly laments a du-rag or a big chain necklace shows that he does not like seeing these aspects of other cultures being brought into the game he played back in the 1980s.

After last night’s game, Stroman did not call out Brenly directly, but instead chose to take the high road when addressing his comments.

Stroman always preaches positivity on social media, while also understanding that some would try to misconstrue his comments if he were to speak out against Brenly. The fact that Stroman would receive backlash for addressing Brenly’s remark head-on shows the problem that still exists to this day.

If Brenly doesn’t face consequences for using this type language when addressing an African American athlete, than it is as if Major League Baseball and the Arizona Diamondbacks are condoning it. This is a big test for MLB to show that they really stand with their black athletes.

Hopefully they make an example out of Brenly to show that this cannot be tolerated any longer.