CNN’s John Berman hilariously mocks ‘thinned-skinned’ Orioles for censoring Kevin Brown

Even cable news networks are mocking the Baltimore Orioles for removing Kevin Brown from their TV broadcast after he spoke the innocuous truth about the franchise.

Monday afternoon, Awful Announcing reported Brown was removed from his role as the team’s TV play-by-play voice after he cited the team’s recent win-loss record against the Tampa Bay Rays near the top of a July 23 broadcast. The news took sports media by storm, with MLB announcers and sports media personalities speaking out in support of Brown.

But the news also went beyond sports media and reached the cable news circuit, getting discussed on MSNBC, Fox News and CNN Tuesday morning. CNN News Central host John Berman tore into the Orioles with a sort of standup routine that sent his co-anchor into hysterics.

KevinBrown-gate made CNN this morning. pic.twitter.com/dKnYfXCYmv

— John Ourand (@Ourand_SBJ) August 8, 2023

“The sports world is aghast this morning after the Orioles TV announcer appears to be taken off the air by the team,” Berman began. “Kevin Brown has not announced a game since he basically noted how much better the first place Orioles are this season than the last few. Awful Announcing noticed he was off the air; the Orioles claim they don’t comment on personnel moves and he wasn’t suspended per se.

“But, he hasn’t been on the air! And if that’s enough to take him off the air because he noted how good they are now and how bad they were, maybe we need to get Sanjay (Gupta) on the line to talk about a dermatological condition for Orioles ownership, chronic thinned-skinnedness.”

Boom. Roasted.

The suggestion of bringing in CNN’s chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta to assess the Orioles possibly suffering from “chronic thinned-skinnedness” caused Berman’s co-anchor Kate Bolduan to lose it with laughter.

“This is what happens when I forget to read what you’re about to say before you say it,” Bolduan said. Once her laughter subsided, Bolduan asked whether there is more to the story that has not been reported.

Bolduan’s question has been a common sentiment because of the absurdity that Brown was suspended for speaking the truth about the Orioles record against the Rays. But Awful Announcing confirmed this reporting with several sources and The Athletic later joined in confirming the story.

“So you’re saying you can be taken off the air for speaking the truth?” Bolduan asked. Prompting Berman to confirm, “For speaking the truth.”

Brown has not been on a TV broadcast for the Orioles since July 23 and he has been off their airwaves completely since July 26 after briefly being moved to their radio call. On Tuesday, The Athletic and The Baltimore Banner confirmed Brown is scheduled to return to the Orioles’ broadcast booth Friday, Aug. 11.

[CNN]