Jim Palmer cracks joke about Kevin Brown’s ridiculous 2023 suspension

As the Baltimore Orioles were getting ready to host the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday, Jim Palmer, a color commentator for the Orioles and one of the greatest players in franchise history, made a not-so-subtle reference to what was, quite frankly, one of the stupidest controversies in franchise history.

Palmer was discussing the team’s recent eight-game road trip, which included four-game series against both the Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays. It was a successful trip for Baltimore. The Orioles went 6-2. That included a four-game sweep of the Rays. In a pregame conversation with his broadcast partner, play-by-play man Kevin Brown, Palmer brought that up.

“The important thing is you win six out of eight games. And you go to Tampa Bay where you used to have trouble, as you know, winning…and now all of a sudden, they win 4 in a row.”

Brown smiled, noting Tuesday’s pitching matchup. Palmer chuckled, something Brown began to do, as well.

Jim Palmer in a conversation with Kevin Brown:

“The important thing is you win 6 out of 8 games. And you go to Tampa Bay where you used to have trouble, as you know, winning…and now all of a sudden, they win 4 in a row.”

(H/T @AviMiIIer)pic.twitter.com/r6Eoc1MtXa

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 12, 2024

For anyone who might have forgotten. Before a road game against Tampa in 2023, Brown noted that if the Orioles won that game (which they later did) they’d have as many wins in that series at Tropicana Field — three — as they had from 2020-2022 combined.

Brown was taken off of the air shortly after that game, with Awful Announcing confirming “through multiple independent sources familiar with the situation that Brown was taken off the air for the above comments.”

The suspension was confusing on multiple levels. One, Brown’s comments were not opinions but simple facts. Two, they were part of a graphic made well before the comments were made. So, nothing said should have taken anyone by surprise. Three, somehow overlooking both elements, the comments pointed to improvements that the Orioles were making. In a normal world, that’s something a team’s ownership might want to highlight, not hide.

Citing those points (and more), announcers were vocal in their support of Brown. Fans were as well. Brown returned to the booth. Eventually, even John Angelos, then the team’s Chairman and CEO, acknowledged that the situation was handled poorly.

Of course, as the saying goes, time heals all wounds. Additionally — and probably most important — the Angelos family sold the Orioles to a group of investors headed by David Rubenstein in the offseason.

That makes the situation a lot easier to laugh at.

[Photo Credit: MASN]