Usually, if a broadcaster rants about a player being “fat,” you might expect it to be a hot mic incident. Well, the mic was definitely hot when Cleveland Guardians play-by-play voice Tom Hamilton fat shamed Miguel Sano, but he knew about it.
The Guardians were in Minnesota for a series with the Twins this week. And during their Wednesday night game, Hamilton went off on Minnesota’s slugging first baseman.
“Miguel Sano, he’s not hurt. He’s just fat,” Hamilton said bluntly on the broadcast. “That’s as brutally honest as we can be. He’s down in Fort Myers trying to get in shape, which is normally what you do in the offseason.”
The Guardians radio Broadcast on Miguel Sanó pic.twitter.com/DGqZqOh9sj
— ✡️ (@DabollToHeaven) June 23, 2022
“They’re paying him a lot of money and it’s really unprofessional how he showed up to camp,” Hamilton continued. “He’s getting paid, but he’s now getting paid to basically get in shape…Some teams would say ‘we don’t wanna hurt his feelings.’ The heck with that!”
It’s one thing to be blunt and brutally honest, it’s another to be wrong. And Hamilton’s rant went completely against what’s been reported about the 29-year-old first baseman.
Sano underwent surgery on his left knee to repair a torn meniscus back in early May and no timetable was given for his return. He’s currently in Florida rehabbing from the surgery and is reportedly expected to take live BP next week, meaning he’s still far from returning to the majors.
Adding to the contradictory information provided by Hamilton, Sano reported to spring training about 25 pounds lighter than his weight at the end of the 2021 season.
It’s especially odd that Hamilton’s rant was about a player on the opposing roster, and not the team that he’s around and covers on a daily basis. His information must have derived from somewhere, but I highly doubt the pregame injury report listed Sano as “fat.” Who’s telling the truth? Did Sano lose 25 pounds? Is he currently rehabbing from knee surgery? Or is he just “fat”?
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com