Orioles play-by-play television announcer Kevin Brown will return to the booth on Friday night when Baltimore takes on Seattle. According to multiple reports, Brown was inexplicably suspended by the club from his role at the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network (MASN) for his recitation of facts surrounding the club’s recent struggles playing on the road at Tampa Bay.
Brown released a statement ahead of his return to the booth, while explaining his recent absence as the O’s lead announcer.
“O’s fans - I’m a storyteller,” Brown’s statement began. “And never want to be a part of the story. The most compelling story in baseball right now is the story of the league-leading Baltimore Orioles - the best, most exciting young team in the American League. Unfortunately, recent media reports have mischaracterized my relationship with my adopted hometown Orioles.
“The fact is that I have a wonderful relationship with the organization and our ownership and front office has fully supported me since 2019 when I first came aboard. I ask that everyone disregard the distracting noise of the past few days. I have worked closely with O’s SVP Greg Bader for the past four years, and John Angelos and I have a solid dialogue based on mutual respect. We are all good here in Birdland! I am proud to be an Oriole and call Baltimore home, and there is no place in baseball I’d rather be right now and for the long haul. Go O’s!”
He was indefinitely removed from the broadcast booth after a July 23 telecast against the Rays, after saying in the pregame that the Orioles had “already gone 3–2 at Tropicana Field this year after winning only three of 18 games in the previous three years combined.”
Orioles owner John Angelos, who also presides over MASN, reportedly made the decision to suspend Brown, but refused comment when pressed by the media about the suspension. Orioles officials told Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner that Brown would return to the booth “in the near future” and that the team “doesn’t comment on employment decisions.”
The saga takes away from the play of the club this year. The Orioles were expected to be an improved ball club heading into 2023, but nearly nobody could foresee Baltimore’s surge, which has them at a 71–44 record heading into Friday night. Baltimore is soaring towards its first playoff berth since 2016, as the Orioles enter their weekend set with the Mariners holding the second-best record in the American League.
