Orioles fans united in solidarity for play-by-play broadcaster Kevin Brown, who was recently suspended from the booth.
The fictional Rebecca Welton said it best: "Just because we own these teams doesn't mean they belong to us."
No statement better applies to the Orioles controversy right now. Baltimore lead play-by-play broadcaster Kevin Brown was suspended on July 23 due to a comment he made about the Orioles' series against the Tampa Bay Rays.
During an on-air MASN broadcast ahead of the series finale between the Orioles and Rays, Brown mentioned a fun fact backed by statistics: the Orioles had won more games at Tampa Bay's stadium, Tropicana Field, in 2023 than they had in the last three years combined.
Orioles owner John Angelos didn't find the fact very "fun" at all, as The Athletic's sources said the ownership thought the comment made the franchise sound cheap.
Brown was removed from the booth only for a short while; once the media caught wind of the alleged reasons behind Brown's suspension, it was announced that the fourth-year broadcaster would return this Friday.
In the meantime, Orioles fans are letting Angelos and the O's ownership know exactly where they stand. On Tuesday night, during Baltimore's opener against the Houston Astros, Camden Yards erupted with a "Free Kevin Brown" chant in the seventh inning.
Orioles fans want justice for broadcaster Kevin Brown
The Orioles franchise declined to comment on the controversy on the justification that they don't publicly speak about employment decisions.
But it doesn't take much to piece together the puzzle: The O's own a majority share of MASN, the network that employed Kevin Brown. Immediately after Brown's suspension, droves of MLB commentators and media personalities came together in Brown's defense and denounced the network's decision to suspend him. Public outcry defeated owner Angelos' ego, and Brown was swiftly reinstated.
The first-place O's had been winning quite a lot this season, yet the Brown drama has humiliated them and turned them into bumbling losers off the field. In a year in which franchise ownership has become a fiery hot topic of conversation (see: the A's misery, the Commanders' dumpster fire), John Angelos would do well to think about what kind of legacy he wants to leave behind.
Ownership is temporary. Fans' love for America's favorite pastime lives on forever.
