CINCINNATI — Players, reporters, and personalities across the sports world took to social media Wednesday night and into Thursday following the suspension of Thom Brennaman after he used a homophobic slur during a Cincinnati Reds broadcast.
>>Reds suspend broadcaster Thom Brennaman for using homophobic slur on air
After the game, Reds relief pitcher Amir Garrett tweeted “To the LGBTQ community, just know I am with you, and whoever is against you, is against me. I’m sorry for what was said today.”
>>Who is Thom Brennaman? Cincinnati Reds broadcaster suspended for using homophobic slur
To the LGBTQ community just know I am with you, and whoever is against you, is against me. I’m sorry for what was said today.
— CountOnAG (@Amir_Garrett) August 20, 2020
Garrett also retweeted a statement from Matt Bowman, a member of the Reds organization, who also expressed regret for the word used by Brennaman.
>>Cincinnati Reds broadcaster Thom Brennaman apologizes after uttering anti-gay slur
LGBTQ+ community, as a member of the Reds organization, I am so sorry for the way you were marginalized tonight. There will always be a place for you in the baseball community and we are so happy to have you here.
— Matt Bowman (@bowmandernchief) August 20, 2020
Much of the social media conversation outside Brennaman’s use of the word was his apology on-air before being pulled from the broadcast. During Brennaman’s apology, Reds right fielder Nick Castellanos hit a solo home run, extending the Reds’ lead to 4-0. During Brennaman’s apology, he paused to call the home run.
no way did this just happen, this is not real pic.twitter.com/6ou1BkAhYW
— paco (@AllaireMatt) August 20, 2020
“I made a comment earlier tonight that I guess went out over the air that I am deeply ashamed of. If I have hurt anyone out there, I can’t tell you how much I say from the bottom of my heart I’m so very, very sorry. I pride myself and think of myself as a man of faith - as there’s a drive into deep left field by Castellanos that will be a home run. And so that will make it a 4-0 ballgame. I don’t know if I’m gonna be putting on this headset again. I don’t know if it’s gonna be for the Reds. I don’t know if it’s gonna be for my bosses at Fox,” Brennaman said during his apology.
It's truly hard to believe Thom Brennaman could have possibly thrown away his career the way he did https://t.co/ZgqfWDoTrE
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) August 20, 2020
On social media the hashtag #FireThom started trending, with many users calling for Brennaman to be fired and removed immediately from future broadcasts.
Thom Brennaman’s job is literally center around spoken words. His language is his craft. There is no excuse for ever uttering that word in any environment, let alone a work environment. #FireThom
— Wooooo™ (@WoooooTheReds) August 20, 2020
After Brennaman issued his on-air apology he was replaced by Jim Day, an occasional play-by-play broadcaster, but normally serves as a reporter and pre and post game host.
Statement from FOX Sports Ohio:
— FOX Sports Cincinnati (@FOXSportsCincy) August 20, 2020
The language that Thom Brennaman used this evening is hateful, offensive, and in no way reflects the values of FOX Sports Ohio. We agree with the @Reds decision to suspend him until further notice. https://t.co/kL966OW6Gt
Cox Media Group