Jack Morris Suspended for Racist Shohei Ohtani Remark
Category: News & Politics
Via: john-russell • 4 years ago • 6 commentsBy: Brandon Contes (Mediaite)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
By Brandon ContesAug 19th, 2021, 9:40 am Twitter share button <?php // Post Body ?>
Baseball Hall-of-Famer and veteran broadcaster Jack Morris has been suspended indefinitely from his role as a Detroit Tigers TV analyst following his racist remark about Shohei Ohtani .
During Tuesday night's Bally Sports Detroit broadcast featuring the Tigers and Los Angeles Angels, play-by-play voice Matt Shepard asked Morris how he would go about pitching to Ohtani.
"Be very, very careful," Morris replied of facing the MLB superstar from Japan. But Morris altered the "r" sounds in a way that appeared to mock an Asian accent. While others on social media questioned if Morris was attempting an Elmer Fudd impression, that excuse was not leaned on by the broadcaster or his employer Bally Sports Detroit, who swiftly handed him an indefinite suspension.
(WATCH: MLB Analyst Appears to Mock Shohei Ohtani with Fake Accent, Later Apologizes for the Apparent Racist Joke)
"Bally Sports Detroit is extremely disappointed with the remarks analyst Jack Morris made during [Tuesday] night's Tigers game," the network announced in a statement. "Jack has been suspended indefinitely from Tigers broadcasts and will be undergoing bias training to educate him on the impact of his comments and how he can be a positive influence in a diverse community. We have a zero-tolerance policy for bias or discrimination and deeply apologize for his insensitive remark."
The Tigers echoed the statement by Bally Sports Detroit, supporting their decision to suspend Morris.
"The Detroit Tigers take immense pride in honoring the diverse cultures that make up our players, coaching staff, front office, fan base and community," the franchise stated. "We are deeply disappointed by the comments made by Jack Morris during the broadcast last night. We fully support Bally Sports Detroit's decision and their on-going commitment to ensure that all personnel are held to the highest standards of personal conduct."
Ohtani seemed unbothered by the remark from Morris. "I did see the footage and I heard it. Personally, I'm not offended and I didn't take anything personally," Ohtani said through an interpreter. "He is a Hall of Famer. He has a big influence in the baseball world. It's kind of a tough spot."
Ohtani's performance was not bothered by Morris either, hitting his 40th home run on Wednesday and dominating the Tigers with eight strong innings on the mound.
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Making fun of ethnic accents is tricky. I dont think the reward is worth the risk any longer. In the first place they arent really that funny, even if you do them well.
Remember that Saturday Night Live character long ago who said "Baseball been bery bery good to me" ?
That doesnt actually sound funny any more does it, although it was seen as so at the time.
Don't recall much outrage from this one:
Dont care too much for the skit but I dont think it was mocking anyone's speech patterns. The "joke" was in the lyrics, not the way they were sung.
Nah, some people get a free pass on such things and others don't. A clear double standard and hypocrisy.
I thought the sketch was hilarious because it clearly wasn't intended with malice. Just like the Jack Morris comment.
Yeah, that’s what it made me think of. Garrett Morris used to do that bit. The character was Chico Escuela. It could have also been Elmer Fudd, like they said, but the Chico Escuela thing is an old and popular baseball joke. I remember it being very common among the guys I played with. That seems most likely to me.
Does that make it ok? I suppose not, but at least it wouldn’t be specifically anti-Asian, or even personal.
Jack was always a prick but this is just more PC nonsense.