Longtime MLB Announcer Apologizes for Slavery Reference During Playoff Game

By Brian Jones

Jim Kaat, a longtime MLB announcer who currently works for the MLB Network, issued an on-air apology during the Houston Astros vs. Chicago White Sox playoff game on Friday, saying he used "a poor choice of words" when he suggested teams should have a "40-acre field full" of players like White Sox infielder Yoan Moncada, according to The Athletic. Kaat said the remark early in the game when he, Buck Showalter and Bob Costas took some time to discuss Moncada's physique. 

"While they have a little break here, I need to read this right now," Kaat said later in the game. "Earlier in this game, when Yoán Moncada was at the plate, in an attempt to compliment the great player that he is, I used a poor choice of words that resulted in an insensitive and hurtful remark. And I'm sorry for that."  

The exchange started with Kaat saying: "I don't know how much you've seen of Moncada, but everybody talks like this guy should be a star, an All-Star." Showalter replied: "That's what they look like don't know about the rest of it. The first time I saw him in the big leagues I looked around the dugout and said 'Can we have one of those?' That's what they look like." And that's when Kaat said: "Get a 40-acre full of 'em." 

Social media had some interesting things to say about the remark. One person wrote: "No 82 year old should be anywhere near the broadcast booth of a game hoping to appeal to a general audience. Nobody gives a s— who Jim Kaat was 40 years ago and the simple truth is if he were playing today he would never have made an MLB roster."

There were some fans who didn't think Kaat's remarks were racist. Another person wrote: "Geez - reading into it much? Most people understood a manager would want all his players to be like him. Obviously not literally 40 acres worth - that's way higher than a baseball field." Kaat, 82, had a successful baseball career as a pitcher before moving to broadcasting. He won 283 games as a pitcher and won a World Series as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals.

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