Dallas Braden Breaks Silence On Colleague's Use Of Racial Slur On-Air

Oakland Athletics color commentator Dallas Braden issued a public statement addressing an incident in which his college, play-by-play man Glen Kuiper, used a racial slur during a live broadcast last Friday (May 5).

"Several people have questioned my lack of response to an issue that took place during the pregame broadcast of the Oakland A’s game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on Friday, May 5th. I believe my silence has been misinterpreted," Braden said in a post shared on his Twitter account. "At the time of the incident, I was not aware that anything in the broadcast was amiss. The nuances of live television mean that sometimes we, as broadcasters, miss some of what you, our audience, see and hear."

"I would like you to know that this incident has, indeed, impacted me greatly," Braden added. "First, I want to express my support and encouragement to my broadcast partner, Glen Kuiper, as he furthers his work in understanding the impact and hurt resulting from this unfortunate mistake.

"Second, when issues around race occur, I'm always interested in having conversations aimed at finding healing and advancing collaborative discussions. I have reached out to have those conversations, and I have listened, and I have learned. I will continue to seek clarity, encourage learning, and engage in dialogue to bring out the best in our diverse community."

Kuiper was discussing his time in Kansas City earlier in the day, which included visiting the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, though instead using the N-word while attempting to say the museum's name.

"A little earlier in the show, I said something, didn’t come out quite the way I wanted it to. I just wanted to apologize if it sounded different than I meant it to be said. … I just wanted to apologize for that,” Kuiper said when the broadcast returned from commercial break in the top of the sixth inning.

TMZ Sports shared a censored version of the incident, which can be seen below.

The A's referred to Kuiper's language as "unacceptable" in a statement issued to CNN.

“The language used by Glen Kuiper during (Friday’s) pregame broadcast is unacceptable,” the team said. “The Oakland Athletics do not condone such language. We are working to address the situation.”

Kuiper is in his 20th season as the voice of the Athletics' television broadcasts, having covered baseball in the Bay Area for NBC Sports California since 1992, according to his biography on the team's media guide. Oakland defeated Kansas City, 12-8, in Friday night's game.