Orioles announcer Kevin Brown returning ‘soon’ after baffling suspension

An unjust punishment could be ending soon.

Suspended Baltimore Orioles and MASN play-by-play announcer Kevin Brown has not called an Orioles game since July 26 for reportedly irking team ownership with non-inflammatory comments made July 23 about the team’s lack of success at Tropicana Field against the Rays.

A senior Orioles official told Awful Announcing that Brown will be back “soon” but did not provide a return date.

“We look forward to hearing Kevin’s voice soon,” the official told the site, which broke the news of Brown’s absence from broadcasts.

Brown has missed eight broadcasts spanning the team’s last three series, and last could be heard on the radio during the team’s series against the Phillies from July 24-26.

The Orioles have become a focal point for criticism and ridicule – particularly from fellow play-by-play announcers – for their controversial decision to have Brown removed from broadcasts.

Brown, the team’s play-by-play announcer for the past two seasons, noted during the most recent Orioles-Rays series how the team had already won more games at Tropicana Field in 2023 than it had in the previous three seasons combined.

This is not a surprising nor shocking comment since the Orioles have spent the past few seasons rebuilding, while the Rays have been one of the AL’s top teams.

Team-owned MASN even had a graphic to accompany Brown’s comments with the headline, “Trop-ical Depression,” and The Athletic reported the team’s game notes contained the stats Brown referenced.

The Orioles went 3-18 at Tropicana Field from 2020-22 and were 0-15-1 in their last 16 series before winning three of four in Tampa during that series.

“It is a stark difference,” Brown said. 

While those comments seem as mild as could be to most, those remarks irked the Angelos family as they believed it “made them sound cheap,” per The Athletic.

The Orioles are known for being one of MLB’s thriftiest teams with their low payrolls under the Angelos family.

They ranked 29th in payroll on Opening Day, according to USA Today.

The fallout from this suspension has surrounded the team with negativity in an otherwise special season as the Orioles enter Tuesday with an AL-best 70-42 mark.