Fact Check: Has Glen Kuiper been fired by Oakland Athletics after using racial slur on-air?

For Oakland Athletics fans, 2023 is already becoming a season to forget. With an MLB-worst seven wins, the team has already committed to moving to Las Vegas before the end of the decade. Things got even worse for A's fans when well-known broadcaster Glen Kuiper used a racial slur that should never be said, let alone in front of a live audience.

Glen Kuiper, who has been covering the Oakland Athletics with NBCS since the early 2000s, was recounting his visit to the Negro League Museum in Kansas City. The Negro Leagues were leagues formed by African-American players to counter their exclusion from the MLB that was in effect through the late 1940s.

Instead of using the proper name for the museum, Kuiper employed a "hard R", turning a factual term into one of the most vulgar racial slurs in existence.

"For those asking why Glen Kuiper just made an on-air apology, here's why." - Timothy Burke

It did not take long for the outcry to start. Almost immediately, Oakland Athletics fans took to Twitter to lambast Kuiper and call for the immediate termination.

During the sixth inning of the game against the Kansas City Royals, Kuiper took an opportunity to address his comments and offer an unreserved apology for the racial slur, stating:

"I said something, didn’t come out quite the way I wanted it to, and I just wanted to apologize if it sounded different than I meant it to be said. I just wanted to apologize for that."

Kuiper was drafted out of community college by the Cincinnati Reds in 1982, although he turned down the big-league opportunity to focus on his blossoming career in broadcasting.

"I'm not sure what was said, but #Athletics TV Broadcaster Glen Kuiper opened the 6th-inning with an on-air apology." - Joe Hughes

The Oakland Athletics offered their own apology on Kuiper's behalf, claiming that they are "addressing the situation." Although Kuiper's ultimate fate is not yet known, the team or the network has not made any disciplinary moves as of this time.

Kiuper's sloppy comments summarize the 2023 Oakland Athletics

While Kiuper's regrettable remarks were likely a slip-up, the bad press is the last thing the Oakland Athletics need at this time.

Already 12 games behind the Texas Rangers in the AL West, it seems advisable for fans to forget Kiuper's comments, along with the rest of this trainwreck of a season.

We will see if there is more to come for Kuiper, and if the A's can salvage some respectability in the coming weeks.