Boston Red Sox

Red Sox announcer opposes in-game translators, tells pitchers to 'learn baseball language'

Published Jun. 7, 2017 11:16 a.m. ET

Pete Blackburn

Red Sox broadcaster and former infielder Jerry Remy dropped a controversial take during Tuesday night's win over the Yankees in the Bronx, an opinion that the team has taken exception to.

During a fourth-inning mound visit in which Yankees pitcher coach Larry Rothschild and Japanese translator Shingo Horie spoke to starter Masahiro Tanaka, Remy said he believes that foreign language translators should be outlawed.

https://twitter.com/SportsFunhouse/status/872250051103477760

“Learn baseball language. You know, learn—it’s pretty simple,” Remy said, after play-by-play man Dave O'Brien asked him what he doesn't like about translators. “You break it down pretty easy between pitching coach and pitcher after a long period of time.”

O'Brien seemed to take a more careful and cautious approach to the potentially insensitive remarks and reminded Remy that translators are there to make up for "nuance being lost in some of these conversations."

On Wednesday morning, a Red Sox spokesperson made sure it was clear that the team did not agree with Remy's stance.

https://twitter.com/NestorARamos/status/872431202782900224

Considering how diverse and inclusive Major League Baseball is, it's no surprise that Remy's comments have been met with opposition.

MLB has allowed on-field translators since the 2013 season. Last year, the league mandated that each team must employ a full-time Spanish-speaking translator. For what it's worth, the Red Sox have employed multiple translators in recent years, including a Japanese interpreter who would accompany the coaching staff during mound visits with reliever Koji Uehara.

Remy later apologized for his comments on Wednesday morning.

https://twitter.com/Jerry_Remy/status/872468826457337857