Stephen A. Smith Slammed For Xenophobic Comment About Asian MLB Player
ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith is under fire after making questionable remarks regarding Los Angeles Angels’ player Shohei Ohtani.
During an episode of First Take, the television host criticized Ohtani, a Japanese native, for needing an interpreter when speaking to the press.
“When you talk about an audience gravitating to the tube or to the ballpark to actually watch you, OK, I don’t think it helps that the No. 1 face is a dude that needs an interpreter so you can understand what the hell he’s saying in this country,” Smith said. “And that’s what I’m trying to say.”
Stephen A Smith saying that Shohei Ohtani, responsible for the 10 highest viewed regular season games this year and what will likely be the most watched HRD ever, shouldn’t be considered a face of baseball because he needs an interpreter. Kindly piss off
— Brain (@brian_slosh) July 12, 2021
“The fact that you got a foreign player that doesn’t speak English, that needs an interpreter…believe it or not, I think contributes to harming the game in some degree when that’s your box office appeal. It needs to be somebody like Bryce Harper, Mike Trout, those guys. And unfortunately, at this moment in time, that’s not the case,” Smith continued.
Many were outraged at Smith’s comments, accusing him of xenophobia at a time when anti-Asian rhetoric has become increasingly prominent.
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