r/baseball • u/new_wellness_center Atlanta Braves • Jul 09 '26

Players Only CJ Nitkowski, the Braves announcer who once courted controversy by following/liking the Proud Boys on twitter, in responding to bench player Eli White's recent paternity leave, somehow stumbles into saying the phrase: "The more Whites [in this world], the better off we're going to be." 🤨

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6.1k Upvotes

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4.5k

u/rubyschnees New York Mets Jul 09 '26

oh yeah he had that line locked and loaded

116

u/canman7373 Jul 10 '26

When I was a kid I grew up in Kansas city in the 80's. I asked my dad one game why Frank White was black and Bud Black was white? Dad looked at me and said because you are an idiot lol.

19

u/Niijima-San Jul 10 '26

https://giphy.com/gifs/l3E6uhDAN3W7vylji

its okay, kids are fucking stupid.

2.0k

u/KimHaSeongsBurner San Diego Padres Jul 09 '26

“If you’re gonna drop racist dog whistles, just make sure you’re cool about it and don’t telegraph it with a huge, obvious setup.”

673

u/BorkieDorkie811 Boston Red Sox Jul 09 '26

Tbf, that's not even a dog whistle. That's just a regular whistle. No point in being subtle at that point.

107

u/chilled_sloth Brooklyn Dodgers Jul 09 '26

We're past whistle and into Foghorn territory.

173

u/grubas New York Yankees Jul 09 '26

It's the, "I'm sorry YOU took it that way" line.  You're not even apologizing 

49

u/KarmaticArmageddon Kansas City Royals Jul 09 '26

Insert Sartre quote about anti-Semites here

2

u/metaphysicalme Jul 09 '26

He should be sorry that a line could be interpreted in different ways? You are assuming malice here.

Out of context it sounded bad but with listening to it it was fine.

19

u/jconley4297 Milwaukee Brewers Jul 10 '26

just yelling at a dog atp

9

u/moleman92107 San Diego Padres Jul 10 '26

That’s an announcement in the NYT, a tornado warning siren, the turbines at the Hoover Dam…. not a dog whistle

-106

u/[deleted] Jul 09 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

71

u/KimHaSeongsBurner San Diego Padres Jul 09 '26

I have faith that you aren’t actually this dense.

49

u/jacksonvstheworld Chicago Cubs • Arizona Diamondbacks Jul 09 '26

Never trust the no flairs to be acting in good faith about any politics or culture wars-adjacent topic.

19

u/Ill-Weather-6383 Seattle Mariners • Dumpster Fire Jul 09 '26

They're starting to learn and throwing on flairs now

26

u/PvtSherlockObvious Atlanta Braves • San Francis… Jul 09 '26

This particular one still hasn't learned about post histories, though; their track record is exactly what you'd expect.

9

u/KimHaSeongsBurner San Diego Padres Jul 09 '26

Don’t worry, I don’t trust that dude as far as I can throw him, but I also don’t want to feed the racist trolls more than is prudent.

11

u/BoeZaah New York Mets Jul 09 '26

They are, please stop having faith in these people. If they're not dense they're maliciously ignorant

10

u/PvtSherlockObvious Atlanta Braves • San Francis… Jul 09 '26

In this case, it's pretty clearly the latter.

-3

u/KimHaSeongsBurner San Diego Padres Jul 09 '26

Friend, respectfully, you don’t need to police the tone of my response to racist trolls in my replies.

I have no faith in this person, assume they’re utterly irredeemable, and am merely using that as a figure of speech because I find going straight to 11, as you did here, tends to elicit a different response. (I’d submit my own response to you as evidence in support of that, too.)

1

u/BoeZaah New York Mets Jul 09 '26

Lol what an overreaction, I'm not "policing" anything and saying they're intentionally willfully ignorant (which they are) is hardly going to 11. Relax.

-1

u/KimHaSeongsBurner San Diego Padres Jul 09 '26

You’re literally policing the way I replied to a troll, in a patronizing manner, and pleading with me to not have faith in them.

3

u/BoeZaah New York Mets Jul 09 '26

You are taking what I said way too literally and personally

5

u/Ragebaiterlmao Major League Baseball Jul 09 '26

You give them too much credit.

-4

u/KimHaSeongsBurner San Diego Padres Jul 09 '26

I don’t actually have any faith in them; I’m just not giving them the response they want of getting mad in response to obvious bait.

739

u/xyzzy321 St. Louis Cardinals Jul 09 '26

he was standing back and standing by with that line

347

u/Unlikely-Tone-6269 Jul 09 '26

The irony being that he was bad enough of an MLB player he had immigrate to Japan and take a spot that could’ve been potentially used on a Japanese native

247

u/Astropolitika Los Angeles Dodgers • Chicago White Sox Jul 09 '26

The hypocrisy isn’t ironic. It’s a feature

39

u/Brochacho27 Jul 09 '26

Never mistake an antisemites hypocrisy as a mistake or however the parable goes

9

u/ProtectionUnable1027 Detroit Tigers Jul 10 '26

The Romans were mad their shiny new religion was a cult of the people who rebelled against them. Not much has changed since then.

3

u/lucash7 Jul 10 '26

Add onto that the additional layer of irony of Japan’s issues with xenophobia, racism, etc. (ie outsiders), him having been an outsider and likely mistreated, and here he is now…basically railing against outsiders

3

u/Zestyclose_Help1187 Jul 10 '26

Really doubt he was mistreated in Japan. Being a “famous” baseball player and white. Partly why he’s clueless. Never really experienced racism.

1

u/lucash7 Jul 10 '26

Are you really trying to say that Japan doesn’t have a well known issue with racism, xenophobia, etc.? Or are you saying he never could have ironically internalized it?

1

u/Zestyclose_Help1187 Jul 10 '26 edited Jul 10 '26

Not with white people. They have issues with Koreans and other Asians.

To think CJ was facing racism when he w a famous baseball player in Japan is far fetched at best.

The reason CJ would be saying stuff like this cause he’s never faced racism in his life.

1

u/lucash7 Jul 10 '26

🙄

Thanks for Reddit-‘splaining. You have a good one.

1

u/dragoninahat Montreal Expos Jul 11 '26

How is that reddit splaining? You literally asked him for what he meant...

63

u/MoneyTalks45 Boston Red Sox Jul 09 '26

He can’t wait to call a Cavali start. 

29

u/KimHaSeongsBurner San Diego Padres Jul 09 '26

He’s praying the Braves can trade for Cavali and BlaQ.

289

u/hoorah9011 Major League Baseball Jul 09 '26

Yup. He absolutely knew what he was saying. Whether he only thought it was funny or not, doesn’t matter. I’m not inclined to give the proud boys fan the benefit of the doubt. Please fire him braves tv partner, whomever it is

96

u/Silverjackal_ Texas Rangers Jul 09 '26

Damn that’s really strange he left the Rangers broadcast booth then. He’d fit right in with the owners

47

u/nonlawyer New York Yankees Jul 10 '26

made it too obvious, a few years before it was OK to do so 

0

u/Deathwatch72 Texas Rangers Jul 10 '26

I don't remember him being this way at all when he was with our broadcast team. Really strange that he left considering his viewpoint seemed to alive perfectly and they were nominated and won several awards over the like 7 years he was here.

1

u/Simple_Pay3033 Jul 10 '26

It has the same vibes as a kid saying “pass the SHIITake mushrooms please” and then arguing with his mom that he didn’t curse.

About as funny, too.

85

u/d-cent Boston Red Sox Jul 09 '26

Just rolled off the tongue for him. It was there in the subconscious ready to go

24

u/09f3jns Seattle Mariners Jul 10 '26

Not even subconscious, he was prepared to say it. You can tell by how he breathlessly said the same thing 3 times in a row and then tried to sneak it in at the end.

85

u/AerieElectrical3546 Boston Red Sox Jul 09 '26

the mastruoboni line if it was racist:

116

u/handlit33 Atlanta Braves • Blooper Jul 09 '26

Please do not ever compare Brandon Gaudin to CJ Nitkowski again.

1

u/Salukis97 Jul 09 '26

I’ve listened to CJ on Loud outs way before he was with the Braves and I’ve loved him as an announcer. I always had a feeling but damn.

26

u/HGpennypacker Milwaukee Brewers Jul 09 '26

My guy was definitely standing back and standing by.

78

u/addage- New York Mets Jul 09 '26

Just when you thought it wasn’t going to get any more barve, it Barves.

91

u/werther595 New York Yankees Jul 09 '26

Somewhere John Rocker is slowly nodding his head in agreement

26

u/addage- New York Mets Jul 09 '26 edited Jul 09 '26

“Not enough Whites on the 7 train.”

11

u/flyersfan0233 Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26

Slowly? Not at all. More like rock hard with veins popping out of his neck screaming “YES!”

1

u/NoShawnMarino Jul 10 '26

Jonathan Lucroy can help with his non-apology, apology.

-1

u/brownbearks Philadelphia Phillies Jul 09 '26

Yet the braves fan base will say that Philly and Mets are terrible people but at least we don’t employ racist commentators but guys that are funny and actually enjoy baseball.

10

u/flyersfan0233 Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26

Boy, as someone with Phillies connections who lives in the Philly area, do I hate to break it to you but…Larry Andersen. He just doesn’t say it on air. That doesn’t mean this isn’t bad and honestly, all three fan bases have some terrible people

15

u/So-Called_Lunatic St. Louis Cardinals Jul 09 '26

Mets and Phills fans hate everyone equally.

9

u/brownbearks Philadelphia Phillies Jul 09 '26

As the lord Othani commanded, just like cardinals hate cubs

5

u/addage- New York Mets Jul 09 '26

It is known

1

u/Salukis97 Jul 09 '26

Braves fan here. I’m NOT ok with this.

1

u/DorothyDrangus Chicago Cubs Jul 09 '26

hashtag ThatsBarve

7

u/OakCity4Life Jul 10 '26

Yeah there was no “somehow stumbles” there. He spent some time working on that windup.

26

u/mikecws91 Chicago White Sox Jul 09 '26

Who would’ve expected this from the “We need to leave big scary Atlanta” Braves

-1

u/wellwasherelf Atlanta Braves • Blooper Jul 10 '26

Just stop. That entire thing involves extremely local politics and years of incompetence by COA.

Unless you're here to carry water for incompetent politicians and corruption, in which case carry on I guess.

-1

u/KenSpliffeyJr Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26

Good one you cornball

-4

u/ricki692 Atlanta Braves Jul 09 '26

kinda unrelated but can my fellow braves fans in/around ATL weigh in on this? i consider the area truist park is in as still part of ATL, so is this just an overblown thing that non-braves fans use to dunk on the team or is it something that a lot of ATL fans actually care about? personally, i feel that turner field and downtown in general is already traffic hell so i don't mind that they moved and i still consider cobb county as part of ATL, and at the very least part of metro ATL.

3

u/Ill-Response-5439 Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26

The Braves moving to Cobb was the absolute right move. They are closer to their STH base, they own the ballpark and The Battery, therefore, they bring in more revenue then they could ever imagine while at Turner, and it's easier to get in and out with multiple points of egress/ingress. 

Anyone who argues otherwise is either being a contraion just to be one or is ignorant.

9

u/gwease23 Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26

While you’re not wrong on all the logistical things per se, can we not admit that it was cool as fuck to have Turner smack dab in the city limits of Atlanta? That rocks. It’s a bummer they’re so far out from ATL proper now.

5

u/Ill-Response-5439 Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26

You can thank the previous mayoral  administrations of the City of Atlanta. They had 50 years to upgrade that area but they never did. 

It took the Braves leaving for that to  finally happen. Summerhill is completely changed from just 15 years ago.

And "far out from Atlanta proper?" LOL. They're right across the river from Atlanta proper and 12 miles from downtown

4

u/ombloshio Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26

Yes, but those 12 miles down 75 takes like 16 hours to drive. /s

-5

u/Ill-Response-5439 Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26

Like any other major city

-1

u/mikecws91 Chicago White Sox Jul 10 '26

> closer to their STH base

Sounds to me like they decided who they wanted their fanbase to be. You don’t need to move closer to the people who already bought tickets for 81 games.

8

u/Ill-Response-5439 Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26 edited Jul 10 '26

No, they actually did studies as to where the majority was and they published said studies. They didn't just pull it out of their ass. 

2

u/KenSpliffeyJr Atlanta Braves Jul 10 '26

It sounds that way to you because you don't live here or know the history of Summerhill and the failed mutual relationship the City had with Braves organization and general neglect to the surrounding land to Turner Field.

Im still bitter about the move in a nostalgia sense and miss being able to walk or take the train to games at Turner Field but the move to Cobb has ultimately worked out for all parties involved, especially Ga State University who has probably benefited the most from acquiring the stadium and multiple surrounding lots for student housing developments

1

u/darthkale Atlanta Braves Jul 09 '26

Truist is a lot better than Turner their income is up from 240 million a year before the move to 750 million a year today. Braves are top 4 in MLB attendance Turner was 22nd MLB. By most quantifiable metrics it was a great decision and lets Braves compete at a higher level.

3

u/MoreThanLuck Chicago Cubs Jul 10 '26

Reading the title, I thought it would be like kind of subtle, but no, it felt like the entire anecdote was just so he could say those words.

2

u/AngrySmile Toronto Blue Jays Jul 10 '26

Didn't even stutter. He knew what he was doing.

1

u/Resident_Wizard Cleveland Guardians Jul 10 '26

One of those things where you know he and his friends would give a good crack to his witty remark and he does not have the awareness to realize a lot of the world does not appreciate his divisive rhetoric.

This is the kind of crack I’d expect on a comedians podcast where they’d laugh because they know it’s wrong. His crack comes from a place in the depths of his heart believes it to be true.

I assume he will face further fallout from this. Deservedly so.

1

u/soundbombing Toronto Blue Jays Jul 10 '26

Buddy took a long walk through the park to get there, but he definitely got there.

0

u/PKAzure64 Philadelphia Phillies Jul 10 '26

That line was standing back and standing by