Ken Rosenthal interviews Xander Bogaerts of the Boston Red Sox. Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

NBA reporter David Aldridge calls out MLB over Ken Rosenthal firing

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Darryn Albert | Last updated 1/4/22

One well-known NBA reporter is sounding off on MLB Network’s decision this week to cut ties with Ken Rosenthal.

Veteran hoops journalist David Aldridge of The Athletic posted a tweet on Tuesday defending Rosenthal and comparing the situation to his own personal experience with late former NBA commissioner David Stern.

I worked for Turner Sports, which operated NBA TV & https://t.co/tv9kc58LDa in partnership w/the league, for 14 years. You know what David Stern did when I wrote or said something he didn’t like? He called me up and cussed me out. But he didn’t go to my bosses & try to fire me.
— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) January 4, 2022

Rosenthal, one of the top baseball reporters in the industry, was forced out at MLB Network this week over critical comments that he made about MLB commissioner Rob Manfred. MLB Network quietly kept Rosenthal off the air for several months at the time of his comments in 2020 and then moved to let Rosenthal go outright after his contract expired. Rosenthal will still write and report for The Athletic, the outlet that also employs Aldridge.

As for Stern, he was known for being a very tough boss, but Aldridge, who worked for a league-owned network for many years, thinks that even Stern would not have handled business quite like this.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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