Thom Brennaman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Thom Brennaman
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Brennaman in 2018
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Thomas Wade Brennaman
September 12, 1963 |
| Alma mater | Ohio University |
| Occupation | Sportscaster |
| Years active | 1986–present |
| Spouse(s) | Polly |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent(s) | Marty Brennaman and Brenda Dickey |
| Sports commentary career | |
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Thomas Wade Brennaman (born September 12, 1963) is an American television sportscaster. A sportscaster is someone who reports on sports events, often during live games. He is currently the main announcer for CW Sports college football games.
Thom is the son of Marty Brennaman, who was also a famous sportscaster for the Cincinnati Reds baseball team. Thom worked for Fox Sports from 1994 to 2020. He was also the television voice for the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team from 1998 to 2006. Later, he became the voice of the Cincinnati Reds from 2007 to 2020. Since then, he has worked as a commentator for the Roberto Clemente League and Chatterbox Sports.
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Starting His Career in Broadcasting
After finishing high school in Cincinnati in 1982, Thom Brennaman went to Ohio University. While in college, he wasn't sure if he wanted to become a broadcaster like his dad. However, he joined the college radio station, WATH, and found that he really loved radio.
After graduating in 1986, Brennaman started working as a sports reporter and anchor for WLWT-TV in Cincinnati. During this time, he also began announcing games for the Cincinnati Reds on television. He worked alongside Johnny Bench, a famous baseball player who is now in the Hall of Fame.
In the early 1990s, he announced games for the Chicago Cubs baseball team. He worked for WGN-TV, a national TV channel. He would often switch roles with another famous announcer, Harry Caray, between television and radio during games.
Working with Fox Sports
In 1994, Fox Sports hired Thom Brennaman. He started calling games for the National Football League (NFL) and Major League Baseball (MLB) on their network. Brennaman also announced college football and college basketball games for Fox.
He became the first television announcer for the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team. He worked with them from their first season in 1998 until 2006. After that, he left to join his father, Marty, in Cincinnati to announce games for the Reds.
In 2006, Fox chose Brennaman to be their main play-by-play announcer for the Bowl Championship Series (BCS). This meant he called big college football games, including the BCS National Championship Game. He also announced the 2007 Fiesta Bowl. He worked with former college coaches and players during these broadcasts. He also called the 2008 Sugar Bowl and the 2009 Orange Bowl.
Brennaman also worked for the Big Ten Network for two seasons, starting in 2007. He was their main announcer for college football games. In 2009, he returned to calling NFL games full-time for Fox. He often worked with former NFL coach Brian Billick.
National Baseball Games
From 1996 to 2015, Brennaman was part of Fox Sports' second main baseball broadcast team. He announced many postseason games from 1996 to 2006.
He was the announcer during a famous moment in baseball history: the "Steve Bartman incident" during Game 6 of the 2003 National League Championship Series. During that play, a fan interfered with a ball, and Brennaman described it live. He was also on the call when Randy Johnson threw a perfect game in 2004. A perfect game is when a pitcher doesn't let any opposing players reach base during the entire game.
After 2015, Brennaman focused more on his role with the Cincinnati Reds.
Announcing for the Cincinnati Reds
On October 3, 2006, the owner of the Cincinnati Reds hired Brennaman. He announced 45 Reds games on television and 45 games on radio each season. Thom no longer broadcasts for the Cincinnati Reds. His father, Marty, retired from the Reds near the end of the 2019 season.
On-Air Incident and Its Impact
On August 19, 2020, while announcing a Reds game, Thom Brennaman used an offensive word that was heard on a live microphone. The Reds quickly removed him from the broadcast during the game. Before leaving, Brennaman apologized to viewers, saying he was "deeply ashamed." He also suggested that his future in broadcasting was uncertain.
Many people noticed that his apology was interrupted when he suddenly called a home run hit by player Nick Castellanos. He then continued his apology, saying he was sorry to "the people who sign my paycheck."
Later that night, the Reds announced that Brennaman was suspended. The next day, Fox Sports said he would not be part of their NFL broadcasts for 2020.
Brennaman later wrote a longer apology and spoke with an MLB Vice President who works on inclusion. He also reached out to an LGBTQ+ organization to make amends. About a month later, Brennaman officially resigned from the Reds and Fox Sports Ohio. He told USA Today that he realized his remark "hurt a lot of people."
John Sadak replaced Brennaman for Reds games, and Kevin Kugler took over his NFL games on Fox.
Brennaman's apology, especially the part where he called the home run, became a popular internet meme among baseball fans. A meme is a funny image, video, or text that spreads quickly online. This meme often connects Nick Castellanos and hitting untimely home runs. People would jokingly interrupt serious apologies with Brennaman's famous home run call. This made fun of apologies that didn't seem truly sorry.
In November 2024, Brennaman playfully referred to the incident while calling a college football game for the CW. He smiled at the camera when talking about a player named Thomas Castellanos.
Working in Puerto Rico
In December 2020, it was announced that Brennaman would become a play-by-play announcer for the Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente in Puerto Rico. This was for the 2020–21 baseball season.
Chatterbox Sports
On July 22, 2021, Chatterbox Sports hired Brennaman as their new play-by-play announcer. Chatterbox Sports is an online service that streams high school games in the Cincinnati area. The president of Chatterbox Sports, Trace Fowler, said he wanted to give Brennaman a second chance. He explained that while he didn't approve of what Brennaman said, he believed Brennaman was a good person who made a mistake and truly regretted it.
CW Sports
In 2024, it was reported that Brennaman was hired by CW Sports. He became their main announcer for college football games, especially those from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). In this role, Brennaman announced the first Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl on December 28, 2024.
Other Projects
Brennaman has also lent his voice to several video games. These include Microsoft Baseball 2001 and the All-Star Baseball series from 2002 to 2005. He also announced college basketball games for CBS Radio and Fox Sports Net. For a time, he was a spokesperson for CBTS, a company in Cincinnati, appearing in their TV commercials. He also called basketball games for the Cincinnati Bearcats college team.
Images for kids
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Brennaman in 2018
