Remember when the Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay said the Blue Jays “are not a first-place team” and were “not playing great baseball” back in July? The Canadian team responded by sweeping the series against the Yankees. But now comes another jab from a rival broadcaster, but it might have gone too far from the foul line.

Canada became a part of baseball when Toronto got the Blue Jays in 1977. While the survey shows hockey tops the popularity lists in Canada, and baseball is at 4th, the game has carved out its own place in Canadian sports culture. Still, Orioles announcer Brian Roberts seems to think otherwise.

“I gotta be real, real careful with what I say,” said Roberts on the MASN broadcast during the second game of the Blue Jays-Orioles series. “Sometimes we had some questions about the baseball IQ of some Canadians…maybe they knew a little more about hockey than baseball.”

The remark came on Friday, during the Orioles-Blue Jays matchup. The reason?

Orioles pitcher, Shawn Dubin, made a routine throw to first to keep Myles Straw from taking off for second. While it is a pretty standard play, it visibly drew some boos from the Blue Jays crowd at Rogers Centre. And that’s when Roberts took a dig at the fans. But poking the fans at the stands and commenting aloud on the entire region’s IQ is not the same thing.

Plus, how can we ignore the fact that another Canadian city is on the run to enter the league?

For baseball, it’s a long-standing tradition. Fans will almost always boo when the visiting pitcher tries a pickoff move. So, the Blue Jays fans are ensuring that they do not let the remark go unnoticed. While last time, the Blue Jays team responded on the field against Kay, fans are blasting the Orioles’ broadcaster over social media this time.

The Orioles announcer gets called out by the Blue Jays fans

The responses from the Blue Jays come hard and brutal. “This happens in every game for every stadium…,” one fan noted about why this approach is nothing unique to the Blue Jays.

“Like we’re the only ones who do that, every other team’s fans do it at home too,“ another added, echoing the same sentiment.

Another comment talked about the pickoff play, particularly. “I hear other fans of teams booing when the Jays try to do a pick off. Not just Canadians doing it.” Pickoff attempts to first base are one of the most common defensive moves pitchers make in MLB, especially when there’s a speedy runner on base. For instance, Andy Pettitte’s pickoff number was around 92 career pickoffs, making him one of the legends in MLB history. And just this May, the Yankees’ Max Fried picked off Jose Caballero with a nice move to first. Hence, American teams also follow the same suit. 

Also, it took no time for the Blue Jays fans to remind the Orioles broadcasters about their rankings. “Opinion of an irrelevant commentator on a last-place team. Who cares?“

Another added, “They should watch how they talk about their superiors.” This season, the Blue Jays are having a dream run, topping the AL East with an 86-62 record and set to enter the playoffs. On the other hand, the Orioles couldn’t reemerge from their initial slump and stayed as a basement dweller with a 69-79 record.

“Ya, that’s why you’re in last place,” another comment read.

Surely, the Orioles’ broadcasting booth didn’t anticipate this kinda response. But messing up with a table-topper team…? Probably, they brought it upon themselves!