Wow, little did I know that sports reporters from rival companies get heated at each other…
Okay, “heated” is a bit of an understatement after watching this video.
The bombshell footage has been released of the exact moment that led ESPN to fire MLB reporter Marly Rivera.
The footage, which was obtained by TMZ, shows Rivera speaking to Ivon Gaete in Spanish, basically telling her not to bother Aaron Judge while he was signing autographs for a number of fans before the game.
She also mentioned that it was her turn for an interview.
Then, after speaking Spanish for the first part of the spat, Gaete then starts speaking in English.
That’s when Rivera says:
“Oh, now you speak English.”
After Gaete refused Rivera’s orders to back away from the star Yankees outfielder, Rivera goes unhinged and says:
“What a f*cking c*nt.”
You can see Gaete is visibly shocked by the comment, and Rivera tries to clean it up by saying:
“I wasn’t talking about you.”
Gaete is a freelancer who was there to cover for Tokyo Broadcasting because Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Angels were playing the Yankees – but she also happens to be the wife of MLB’s VP of Communications John Blundell.
Rivera told the New York Post:
“I fully accept responsibility for what I said, which I should not have.
There were extenuating circumstances but that in no way is an excuse for my actions. I am professional with a sterling reputation across baseball and I do not believe that I am being singled out by a group of individuals with whom I have a long history of professional disagreements.”
Rivera had been working with ESPN as a dugout reporter on the network’s Home Run Derby coverage, along with appearing on games on TV and radio.
ESPN confirmed that Rivera has been terminated after the incident, saying in a simple statement that:
“She no longer works here.”
Rivera had been with ESPN for 13 years.
You can check out the full confrontation here:
