Royals Broadcasters Should Probably Stop Using the Term "Chinese Home Run"

This video comes from Tuesday night’s Royals – Indians broadcast on FSN Kansas City. Ryan Lefebvre and Rex Hudler were on the call in the bottom of the 4th when Cleveland catcher Brett Hayes hit a long foul ball that prompted this brief exchange:

"“What did Monty call that last night?” “Chinese home run?” “Chinese-“"

At that point, the subject is changed back to the fan who has lost his beer and phone while jumping over railings and seats to get a foul ball that no one else was after. It was an incredible effort, but the situation was made quite uncomfortable by the use of what the The Dickson Baseball Dictionary quite simply defined as a “derogatory term.”

Here’s an excerpt from Bill Madden’s 2014 book “1954: The Year Willie Mays and the First Generation of Black Superstars Changed Major League Baseball Forever:”

The term is a reference to cheap Chinese labor that was supposed to be put down in the 1950’s. In a 2013 post on SB Nation, Rob Neyer mentions an A’s announcer getting criticized for using the term in 1981. Odds are, “Monty,” (Possibly Royals Live co-host Jeff Montgomery?) didn’t use “Chinese home run” on the air the night before. Either way, it is time for Royals broadcasters to retire the term from their vocabulary permanently. Both on the air and in private.