When it comes to recalling the time Cleveland Guardians broadcaster Rick Manning said that a player wanted to “kill himself” during a broadcast, we’re officially at the “which one?” stage.
During Monday’s broadcast of the Guardians’ 5-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers, FanDuel Sports Network North showed a replay of Milwaukee outfielder Sal Frelick looking at strike three in the bottom of the ninth. That prompted a matter-of-fact assessment from Manning.
“He wants to kill himself right now,” said Manning.
Not great, especially since May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and Major League Baseball has an active campaign around it.
What’s wild is that this is now the second time Manning has used that phrase during an MLB broadcast.
In August 2024, Manning was calling a game between the Guardians and Chicago Cubs when Cleveland outfielder Jhonkensy Noel hit a home run off of Chicago reliever Drew Smyly.
“Oh, Smyly. He wants to kill himself,” said Manning. “He hung him a breaking ball and boy, Noel took advantage of it.”
We can give Manning the benefit of the doubt and presume he’s not meaning to make light of self-harm. Still, he’s gotta start figuring out how to get a different turn of phrase ready for these situations. This is getting very awkward.