Longtime baseball reporter Marly Rivera caught cursing at colleague before being fired by ESPN

Publish date: 2024-05-07

An online video shows longtime baseball reporter Marly Rivera cursing at her colleague before being dismissed by ESPN.

Rivera, a bilingual analyst and writer who appeared on ESPN, ESPN Radio and ESPN Deportes, had set up an interview with New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge on April 18 before New York played the Los Angeles Angels.

According to the New York Times, Ivon Gaete, a freelance reporter, who was also at Yankee Stadium to interview Judge, disregarded Rivera’s reminders about the appointment. 

As Rivera confronted Gaete about the matter, she was recorded using offensive language towards her.

Watch the Marly Rivera / Ivón Gaete incident from April 18th at Yankee Stadium, while Aaron Judge was nearby signing autographs for a group that included kids. pic.twitter.com/TPDg6SJ496

— michael j. babcock (@mikejbabcock) April 27, 2023

Reports state that Rivera apologized, but Gaete refused to accept it, claiming there was context to the situation. Rivera mentioned having previous disagreements with Gaete’s husband, John Blundell, the MLB vice president of communications. 

“I take full responsibility for my inappropriate language,”Rivera acknowledged to the New York Post’s Andrew Marchand, who initially reported the incident.

She added, “There were extenuating circumstances, but it’s no justification for my actions. I have a reputable professional history in baseball and I believe I am being singled out by a group of individuals with whom I have had ongoing professional disagreements.”

MLB’s Office of Investigations initiated an inquiry into the incident involving Rivera and Gaete. Following the league’s findings, ESPN’s human resources department conducted its own investigation, resulting in Rivera’s termination.

According to the Washington Post, this isn’t the only instance where Rivera has been accused of making derogatory remarks about fellow media members. Witnesses claim that she called another reporter a “White b***h” while trying to take a photograph, and referred to a Latino reporter as a “fake Hispanic”. Both incidents were allegedly witnessed by multiple people.


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