An attempt at humour for Giants pitcher Derek Holland netted him few laughs and loads of criticism on social media after an interview on “Intentional Talk” in which he mocks an Asian accent alongside team massage therapist and personal “hype man” Haro Ogawa, who is Japanese.
derek holland brought his “hype man” onto an intentional talk interview. the hype man spends the entire interview silent except when addressed.
— Joon Lee (@joonlee) August 22, 2018
holland then impersonates a strong asian accent to play for laughs. that’s the entire joke. that holland uses an asian accent. come on. pic.twitter.com/N3qhoYncro
In a statement issued by the Giants to Deadspin, Holland apologized for his actions.
"I apologize for what I've done and what I've caused," Holland said. "I don't want to offend anybody."
San Francisco added: “The Giants organization does not condone that type of behavior in any way. We spoke to Derek regarding his interview yesterday and he completely understands the severity of the situation and he apologizes if it offended anyone. That was not his intention at all, but he’s taking full responsibility for it. It was not his intention at all to embarrass Haro.”
After the Giants’ 3-1 win over the Mets on Thursday, Holland asked to speak to reporters.
"It’s embarrassing what I did. I was just trying to have some fun. Haro and I entertained trying to take it to a different level and make the interview more exciting, and I obviously crossed the line with that,” he said (via NBCsports.com). “I understand I’ve offended people, and that's on me.”
Holland also apologized to bullpen catcher Taira Uematsu, who also is Japanese.