Houston Astros Fire Staffer Over Outburst At Female Reporters

The Houston Astros have fired assistant general manager Brandon Taubman after investigating allegations that he taunted a group of female reporters once the team secured a berth in the World Series .

Taubman’s termination marks an abrupt about-face for the Astros. Earlier this week , the team dismissed what it called “misleading and completely irresponsible” reports that Taubman had singled out three female reporters, then repeatedly yelled praise for closer Roberto Osuna.

Osuna joined the Astros this year after serving a 75-game suspension last year for allegedly assaulting the mother of his child.

“Our initial investigation led us to believe Brandon Taubman’s inappropriate comments were not directed toward any reporter,” the team said in a statement . “We were wrong.”

“We sincerely apologize to Stephanie Apstein, Sports Illustrated and to all individuals who witnessed this incident or were offended by the inappropriate conduct. The Astros in no way intended to minimize the issues related to domestic violence.”

Apstein first described Taubman’s clubhouse behavior in a Sports Illustrated story on Monday. The Astros forcefully denied her report and accused the sports news outlet of attempting “to fabricate a story.”

The team had to walk that denial back on Tuesday after several other reporters who witnessed the incident stepped forward and confirmed the details. Major League Baseball also announced Tuesday that it would conduct an independent investigation, which helped inform the Astros’ decision to fire Taubman on Thursday.