The Philadelphia sports talk legend has been banned from Citizens Bank Ballpark following an incident with a female Aramark employee in May.
Howard Eskin, a longtime Philadelphia announcer and father of former WFAN program director Spike Eskin, made unwanted advances to female employees at the Phillies’ home stadium, sparking an investigation and a decision to ban him from the ballpark. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The media outlet reported that Eskin had attempted to give the woman an unwanted kiss.
WIP’s parent company, Audacy, confirmed the incident and said it takes these types of matters very seriously.
According to the Inquirer, the incident happened before a match at the CP Rankin Club. The club said:Dedicated Area According to the team’s website, Eskin allegedly tried to kiss a woman at Citizens Bank Park when she took a seat between the dugouts and attempted to leave.
“We immediately investigated and took steps to address the issue,” an Audacy spokesperson told the outlet.
“We have since worked with Audacy and the Phillies to ensure appropriate steps were taken to protect our employees and all Aramark employees at Citizens Bank Park,” Aramark said in a statement.
Aramark is a food and facility services provider that operates at stadiums across the U.S., including Citi Field, Coors Field, Fenway Park, Kauffman Stadium, Minute Maid Park and PNC Park.
Audacy, the Phillies and Aramark are all involved in investigating the incident, and Audacy has decided to ban Eskin from the ballpark for the remainder of the season, though he will continue to host his two-hour Saturday morning show.
“We support Audacy’s decision to suspend Howard Eskin from Citizens Bank Park,” the Phillies said in a statement.
Eskin was a mainstay of Philadelphia sports media as one of the original employees of WIP when it converted to a sports-talk station in 1986, and his unique take on the local sports world made him both popular and derided.
According to the Inquirer, Eskins scaled back his role at the Philadelphia sports-talk station in 2011 but still frequently attended press conferences and appeared on WIP as a sideline reporter for Eagles football radio broadcasts.
The 72-year-old was on WIP on Tuesday morning to appear as a guest on the daytime show but will be absent from this weekend’s Saturday show, which is unrelated to Tuesday’s reports.
