F.P Santangelo will not return to the Nationals broadcast booth in 2022 after 11 seasons as MASN's color analyst.
Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic was first two break the news, reporting on Wednesday that Santangelo would not be returning to his longtime role alongside MASN play-by-play analyst Bob Carpenter.
The news comes after Santangelo missed much of the 2021 regular season after being accused of sexual misconduct by an anonymous woman on Instagram, which initially caused him to miss game broadcasts in late April and early May, according to a report from The Athletic at the time.
The Nationals organization had temporarily revoked its approval of Santangelo as a member of its broadcasting team. After MASN investigated the allegations, the regional sports network cleared Santangelo to return to broadcasts in early May, after which additional allegations of misconduct surfaced. At that point, the Nationals again revoked their approval of Santangelo, at which point MASN referred the matter to Major League Baseball to assist in its investigation.
Santangelo maintained his innocence throughout the process, denying the allegations. He returned to the Nationals broadcasts in July, with MASN explaining that both MASN and MLB had found no evidence that Santangelo violated the terms of his contractual agreement.
Santangelo has spent 21 seasons with the franchise — between the Montreal Expos, which became the Washington Nationals in 2005 — and took to Twitter on Wednesday to thank the Nationals organization and MASN for welcoming him into their family, while adding, "being a member of your team has been the honor of my career."
Dan Kolko, who's served in various roles for MASN since 2012, starting as a beat reporter until 2014, then as on-field reporter from 2014 to 2018, and most recently as the pre- and post-game host alongside Bo Porter for two seasons, shared his thoughts directly with Santangelo on Twitter, saying, "What a heck of a run, man."
"Eleven years in one spot is an eternity in this business, and it was 11 yrs filled with so many great moments to cover," Kolko added. "You’re incredibly knowledgeable & passionate and helped coach up a generation of DC baseball fans. Can’t wait to see your next stop!"