Robby Incmikoski, a MLB field reporter based in Pittsburgh, fiercely defended Hailey Hunter after SportsNet Pittsburgh parted ways with the reporter and host this month.
Incmikoski called the move an alleged “hit job” by someone that wanted Hunter “gone” from the network in a series of X posts this week.
“Imagine spending an entire career and life working toward your dream job…..then you get it!!” Incmikoski wrote in a Wednesday post. “You are good at the job. People like you – fans, coworkers, other media members and many others you come into contact with on a daily basis. (I know a LOT of people who work directly with Hailey, every single day, and I’ve never heard one single negative word about her! Not ONE!)
“You move your entire life to a new city. Your boyfriend-turned-fiancé-turned-husband uproots his life, too! You buy a house and call Pittsburgh home! You’re FINALLY settling in & know the vibe around this great city! (It takes time to REALLY get the feel of a new city. I’ve done it four times myself). You go on your honeymoon! And then…….. …..someone wants you gone. (Allegedly, LOL) For no good reason at all! Then, the person who (allegedly) wanted you gone doesn’t have the balls to tell you to your face. They (again, allegedly) make someone else carry out the hit job! TV can be a real dirty business. I’m so sorry for Hailey. She deserved WAY better!”
Hunter, the daughter of former Penguins player Tim Hrynewich, confirmed she and the network parted ways not long after she got married in a statement to TribLive.
“Unfortunately, I was told the Penguins have decided that they simply wanted to move in a different direction with the role,” Hunter said.
“I really wasn’t given any details, but I understand that’s the business we are in.”
Incmikoski explained in another post that Hunter’s situation “struck a nerve” with him.
“My apologies for the nonsense this post caused. The only point I was really trying to make was that HH deserved better, that’s all!” Incmikoski wrote. “Having been through a similar situation myself, it touched a nerve. Stuff happens behind the scenes all the time, and people spend their entire adult lives working to get a job like this to begin with….. only to get hit with a sledgehammer for reasons that may not necessarily deserve a sledgehammer!
“None of this is about me. It’s about standing up for people who, for obvious reasons, cannot speak for themselves. You may agree, you may disagree….. but thankfully, we have freedom of speech in our great country! Much love and respect to about 99.5% of you,” he said, adding a crying-laughing emoji.
Incmikoski shared in another post that “it just pissed me off to see people like her losing dream jobs for zero good reason.”
Hunter, who also covered the Pittsburgh Pirates, spent three years with SportsNet after joining the broadcasting team during the 2023-24 season.
She occasionally does broadcast work with the Golf Channel.
SportsNet Pittsburgh announced it would “soon begin a nationwide search for a rinkside reporter for our Penguins coverage.”