ESPN's Stephen A. Smith apologizes for his remarks about Shohei Ohtani's use of interpreter

ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith apologized Monday for his comments about Angels star Shohei Ohtani, who will be the starting pitcher for the American League at Tuesday night's All Star game.

"But the fact that you have a foreign player that doesn't speak English, needs an interpreter, believe it or not contributes to harming the game to some degree when that's your box-office appeal," Smith said on ESPN's "First Take." "It needs to be somebody like Bryce Harper, Mike Trout, those guys."

In a statement later, Smith admitted that he had "screwed up" in his comments.

"Let me apologize right now," Smith tweeted. "As I'm watching things unfold, let me say that I never intended to offend ANY COMMUNITY, particularly the Asian Community - and especially SHOHEI Ohtani himself."

Smith went on to describe Ohtani as "one of the brightest stars in all of sports" who is "making a difference, as it pertains to inclusiveness and leadership."

Smith is expected to discuss his comments on Tuesday's edition of "First Take."