Rusty Weiss
MLB player Tommy Pham sharply criticized California Governor Gavin Newsom after the presidential wannabe referenced his low SAT score in an apparent attempt to relate to a predominantly black audience during a book-tour event in Atlanta.
And if you haven’t seen Newsom’s remarks just yet, brace yourself. You’re in for something special.
The remarks came over the weekend as Newsom, promoting his new memoir Young Man in a Hurry, spoke onstage with Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens. The clip quickly went viral. For good reason.
“I’m not trying to impress you,” Newsom told the audience. “I’m just trying to impress upon you, ‘I’m like you. I’m not better than you.’ I’m a 960 SAT guy. And I’m not trying to offend anyone trying to act all there if you got a 940.”
It got worse.
“You’ve never seen me read a speech, because I cannot read a speech. Maybe the wrong business to be in,” Newsom continued. “I haven’t overcome dyslexia, I’m living with it.”
🚨: Gavin Newsom really stood in front of a Black audience and tried to bond by saying:
— Brandon Tatum (@TheOfficerTatum) February 23, 2026
‘I’m one of y’all. I scored a 960 on the SAT and I can’t read.’
How did this clown make it this far in life? 🤡 @CAgovernor pic.twitter.com/3pAH2maQ1p
Whatever the intent behind the governor’s remarks, they spread like wildfire across social media because it came off as if he were trying to tell a predominantly black audience that he’s just like them because he’s dumb and can’t read.
That didn’t go over well for Pham, a journeyman who last played for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Currently a free agent of African-American and Vietnamese descent, Pham responded directly on his Instagram Story by sharing a screenshot of Newsom’s remarks.
“I can’t relate, I was a straight-A student and scored well on my SAT. He thinks black [people] are dumb,” Pham wrote.
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Pham also reposted a separate clip from Newsom’s podcast in which the governor described reading a roughly 230-page book in under two hours, highlighting what critics called an apparent contradiction with his “I can’t read” statement.
Newsom’s office pushed back hard over the controversy, with communications director Izzy Gardon (who looks exactly like you’d expect for a person subservient to Gavin Newsom and his Brylcreem) calling the outrage “MAGA-manufactured.”
Maybe Pham is MAGA, who knows?
Pham, known for his outspoken personality throughout his career, attended high school in Las Vegas and was drafted by the Cardinals in 2006. He has played for nine MLB teams and remains unsigned for the 2026 season.