O No Canada!: Team apologizes for botching Canadian anthem

LOWELL, Mass. (AP) A minor league baseball team in Massachusetts is apologizing for a botched rendition of the Canadian national anthem at a recent game.

The Lowell Spinners in a social media statement Monday blamed Sunday's substandard performance of ''O Canada'' on an audio delay between the microphone and the speakers and the inexperience of a team employee singing in front of a large crowd.

The Single-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox was celebrating Canada Day and Canadian culture on Sunday.

The team employee volunteered to sing after the person who was supposed to perform the anthem cancelled at the last minute.

Spinners' General Manager Shawn Smith tells The Sun of Lowell that the employee ''felt just terrible'' and ''didn't mean any disrespect in any way, shape or form.''

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Information from: The (Lowell, Mass.) Sun, http://www.lowellsun.com