There is only one certainty when it comes to locating the broadcast of a Mets or Yankees game this season:
You can always find it on the radio.
That’s 162 dates of consistency for the Mets, on WCBS-AM, and the Yankees on WFAN AM/FM. Or as one of the mouths who works the Mets on the radio, Howie Rose, likes to say, you can “put it in the books.” Count on it. Just like death, taxes, and stupidity on sports-talk radio (or what’s left of it).
Major League Baseball, and some of its member clubs like the Mets and Yankees, have found new markets for their TV rights and new ways to gouge fans. They are selling everything that isn’t nailed down. MLB’s television Gnomes have cut deals with multiple streaming services. Checking your “local baseball TV listings” is now akin to reading Tolstoy’s War and Peace.
On any given night or day, Yankees or Mets games could air on YES, SNY, Fox (Ch.5), WPIX-TV (Ch. 11), FS1, ESPN, TBS, MLBN, Amazon, AppleTV+, Peacock, YES app, SNY app. So, baseball fans, already paying through the nose for cable subscriptions, are also being asked to pay more monthly to subscribe to the streaming services. Then, they have to deal with the technology it takes to access those services and pray that it all works.
There is a segment of both fan bases who won’t want to either 1) Pay up, especially with inflation running rampant 2) Install 3) Hunt down the games.
Radio games are easy to find and free. You can even listen without a password, night or day. Guess what? It’s always on the same stations. It’s anxiety — and glitch — free. Most of the time, baseball on the radio is a beautiful thing.
And after two years where COVID forced the voices — Rose, Wayne Randazzo (Mets); Suzyn (Ma Pinstripe) Waldman, John (Pa Pinstripe) Sterling (Yankees) — off the road, instead calling games delivered by a TV monitor, it’s reasonable to expect they will be re-energized. Normalcy has been restored. The voices are actually looking forward to the grind of the longest season.
What you hear is what you get. These are both veteran crews who have well established styles. Rose and Randazzo, both play-by-play practitioners, like having some fun and rarely disagree during a game. They have similar baseball sensibilities.
Ma and Pa present a quirkier broadcast. And that’s being kind. Sterling puts more emphasis on his “signature” home run calls than on accurately naming the players turning a 6-4-3 double play. He stopped clearly seeing the field years ago making his “It is high….It is far….it is…caught at the warning track” HR call a nightly guessing game. Some find Sterling’s gaffes charming; we doubt they’ve ever heard him call a full nine innings. Now is their chance.
Waldman knows as much, or more, about the Yankees than anyone on the beat. She has been encumbered by cleaning up after Sterling’s mistakes and her hesitancy to totally spill the pinstriped beans. Nonetheless, with all their quirks, mistakes, and Broadway references, Ma and Pa are a unique listen, baseball’s version of a funhouse mirror.
And unlike their Mets/Yankees TV broadcast counterparts, you, the baseball fan, will always know where to find them.
ALL EYES ON KAY-ROD
When they debut the Kay-Rod alternative ESPN baseball broadcast Sunday night (Red Sox-Yankees), Michael Kay and Alex Rodriguez will be working at a distinct disadvantage. One that will dog them during their eight-game schedule.
Everything Big Head and Professor PED do will be compared to the ManningCast, the alternative “Monday Night Football” ESPN2 broadcast that was a runaway hit. No matter how well Kay, the TV voice of the Yankees, knows the scandal-scarred A-Rod, they will be hard-pressed to duplicate the chemistry the Manning Brothers generated.
When asked about this on a recent media conference call, Kay said: “Well, we’re presently in the legal maneuverings to get adopted by a pair of people so we can actually be brothers, so that will give us more of a ManningCast feel.”
Smart answer. Better for Kay to kid about the situation than take himself seriously.
The Manning Brothers have set the bar sky-high. After all, they grew up together on parallel tracks. Compared to Peyton and Eli, Rodriguez and Kay are total strangers. Seeing how these two huge egos handle themselves, on the fly over the course of three hours of live baseball, will either be must-see TV or cringe-worthy crud.
OOPS!
Carlos Beltran’s debut in YES booth Monday won’t soon be forgotten.
Beltran, who was accused by MLB of masterminding the Astros cheating scandal in 2017, told viewers that Aaron Judge’s new contract extension was a done deal. Sources said YES’ production crew thought Beltran had received info they did not know about. When they found out that wasn’t the case, Beltran was told to clarify his remarks. He then said he “hoped” Judge and Bombers brass would come to an agreement on a contract extension for the slugging outfielder, which they failed to do by Friday’s deadline.
Beyond the premature Judge verdict, Beltran seemed to get more into a rhythm, and comfort zone, as the game went on working with John Flaherty (p-b-p) and David Cone. Beltran talked a lot about hitting and how he used spring training to get ready for the season.
During the telecast, another potential broadcaster was discovered: Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo. He was miked, answering questions while playing first base. Rizzo even “interviewed” Philly players who reached the bag safely. This was a memorable performance by Rizzo.
FAREWELL EDDIE
A few thoughts about Eddie (C No Evil) Coleman, who recently “retired” from WFAN after over three decades of yapping, mostly as the station’s Mets reporter.
Coleman never took himself all that seriously. This, in a great way, differentiated himself from most of his colleagues who believe they are dealing in nuclear physics rather than fun and games. He could sniff out and decipher Mets dysfunction like nobody else in the market.
And no one could deliver a line with Coleman’s deadpan effectiveness.
When he was working FAN’s midday show with Dave Sims, the two got into a spirited discussion about a particular baseball player. Sims was trying to find the location of said player.
“Where is he? Where is he now?” an exasperated Sims asked Coleman.
“He’s dead,” a calm-as-could-be Coleman replied.
If you want more of the Coleman style, check out the solid hour-long interview Kimberly Jones did with him on FAN last Sunday evening.
AROUND THE DIAL
The Mayor of Panic City, Sal Licata, has completed his takeover of SNY’s Baseball Night in New York show, becoming host of the nightly soiree. Licata’s presence will bring doses of explosiveness and unpredictability to the show…..Licata’s former road-dog, Ch.11′s Marc Malusis, is doing commentary during his ‘cast. We checked out the one on Gerrit Cole. Malusis had all the info down but needed to punch it up and bring some emotion to his delivery.
Does the new SNY app air the old Kiner’s Korner post game shows? If it doesn’t, it should…..Michael Kay went overboard casting aspersions on Anthony Rizzo for telling Aaron Judge there is “no loyalty” on the business side of baseball between a player and a team. Sure sounds like Rizzo was speaking the truth. Then again, Kay essentially works for the Yankees….Because he’s a fan of private jet travel, we’re wondering if Al (El Exigente) Michaels is going to travel on Jeff Bezos’ rocket ship to the sites of Amazon’s “Thursday Night Football?”
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DUDE OF THE WEEK: SUE BIRD & DIANA TAURASI
The pairing of these two formidable WNBA stars on an ESPN MegaCast for the women’s Final Four was a brilliant move. They were smart, engaging, bold and irreverent. A perfect blend.
DWEEB OF THE WEEK: TODD McSHAY
Standing out from the mountain of NFL draft experts is hard work. However, with his varied background in the sport it’s beneath McShay to refer to Atlanta’s NFL roster as “trash.”
DOUBLE TALK
What Kyrie Irving said: “I’ve dealt with just East Coast type of attitude since I was 7, 8 years old.”
What Kyrie Irving meant to say: “I know a jackass when I see one.”
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