I really didn't think that ESPN would tab a replacement for Steve Phillips, following his firing this offseason, but alas....I was wrong. Orel Hershiser will be joining Jon Miller and Joe Morgan this season for Sunday Night Baseball. Via ESPN PR....

Jon Miller, the recently announced winner of the Baseball Hall of Fame’s 2010 Ford C. Frick Award, and Hall of Famer Joe Morgan will be joined by ESPN analyst and former Major League Baseball Cy Young Award winner Orel Hershiser in the Sunday Night Baseball booth this season. Miller and Morgan are entering their 21st consecutive season on Sunday Night Baseball.

“Sunday Night Baseball distinctly offers Jon’s Hall of Fame voice and the combination of Joe’s Hall of Fame approach to hitting and Orel’s profound pitching knowledge,” said Norby Williamson, ESPN executive vice president, production. “Collectively, they will provide compelling analysis and debate during our national game of the week.”

In addition to his Sunday Night responsibilities, Hershiser will continue to serve as analyst during ESPN’s College World Series and Little League World Series coverage. He will also provide analysis for Baseball Tonight. Hershiser most recently provided analysis for Monday Night Baseball in 2009, and has contributed to Wednesday Night Baseball.

I've always enjoyed Orel in the booth, and now he'll get a chance to showcase it with ESPN's "A-Team". Some find him bland, but his knowledge of game situations will help out a pair that has basically forgotten everything they've ever learned about the game.

The Baseball HOF recently announced that ESPN's Jon Miller has been selected as the 2010 recipient of the Ford C. Frick broadcasting award. The Ford C. Frick Award. awarded annually, and is based on the following criteria: longevity; continuity with a club; honors, including national assignments such as the World Series and All-Star Games; and popularity with fans....

The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum announced today that Jon Miller, who has spent parts of four decades as the voice of five Major League Baseball teams and has been the voice of ESPN’s national Sunday Night Baseball telecasts for 20 years, has been selected as the 2010 recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award, presented annually for major contributions to baseball broadcasting. Miller will be honored during Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies on Sunday, July 25, 2010 in Cooperstown, N.Y.

"Jon Miller is one of baseball's most recognizable voices and is extremely deserving of this prestigious honor," said Jeff Idelson, President of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. "With a national audience on Sunday nights for the last 20 years, an entire country has been able to enjoy on a weekly basis what fans in San Francisco, Baltimore, Boston, Texas and Oakland have known with Miller as their home team's broadcaster for varied points over the last four decades. His soothing play-by-play, his affable and welcoming personality and his relaxed nature on-air give every baseball fan a personal invitation to enjoy the game, as if each were sitting in the front row."

Surprisingly it was not given to Miller because he's carried Joe Morgan for years. Who would have thunk it? Everyone knows the Miller has lost some of his luster over the past few years, but I would still take him over anyone else in the business. Obviously this is because I grew up with him broadcasting Orioles games, and I'm biased, but that aside I definitely think he deserves this award.

Joe Morgan was called out last week about a tale he told during Sunday Night Baseball, and last night he decided to clarify the whole thing. Well per Morgan's usual "misremberings" of his Baseball career, he dug himself into an even bigger hole. From Deadspin via Larry Brown Sports....

Morgan: "Jon [Miller], I want to correct something that I said last week — you weren’t here so you weren’t involved — but last week we were talking about Don Wilson pitching a no-hitter and I remember talking to him about Hank Aaron and saying it wouldn’t be the worst thing if he walked him. And he said ‘get away’ and he went out and struck him out. Well it happened in the dugout, not on the field. I got it mixed up with an incident I had with Al Hollins, who in a similar situation was pitching with me at the Giants, so I had the two confused."

Joe claims he mixed up the Wilson and Holland stories — that Holland was pitching "in a similar situation" in 1981 or 1982, meaning, presumably, that he had a no-hitter going late in the game, and that Joe sauntered over from second and suggested he walk a big bat, etc. Let's have a look at the record, shall we? Surely there are some computer numbers out there that might help us.

Holland was a relief pitcher, a decent one for a time, and he recorded only 11 starts over his 10-year career, 10 of them with the Giants. Only once did he throw more than four innings of no-hit ball. That would've been Sept. 29, 1981, against Cincinnati; Johnny Bench hit a solo shot in the fifth to break it up. Now, I suppose it's conceivable that Joe would've proposed walking Bench at that point, even if his old teammate was then in the winter of his years. But consider: Holland didn't just have a no-no through four-and-a-third. He had a perfect game.

It's obviously a tad bit nit-picky to call out an announcer for not getting a story, that happened thirty plus years ago, exactly right. But Dr. Morgan doesn't even come close when it comes to recapping certain moments during his playing days. Everyone is always up in arms when blogs pick on Joe, but maybe now you have a little insight into why we do so.

Oh and I would also like to refer you to Major League Jerk, for Exhibit B....

Adam (Joplin, MO): What is the hardest thing to deal with throughout a MLB season?

Joe: I don’t know if there’s one, but two things that are very difficult are physical and mental fatigue. A lot of times you’ll play a night game and fly some place for a day game. There aren’t as many days off. For every day players, the grind of playing every day. Facing tough pitching. The grind works on you mentally. I used to get more mentally tired than physically tired. I would think it’s the same with the players today.

Adam: What’s the hardest part about the baseball season?

Joe: I don’t know if it’s one thing so I’m going to narrow it down to every single possible thing ever: the mental and the physical. I’m not sure if that includes the ether that the world floats in or the space between our cells but I would say that everything in the entire universe that could serve as a reason is my answer. But mostly it’s everything.

Joe Morgan Lies Again When Clarifying Previous Lie on Sunday Night Baseball (Larry Brown Sports)
Joe Morgan Clarifies One Fib, Possibly Tells Another (Deadspin)
Fire Joe Morgan Already (Major League Jerk)

Dan Steinberg, now of the Sporting Blog, sat down with Jon Miller recently and specifically asked him about the criticism that both he and Joe Morgan receive(d). Not only did Miller discuss blogs and the internet as a whole, but he specifically addressed the whole Fire Joe Morgan issue as well....

Hey, speaking of Joe, do you get irritated with some of the criticism?

Well, I figure for any of us in this business, the fact that there are critics, radio/TV sports critics, it’s all a positive for us. Because if you go back years ago, really before my time, Walter Winchell had the big column. In San Francisco, it was Herb Caen. I know here in Washington, in the Style section they’ve always had columnists. PR people are trying to get showbiz people and clients in those columns, so that they’re around town, getting their name in the paper. And now the sportscasters have these critics, and we get talked about.

What about the Internet stuff, do you read blogs?

Oh no, I don’t even understand what the point of it is. I mean, I know people are communicating, but it’s not interesting to me. I like the blogs that the beat writers have now. Henry Schulman with the Chronicle, in addition to whatever he’s writing for the paper, he’s got other stuff on his blog. And Bruce Jenkins is a great columnist for the Chronicle, he’s got other columns on the blog.

But for the rest of it, I don’t really care about it. I mean, for me, if there’s criticism, and it’s about something that I could do something about, or at least something that I could say that’s a good point, or no I disagree with that for this reason, well, that’s good. I mean, we all need feedback, and maybe somebody makes a good point. You know, I was a terrible English student in high school. I couldn’t probably diagram a sentence today. I mean, if somebody uses the phrase dangling participle, I’m going 'Huh?' I don’t have a clue what that is.

But over the years, people would send me letters, saying you said such and such, and that’s really improper usage, the proper way to say that would be this way. I'd say Eddie Murray awaits on deck, and the guy wrote me and said it would be awaits his turn on deck. You couldn’t say "'awaits' without 'his turn;' you have to say what he’s awaiting. So that was good, so I learned from that. A lot of stuff, that’s how I learned it. I thought that was very instructive.

But if somebody just says, this guy sucks, or he stinks? Well, that’s not interesting to me. You know, there’s nothing I can do with it. With Joe, you know, Joe knows a LOT about the game. Whether occasionally he mangles the language or says something that maybe comes out different from what he meant to say, like a million other ballplayers, that all could be. But they told me that there’s a Web site called FireJoeMorgan.com or something. Well, what’s the point of that? That’s just mean, mean-spirited. I mean, what is the actual point?

I guess Miller has a point. If someone doesn't "get" blogs, then there's really no point in trying to convince them over their validity or entertainment value. It's taken me awhile myself to understand the difference between an opinion, and something that is just "mean spirited" as Jon says, but I can understand how maddening it can get listening to certain people. Especially Dr. Joe Morgan.

Jon Miller on 300 Wins, Spanish Accents and FJM (The Sporting Blog)

Steve Phillips has only been on Sunday Night Baseball for two short months, and already he's causing Sports writers around the country conniptions. Both SI and the NY Daily News to umbrage with a recent Phillips exchange with Joe Morgan on Carlos Beltran, and both writers of the pieces (Joe Posnanski and Bob Raissman) took Steve to task....

Posnanski: My point is not to say that Carlos Beltran is above criticism. My point is to say that ... well, yeah, at the moment, Carlos Beltran is above criticism. Are you kidding me? A brilliant defensive center fielder who hits, hits with power, steals bases, runs the bases, draws walks ... and this year, so far, he's hitting .367. Is he perfect? Of course not. But if you want to judge him by certain criteria ... well, hey, wait a minute, here's some criteria right here, courtesy of Steve Phillips himself (quotes from this insightful article from the typically insightful Ted Berg):

"That guy who's a good base runner, a good defender, doesn't give up at-bats, gets the hit when you need the hit, drives in a run when you need the run, always seems to be in the right position. I think the good teams have that guy ... that singular flawless player that in every aspect of the game, lead."

Raismann: "After Phillips said Reyes and David Wright are part of the Mets long-term solution, he suggested that GM Omar Minaya (he referred to Minaya as "they") might want to start thinking if Carlos Beltran has a future with the Mets. For "the $17-plus million they have invested in him," Phillips wondered if the Mets were getting enough "game-winning plays" in return.

"I definitely would disagree," Morgan said. "You want more from Beltran, but you can't deny he's put up the numbers."

In all this back-and-forth, Phillips showed no spine. No one is suggesting that these debates should be taken to an extreme. Nonetheless, every time Morgan shot down Phillips there was little response. Phillips needs to counter-punch. That would make the television more compelling.

This has always been the case with Steve Phillips. He never seems to think about what he's said in the past, then just shoots off at the mouth and contradicts himself. That being said, trying to slide into a spot in between a duo that has been together for 20 years, can't be easy. Hopefully Phillips can find his way, but it's not looking good for the trio.

Defending Carlos Beltran from the Steve Phillips screwdriver (SI)
Steve Phillips Leaves Bat On Shoulder In ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball Booth (NY Daily News)

Steve Phillips took a spin "On The DL" today, and while there are interesting discussions about his time as a GM and his new gig on Sunday Night Baseball, he finally addresses those annoying fake press conferences he and ESPN put together.

"I’m kind of used to people throwing stones. It doesn’t bother me even a little bit. And so when that happened I thought, ‘what a creative, unique way to talk about issues and topics and teams and needs and strengths and weaknesses in a way that’s different. You could sit in front of a camera and do it as a talking head and it would work and people would get something out of it. But I thought it was a creative way to do it.

“I actually thought they should do it again. Even though people criticized it, it was creative and different and why not take those kinds of chances when, you know, what’s the risk, really? I guess for some people it’s credibility but I didn’t look at it that way from my perspective or from the reporter’s perspective either.”

I guess he does have a point there. We complain about the same old boring segments all the time, and ESPN should get credit for trying something different. With that said, that was by far the stupidest segment ever created, and should never be tried again....ever.

Steve Phillips Talks About Being the GM of both the Mets and ESPN On the DL (On The DL)

(Photo via the funniest post ever at The Sports Hernia)

I was a little bit jumpy with the whole announcer thing yesterday involving the WBC. Yesterday's list was actually just the World feed list of broadcasters, while the full set of games, that will be airing on the MLB-N and ESPN, is below. While Gary Thorne and Rick Sutcliffe won't be destroying our brains (Congratulations, World!), we will be getting our first look and listen at ESPN's new Sunday Night Baseball Crew. That's right....it's Morgan, Miller and Phillips!!!

ROUND ONE (March 5th - March 12th)

Pool A (Tokyo, Japan) - China, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Korea

March 5th- Game 1: China vs. Japan (ESPN2, 4:30am)
Announcers: Jon Sciambi, Orestes Destrade
March 6th- Game 2: Chinese Tapei vs. Korea (ESPN2, 4:30am)
Announcers: Jon Sciambi, Orestes Destrade
March 6th- Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser (ESPN2, 10:30pm)
Announcers: Jon Sciambi, Orestes Destrade
March 7th- Game 4: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner (ESPN2, 5am)
Announcers: Jon Sciambi, Orestes Destrade
March 8th- Game 5: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Loser (ESPN2, 5:30am)
Announcers: Jon Sciambi, Orestes Destrade
March 9th- Game 6: Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner (ESPN2, 5:30am)
Announcers: Jon Sciambi, Orestes Destrade

Pool B (Mexico City, Mexico)- Australia, Cuba, Mexico, South Africa

March 8th- Game 1: South Africa vs. Cuba (MLB-N, 2pm)
Announcers: Charley Steiner and Jose Mota (World Feed)
March 8th- Game 2: Australia vs. Mexico (MLB-N, 9pm)
Announcers: Charley Steiner and Jose Mota (World Feed)
March 9th- Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser (MLB-N, 10pm)
Announcers: Charley Steiner and Jose Mota (World Feed)
March 10th- Game 4: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner (MLB-N, 10pm)
Announcers: Charley Steiner and Jose Mota (World Feed)
March 11th- Game 5: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Loser (MLB-N, 10pm)
Announcers: Charley Steiner and Jose Mota (World Feed)
March 12th- Game 6: Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner (MLB-N, 9pm)
Announcers: Charley Steiner and Jose Mota (World Feed)

Pool C (Toronto, Canada)- Canada, Italy, United States, Mexico

March 7th- Game 1: United States vs. Canada (ESPN, 2pm)
Announcers: Dave O’Brien, Rick Sutcliffe
March 7th- Game 2: Italy vs. Venezuela (MLB-N, 9pm)
Announcers: Victor Rojas, Joe Magrane
March 8th- Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser (ESPN, 10pm)
Announcers: Dave O’Brien, Rick Sutcliffe
March 9th- Game 4: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner (MLB-N, 10pm)
Announcers: Victor Rojas, Joe Magrane
March 10th- Game 5: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Loser (ESPN2, 10pm)
Announcers: Dave O’Brien, Rick Sutcliffe
March 11th- Game 6: Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner (MLB-N, 9pm)
Announcers: Victor Rojas, Joe Magrane

Pool D (San Juan, Puerto Rico)- Dominican Republic, Netherlands, Panama, Puerto Rico

March 7th- Game 1: Netherlands vs. Dominican Republic (ESPN2, 2pm)
Announcers: Gary Thorne, Steve Phillips, Pedro Gomez
March 7th- Game 2: Panama vs. Puerto Rico (ESPN, 9pm)
Announcers: Gary Thorne, Steve Phillips, Pedro Gomez
March 8th- Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser (ESPN, 10pm)
Announcers: Gary Thorne, Steve Phillips, Pedro Gomez
March 9th- Game 4: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner (MLB-N, 10pm)
Announcers: Rich Waltz, Jim Kaat (World Feed)
March 10th- Game 5: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Loser (MLB-N, 10pm)
Announcers: Rich Waltz, Jim Kaat (World Feed)
March 11th- Game 6: Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner (ESPN2, 9pm)
Announcers: Gary Thorne, Steve Phillips, Pedro Gomez

ROUND TWO (March 14th - March 19th)

Pool 1 (San Diego, California)- Pool A Winner, Pool B Winner, Pool A Runner-up, Pool B Runner-up

March 15th- Game 1: Pool A Runner-up vs. Pool B Winner (ESPN2, 4pm)
Announcers: Gary Thorne, Steve Phillips, Orel Hershiser
March 15th- Game 2: Pool B Runner-up vs. Pool A Winner (ESPN2, 11pm)
Announcers: Gary Thorne, Steve Phillips, Orel Hershiser
March 16th- Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser (ESPN2, 11pm)
Announcers: Dan Shulman, Steve Phillips, Orel Hershiser
March 17th- Game 4: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner (MLB-N, 11pm)
Announcers: Gary Thorne, Jose Mota (World Feed)
March 18th- Game 5: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Loser (ESPN2, 11pm)
Announcers: Dan Shulman, Steve Phillips, Orel Hershiser
March 19th- Game 6: Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner (ESPN, 9pm)
Announcers: Dan Shulman, Steve Phillips, Orel Hershiser

Pool 2 (Miami, Florida)- Pool C Winner, Pool D Winner, Pool C Runner-up, Pool D Runner-up

March 14th- Game 1: Pool C Winner vs. Pool D Runner-up (MLB-N, 1pm)
Announcers: Matt Vasgersian, Harold Reynolds
March 14th- Game 2: Pool C Runner-up vs. Pool D Winner (MLB-N, 8pm)
Announcers: Matt Vasgersian, Harold Reynolds
March 15th- Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser (ESPN2, 7:30pm)
Announcers: Dave O’Brien, Rick Sutcliffe
March 16th- Game 4: Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner (ESPN, 8pm)
Announcers: Dave O’Brien, Rick Sutcliffe
March 17th- Game 5: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Loser (MLB-N, 7pm)
Announcers: Matt Vasgersian, Harold Reynolds
March 18th- Game 6: Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner (MLB-N, 7pm)
Announcers: Matt Vasgersian, Harold Reynolds

FINALS (March 21 - March 24)

Los Angeles, California- Pool 1 Winner, Pool 2 Winner, Pool 1 Runner-up, Pool 2 Runner-up

March 21st- Semifinal 1: Pool 1 Runner-up vs. Pool 2 Winner (ESPN, 9pm)
March 22nd- Semifinal 2: Pool 1 Winner vs. Pool 2 Runner-up (ESPN, 8pm)
March 23rd- Finals: SF Winner 1 vs. SF Winner 2 (ESPN, 9:30pm)
Announcers: Jon Miller, Joe Morgan, Steve Phillips

Official press release just came down from ESPN, and I wanted to pass that along to you. While the release does detail their reasoning, the one thing I didn't think about last night was the MLB Network's role in this. ESPN is probably scrambling now to beef up their MLB coverage, on the heels of MLB-N's success, and with the Phillips move....Peter Gammons is freed up to head back to the studio. Which is where he belongs.

Anyway, here's the official statement from ESPN....

ESPN's talented Sunday Night Baseball commentator team of Jon Miller and Hall of Famer Joe Morgan, entering their 20th season together in the booth, will be joined each week by analyst Steve Phillips. Phillips, who joined ESPN in 2005, will make his regular-season debut on Opening Night, April 5, when the defending World Champion Philadelphia Phillies host the Atlanta Braves at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2 HD. The game will also be available on ESPN Radio, ESPN Deportes, ESPN360.com and ESPN Mobile TV.

Miller and Morgan have called season-long Sunday Night Baseball game of the week telecasts since the series began in 1990. Phillips will continue to provide game analysis on Monday Night Baseball and in the studio on Baseball Tonight, SportsCenter and other programs throughout the week.

Phillips said, “It’s a tremendous honor to join Sunday Night Baseball, the preeminent MLB game of the week. Jon and Joe have set the standard for baseball telecasts over the last 19 years, and I look forward to being a member of their team.”

Morgan added, “I’m pleased that Steve is joining our Sunday Night team. I have admired Steve since I met him as a general manager, and now as a valued member of the ESPN ‘family.’ I look forward to interacting with Steve and Jon, with whom I have had 19 fulfilling years on the Sunday Night game of the week. My hope is that our new lineup will provide an even better presentation, and I am anxious to work toward that goal with Jon, Steve and the rest of the ESPN baseball group.”

Miller stated, “Steve, as a former GM, knows better than anybody how teams are put together, trades are made and the inevitable stress between managers and GM’s and between the front office and ownership. Now, combining Joe’s expertise of the game on the field and in the dugout and Steve’s expertise and ongoing knowledge of the inner workings of each franchise, I believe in the 20th season of SNB, we’ll reach our highest level yet as an entertaining and provocatively informative baseball telecast. Welcome, Steve.”

The fact that Jon Miller just used the word "expertise" for both Joe and John, just has me rolling on the floor right now. Forget Morgan, because he actually had a HOF career, Phillips is an "expert" GM? This is the guy that signed Mo Vaughn, Pedro Astacio, Mike Bordick, Bobby Bonilla, Rickey Henderson, Jeromy Burnitz and Kazuo Matsui, right? Okay....just wanted to make sure we were on the same page.

Of all the things that could be done to the ESPN Sunday Night Baseball booth, this was not....and I mean NOT the move. Instead of the long rumored plan of splitting up the duo of Miller and Morgan, the "Leader" is actually adding another member to the booth. Who you ask?

Steve F'ing Phillips! Via Watchdog....

ESPN will announce Wednesday that Steve Phillips will join Jon Miller and Joe Morgan in the "Sunday Night Baseball" booth for 2009, altering for the network's announcing lineup for its showcase event for the first time in 20 seasons of televising MLB.

The former Mets general manager, who has been an analyst for ESPN since 2005, will make his regular-season debut April 5 for the Opening Night game between the Phillies and Braves.

Phillips will continue to serve as an analyst for games and studio shows during the week.

Ugh. I still can't for the life of me understand why ESPN gets the pairings and studio shows right for Sports like College Football and Basketball, but has no f'ing clue when it comes to Baseball. I will always love Jon Miller for the time he spent in Baltimore, and I think the guy still has something left, but ESPN is doing him no favors by giving him two of the most incompetent people at the network to work with.

More when the announcement comes tomorrow.

ESPN to add Steve Phillips to its Sunday night booth (Watchdog)

I don't necessarily think that Bob Raissman would make an item like this up, but the more I try to figure out if the Miller-Morgan Breakup is going down, the more I find that it doesn't seem to be true. The latest bit of info comes from Miller himself who said yesterday on ESPN 710 in Los Angeles, that he hasn't heard a thing about the move. Via Sports by Brooks....

“The ESPN people, one of the executives, called me on Friday and said a reporter had called him an asked him about that, to let me know it was out there. He said ‘we thought it was kind of ridiculous because you both have it in your contract that you have to do Sunday Night Baseball. I don’t know the TV network can do whatever they want. Nobody said anything to either one of us about it.

“I don’t think there’s anything to it. But who knows? I’m not going to worry about it as long as they continue to pay my contract. With the stock market the way it is I’m going to be very content to get paid whether I do the games or not.”- Jon Miller

The two have been together for 19 years, and seem happy working together, so I really don't see this coming to fruition. With Miller not calling for the split, ESPN would be admitting that Joe Morgan isn't right for their number one team, and I don't see that happening. Well....they did just bench Stephen A. Smith, but at least S.A.S. seems to care about the Sport he covers. It should be an interesting offseason.

Miller And Morgan No Nothing Of Their Demise (Sports by Brooks)

Dirty Announcing Rumor Mill: Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News is reporting that his sources are saying that ESPN could move Joe Morgan to the Wednesday night telecast, and team Jon Miller with Rick Sutcliffe. (Hat tip to Can't Stop the Bleeding.)

"We expect both Jon and Joe to be back in the Sunday night booth next season," an ESPN spokesman said.

Of course there is a big difference between "expect" to be back and definitely returning. So there is something up here. Miller and Morgan have spent nearly two decades together. During that time their relationship has had its rocky moments. That's no secret.

What's coming to light is how unpopular Morgan has become with many of his ESPN colleagues, who are less than thrilled with the way he prepares for a telecast. Some of them also don't respond well to what they call Morgan's haughty attitude, which he has displayed during some of his more outspoken performances in internal ESPN meetings.

I'd be fine with Morgan getting a heave-ho, he analyzes by the seat of his pants more rather than any sort of actual study and I'm sure there are plenty of you out there who aren't enamored of his "old-school is best" mentality. But I wouldn't believe it unless it actually happens first.

Also, let's not think that Sutcliffe would be a major improvement. He would make our baseball watching lives more interesting with his tendency towards more embarrassing gaffes on Sundays instead of buried during weeknight games.

A little levity to ESPN's all-day fawning over Yankee Stadium, as commenter Bazooka Jones alerted us to earlier today, via the wonderful someecards.

Despite having family in the New York area, I'd never gone to the Stadium. (My family is full of Mets fans; I've been to Shea twice.) But, I understand the reverence everyone has for Yankee Stadium; it's obviously an integral part of baseball history. Too many great players and too many great moments in baseball, including 26 World Series banners, hang in that stadium.

And yet, MLB lets that history go out into the sunset with the Baltimore Orioles visiting. Yikes. Didn't they have a year to fix that after the initial schedule came out? Anyway, if you have Yankee Stadium stories, share them, and consider this another open thread, this one for the O's-Yanks Sunday night game -- if you can bear to deal with Joe Morgan tonight.

Sunday Night Footbal Live Blog coming in an hour....

Well this little schedule looks familiar doesn't it? I'm sorry to say it Baseball fans but you're stuck with the Red Sox and New York and Chicago teams for just about the rest of the Summer. ESPN is even going the whole month of July with either a New York team or Boston on Sunday Night Baseball! Well you do get to see the stellar Rockies take on the Mets on July 13th. So you've got that going for you.....which is nice.

I'm sure Joe Buck will be extra prepared this weekend, so enjoy the games.....

Saturday:

Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees- Joe Buck & Tim McCarver (Fox, 3:55pm, 78%)

MARKETS INCLUDE: Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Birmingham, Boston, Buffalo, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas, Dayton, Denver, Detroit, Fort Myers, Greensboro, Greenville, Hartford, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New Orleans, New York, Norfolk, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Providence, Raleigh, Richmond, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Tampa, Washington, West Palm Beach

Chicago Cubs vs. St. Louis Cardinals- Kenny Albert & Eric Karros (FOX, 3:55pm, 22%)

MARKETS INCLUDE: Chicago, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Knoxville, Louisville, Memphis, Milwaukee, Nashville, Oklahoma City, St. Louis, Tulsa

Sunday:

Chicago Cubs vs St. Louis Cardinals- Chip Caray & Buck Martinez (TBS, 1pm)

Boston Red Sox vs New York Yankees- Jon Miller & Joe Morgan (ESPN, 8pm)
________________

No AA Friday folks but I'll be here sporadically throughout the weekend and moreso if someone gets hit in the nuts. Enjoy your 4th people. Cheers!

He's baaaaaack! We all knew it was too good to be true folks. Joe Buck is back with his good pal Tim McCarver and they're calling a Yankees game. Kill me now. Also, I know it's tough to work out schedules with other networks ahead of time, but could we get a little variety? Good lord...it's New York and Chicago all the time these days.

Saturday:

Chicago Cubs at Chicago White Sox- Thom Brennaman & Mark Grace (Fox, 3:55pm, 58%)

MARKETS INCLUDE: Albuquerque, Austin, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Knoxville, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Louisville, Memphis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Nashville, New Orleans, Oklahoma City, Phoenix, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Tulsa

New York Yankees at New York Mets- Joe Buck & Tim McCarver (FOX, 3:55pm, 42%)

MARKETS INCLUDE: Atlanta, Baltimore, Birmingham, Boston, Buffalo, Charlotte, Dallas, Fort Myers, Greensboro, Greenville, Hartford, Jacksonville, Miami, New York, Norfolk, Orlando, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Portland, Providence, Raleigh, Richmond, Tampa, Washington, West Palm Beach

Sunday:

New York Yankees at New York Mets- Chip Caray & Ron Darling (TBS, 1pm)
Chicago White Sox at Chicago Cubs- Jon Miller & Joe Morgan (ESPN, 8pm)

I was actually watching this past Sunday night when Joe Morgan was talking about the netting that encompasses the outfield at Wrigley Field. He mentioned something about Ernie Banks depositing a plethora of homers there and even referred to it as "Ernie Banks Boulevard". I didn't pay much attention but lucky for us the checks and balances that's the internet these days did. Here are multiple reactions from Cubs blogs regarding Dr. Morgan collected via Walkoff Walk....

Bleed Cubbie Blue: "There are many reasons virtually all of us criticize Joe Morgan's "broadcasting" (the quotes are there for obvious reasons; he may be among the worst sports broadcasters in history). However, when he invents "facts" to back up his biases, I think he needs to be called on it and shown that doing this isn't just wrong, it's irresponsible. I speak here of his continued carping about the Wrigley Field outfield wall basket and his contention that Ernie Banks deposited "many" home runs into the basket.

Ernie Banks was nearing the end of his career when this basket was installed. I went through Ernie’s game logs. After April 26, 1970, he hit 8 home runs at Wrigley Field. Eight. The first one he hit after that was one I personally witnessed -- his career #499, hit on May 9, 1970. That one didn’t go in the basket. Video exists of his 500th, hit three days after that, on May 12, 1970 -- you've probably seen this video, and know that one didn’t go in the basket, either.

That leaves six others. It's possible that all of them landed in the basket, but I doubt it. And even if that's true, that's six of 512 -- a little over 1% of his career total, maybe 2% of all he hit at Wrigley. The basket was never, ever called "Banks Boulevard", nor nicknamed after any other player."

Cub Hub: "On Sunday night, he entertained the national TV audience with a fanciful, imaginary tale of how the basket on the top of the Wrigley outfield wall was called “Banks’ Boulevard” because Ernie hit so many of his home runs there. Wha??? I have never in all my years heard the term “Banks’ Boulevard” and seemingly from the callers and hosts on Chicago sports radio today, no one else has either.

In fact, the record will show that PK Wrigley installed the famous basket as a deterrent to Bleacher Bums who used to hang their legs over the wall to be tempted to jump down on the field. Furthermore, the basket was installed in 1970 - after our beloved Mr. Cub had already hit 497 of his 512 career home runs! What planet is Joe Morgan from anyway??"

Goat Riders Of The Apocalypse: "If he does a live chat on ESPN, go there and blast him. If he's scheduled to call a game at your local ballpark, intentionally get bad seats near the press box, go with signs, and rip into him. It should come as no surprise to baseball fans that Morgan is a tool, and he's always displayed a bias against the Cubs. So, screw him. Make his job hard."

I know it's frustrating Cubs fans, and I feel your pain, but you have to understand that this is just the way things are. Hell Joe scoffed at the mere mention of the term OPS that same game. I don't know how else to say this to ESPN, but Joe Morgan is far and away the worst announcer to ever grace the airwaves. This of course means nothing though and we're all going to be stuck with him for years to come. The guy will always ignore statistics and will always make stuff up because he thinks he's untouchable.

Welcome to the club, Cubs Fans though....there's room for all of you here.

Joe Morgan Besmirches Ernie Banks, Is Completely Wrong (Walkoff Walk)

I caught the very end of this the other night and it made me laugh, but it wasn't until reader Skip emailed me the transcript of the whole conversation that I understood exactly how funny it was. Joe Morgan decided to ask Jon Miller a question and what started as an opinion based discussion turned into a fishing trivia contest ending with talk of Snake (Kurt Russel) in Escape for New York.

Our emailer decided to transcribe the whole thing and if anyone is going to take that long to type this nonsense out, that's going up before the video. Enjoy and try to keep up!

"Jon, I gotta ask you a trivia question. I was fishing with Matt Franco, used to play for the Mets. I was fishing with him on a boat, and Matt Franco asked me this trivia question. He said he had talked to players past and present. He asked me, Which guy hit the hardest line drives most consistently of all I'd ever seen. Hardest line drives."- Joe Morgan
"That's a trivia question?"- Jon Miller
"Well, it was for me and him. We were playing trivia on the fishing boat."- Joe
"Where would I look up the answer to that?"- Jon
"Well, you should know the answer!"- Joe
"Give me the question one more time."- Jon
"All right. Who hits the hardest line drives of any player you ever saw on a consistent basis?"- Joe
"Dave Winfield."- Jon
"All right, keep going. That's one. That's "A". "A" wasn't right.- Joe
[Loud Laughs] "Yes it was right! I beg to differ!"- Jon
"I'm gonna give you, uhh … I'm gonna give … I'm gonna give you a hint. You even broadcast games for him."- Joe
[Long Pause] "I broadcast Dave Winfield's games."- Jon
"No … for the answer, I'm talking about. I'm telling you, he asked all the other players. I'm not saying—"- Joe
"Well, I'm saying, this is a question for which there is no correct answer."- Jon
"Yeah, there's a correct answer."- Joe
"Well, what did you say? What was your answer? Did you get it right?"- Jon
"Yes." [pause] "Al Oliver."- Joe
"Oh, Al Oliver. He was—"- Jon
"See!"- Joe
"He was a very good line drive hitter."- Jon
"I knew you would say that. See, I knew that you'd eventually come up with the answer."- Joe
[Al Oliver and Dave Winfield Talk]
"It was interesting because Matt Franco said if I got the answer correct, he would introduce to his cousin … the actor … Kurt Russell. And I said, 'Okay.'- Joe
"That's his cousin?"- Jon
"That's his cousin."- Joe
[Laughs] "So when did you meet Kurt?"- Jon
"Well I haven't met him yet. I just answered it last week."- Joe
"Well, what's taken him so long? We're in L.A. Kurt could have been here tonight. Or maybe he wants to wait till you're in New York, and we can help Kurt Russell … escape from New York."- Jon
"Yeah, that was a great movie. Snake Plissken. The Snake."- Joe
"You want to meet him bad, don't you?"- Jon
"Yeah, that was his … That was his name. Snake."- Joe

I'm so confused right now. I'm just going to say pass on this one. Only these two could ever have a dialog like this during a two-run game in the 8th inning. They have officially lost it.

That's right folks! It's none other than the rock supergroup 3 Doors Down!!! You know the band that brought you Kryptonite and ummm....that other song! The played a couple of diddies from the group during last night's Baseball game, but don't look for the fun to stop there. How about we feature their music for the entire month of June!

Beginning this week and continuing throughout the month of June, ESPN will be complementing its productions with new music from the multi-platinum selling rock band, 3 Doors Down. As part of a unique agreement with their label, Universal Republic Records, ESPN will be able to feature five songs from the band’s new self-titled album "3 Doors Down", and two songs from their ground-breaking debut album, "The Better Life", in a variety of live event and studio productions such as NASCAR, MLB, College World Series and SportsCenter. Music selections will include the first single from their new release, "It's Not My Time," and other tracks such as “Train” and “It’s The Only One You’ve Got.”

“ESPN approaches their craft with the same kind of enthusiasm and respect for their fans as we do,” stated 3 Doors Down frontman, singer/songwriter Brad Arnold.

I don't really have a problem with 3DD, but a month of the same songs over and over might be a little much. Especially when you try to get people like Jon Miller to try to use the phrase "dropping" as in their album is dropping on such and such a date....


(Vis ESPN PR)

When reader ML sent me a synopsis of a perfect Joe Morganism I cracked up. When I saw the video I almost passed out from laughter. Listen to Joe describe Jose Reyes' swing after an 8th inning 3-run homer.....

"You know what I like about that, he ran around the bases."- Joe Morgan

According to Rule 6.09(d) of the Official Major League rule book....

(d) A fair ball passes over a fence or into the stands at a distance from home base of 250 feet or more. Such hit entitles the batter to a home run when he shall have touched all bases legally. A fair fly ball that passes out of the playing field at a point less than 250 feet from home base shall entitle the batter to advance to second base only;

As ML pointed out in the email, "What the f**k was Reyes expected to do, Joe- have the Yankees carry him around the bases, injured softball girl-style? Yes, let’s make a point to note that Reyes ran around the bases in compliance with the rules of the sport in which he plays." I'm pretty sure my four year old cousin knows that you HAVE to run around the bases. Too funny.

(posted by One More Dying Quail)

Tonight, we have one of those nationally televised matchups that's always nice to see, between two teams that just don't get enough coverage: the Boston Red Sox (who haven't been on ESPN in like six whole days!) and the Minnesota Twins (who were last on ESPN...I don't know when. It was probably last Wednesday, making me look even dumber than usual). All useless hype aside, it's the third of four games between the leaders in the AL East and AL Central, with each team putting one in the win column so far. My wife's "boyfriend", Tim Wakefield (3-1, 3.33) goes against Twins rookie Robert Nicholas Blackburn, popularly known as "Nick" (2-2, 3.65).

Join us below for the best of Joe and Jon. I'd be willing to bet there are approximately twelve mentions of Manny Ramirez (despite the fact that he isn't even playing), eight mentions of David Ortiz's offensive difficulties, and seven conversations about how hard it is to hit a knuckleball.


During the pregame Baseball Tonight, when Chris Berman said, "Hunter Pence", and I immediately thought to myself, "Hunter "Six" Pence "None the Richer"." I want to die.

Haha - when the game came on and Jon and Joe appeared on our screen, my wife said, "AAAAAH! I'm definitely leaving the room now." She doesn't like the fellas, Jon in particular.

One each for Manny and Ortiz - and the game still hasn't started. Also, I neglected to mention the infatuation with Carlos Gomez's speed. I'd be willing to bet we hear an Ellsbury-Gomez comparison at some point.

(Guess what I noticed about a week ago and forgot to mention? Ellsbury was originally drafted by the Tampa Bay Devils Rays in the 23rd round in 2002. Thank God he chose not to sign and lasted until the 23rd overall pick in '05.)

"He hit 18 homeruns last year..." - Jon, talking about Kevin Youkilis - Nope, he hit 16. Close though.

Nice job by ESPN to catch Youkilis' "FUCK!" as he returned to the bench after striking out.

"There are a lot of different philosophies on trying to hit the knuckleball..." - Joe - NICE! First batter in the bottom of the first!

My favorite "Youk's F-bomb" comment:

I think he yells "FUCK" every time he messes up. He probably screams "FUCK" at 200 decibels when he forgets to get milk at the grocery store. I really dislike Youk, and I'm a Sox fan. - NHZ

Youkilis is one of those guys who is always a little overly intense, to the point that it makes me sort of embarassed to watch him sometimes (kinda like Jason Varitek about five years ago). Also, his general state of sweatiness scares me. He should consult a doctor.

"Ellsworth gave it a try..." - Joe - Which Ellsworth was that, Joe? Steve or Dick? Both played for the Sox, but I'm pretty sure neither one is in centerfield tonight.

Does Joe really need to explain why it's better to get hit in the back than in the front of the body? Short answer: because it hurts a hell of a lot less in the back.

"is it just me, or is the fantasy update above the banner graphic too distracting/meaningless. i'm sure some group is in a bar right now wagering on who comes the closest to guessing carlos gomez's average on a 3-1 count." - anonymous

I actually don't mind it all that much. It's small enough that I barely even notice it unless someone points it out (which has happened two weeks in a row now).

"It'd be interesting to see a footrace between Ellsbury and Coco Crisp." - Jon - I know this is the new era of Red Sox fandom, happiness and glee and all that happy crappy stuff, but this needs to be said: there is no way a race between Coco Crisp and Jacoby Ellsbury ends without some horrible injury befalling Ellsbury. No way. It should never happen. Boston doesn't need another Juan Pena.

All that talk about Delmon Young's assist totals and his strong arm, and neither Jon nor Joe mentions that Manny Ramirez threw out 17 runners in 2005. What a shame.

"[Ortiz] has hit two line drives that you could hang your clothes on for a couple weeks." - Joe - Actually, I have nothing negative to add here. I like that line and think that Joe should say stuff like this more often. Descriptive without being stupid.

"You don't have to have great speed, you have to have great instincts." - Joe - Joe Castiglione also mentioned Dustin Pedroia's instincts on the Sox radio broadcast yesterday. Let's see...instinctive, Rookie of the Year, throws his body around for the team. It's official, Red Sox fans: set Dusty up with a supermodel or two and we have our very own mini-Jeter.

Finally - a good in-game interview with a manager. All it took was David Ortiz hamming it up in the background (and Tito threatening to kick his ass).

(posted by One More Dying Quail)

I'm not sure how much Sunday Night Baseball I'll be able to watch tonight, but don't fret: the Open Thread will live on.

On the field, it's Cubs vs. Cardinals, Jason Marquis vs. Todd Wellemeyer. In a crazy twist, Marquis is a former Cardinal who now plays for the Cubs, while Wellemeyer is a former Cub who now plays for the Cardinals. The rivals have split the first two games of the three game series.

In the booth, it's my main man Joe and his sidekick Jon. Please keep an eye on them for me, and I'll check back in later, hopefully in time to hear all about this week's Best Way To Slide Into Second Base. I'm guessing it has something to do with digging a tunnel and sneaking up on the middle infielders.



It's 9:30, I just walked in the door and turned the game on...and Joe and Jon are talking about Alfonso Soriano as a leadoff hitter. It was like deja vu. Can someone explain to me why we need to watch the same two teams play Saturday afternoon on FOX and Sunday night on ESPN?

Some fun stuff from the comments...

Quick stat: The Cubs have a combined EIGHT at-bats versus Todd Wellemeyer in the last 5 seasons.

Henry Blanco is 0-1.
Reed Johnson is 1-4.
Aramis Ramirez (who may not be in the starting lineup) is 1-1.
Alfonso Soriano is 0-2.

Dammnit. Why is Todd Wellemeyer good this year? - Adam

Interesting quote attributed to Joe Morgan while I was listening to the Rays-Red Sox game this afternoon in my truck. According to Morgan, the Rays won't be able to hang around the top of the AL East, not because that they are in the same division as the Sox or Yanks or that they're still a little on the young side. It's because Joe doesn't think that the Trop doesn't give the Rays a good home-field advantage. Gee, you think??!! When half the crowd is rooting for the opposing team, I guess that wouldn't be a home field advantage now, would it? Thank you Captain Obvious!! - chrisltyner

Getting on base is not important for your fifth and sixth place hitters. - JM - Vegas Watch

I refuse to listen to that asshat Morgan, so I'll be listening to the Cards radio broadcast. The only problem there is that Mike Shannon never knows what inning it is. Lesser of two evils, I guess. - Bruce

Four in a row from an anonymous contributor...

Already Joe has said that the Cubs' offense has been inconsistent, even though they lead the league in hitting. Then, he threw cold water on Miller's praise for Fukudome. Joe needs to get over everyone liking Ryno more.

Miller says this about Marquis last at bat "what a bad at bat that was... he looked like a pitcher during that at bat." What a douche

Is it possible not to spend five minutes comparing Fukudome to Ichiro and Matsui? Next up, not all the kamikazes from Pearl Harbor had the same favorite color.

So Miller said Matsui played on the TOKYO Giants not the Yomiuri Giants and Morgan just called the game over there AAA baseball. I'm sure people from the far east ever got word of that they will not be too thrilled.

If announcing had a minor league, Joe would've never gotten past Short-season A ball. - Bruce

Pssst, Joe. Jon. Yadier Molina just threw a runner out at second base. From his knees. It was a pretty nice play. I think you should talk about it for the next half inning. Yeah, it'll make for great TV. Make sure you mention that he has two brothers who are also - get this - MAJOR LEAGUE CATCHERS. Amazing, I know. Call them "The Catching Molina Brothers". The viewers will eat...it...up.

Nobody challenged Lou Pinella when he told Joe'n'Jon that Bobby Bonds had a 40-40 season with the Yankees. - SteveH

In fairness, I wouldn't challenge Lou Piniella either. I don't care if he's almost 65 years old - the dude is scary when he's angry. Joe was probably all, "I don't think Bobby ever had a 40-40 season with the Yankees," and Jon was all, "It was 30-30, close enough. Let it go." It probably happened exactly like that.

Umm...Jon, Yadier Molina may have had a good NLCS in 2006. However, Jeff Suppan was the MVP - anonymous

I'm so sick of you jerks, always trying to ruin a good story. If Jon can't rewrite history to help make his points, what is the world coming to?

Gary Thorne approves of the 'bloody sock' Baseball Tonight commercial. I've been meaning to ask, but yea or nay on the constant Fantasy update on top of the score bar? - Rick James Bible Owner

I don't think I mind the fantasy update bar - in fact, I didn't even notice until your comment. I like that it's there, but it's so small that you can ignore it if you so choose.

Im sure you saw it...the asshats in the truck are joining in the stupidity putting up last week's teams (DET, LAA) coming back from commercial. - Matthew

FOX is predicting the future, ESPN is living in the past. Battle lines have been drawn.

you seriously bitch in the 1st paragraph about these two teams being on Fox yesterday and ESPN tonight??? Dear god, when the Sawk and the Spankees play its a special ESPN Friday game, Fox on Saturday to 100 percent of the country and ESPN again Sunday...and no one complains...This rivaly (STL vs CHC) is just as big in the Midwest as the other one is out east..its just that the Cubs have blown for 100 years so there is no post-season series or battles down the stretch...Get over yourselves East Coast!! - Nathan

+1 for putting a name on that comment instead of leaving it anonymously, but you're wrong in one respect - I'm pretty sure I've said before that I hate when Sox-Yankees games are nationally televised on back-to-back days (and the Red Sox are my favorite team). It's just boring to see the same teams over and over again, no matter who they are. I wrote last year that I wanted to see the Brewers or the Royals or the Pirates on Sunday night, just because I hadn't seen them before and it would've mixed things up a little.

Kosuke Fukudomo plays for the Cubs, Peter Bavasi is dead...what's in a name?

Great story about the Japanese manager, Joe. I guess someone read the New York Times to you today. - anonymous

They also threw up a graphic mentioning that Fukudome was a member of the 2007 team that won a championship for the first time in 53 years. What they neglected to mention was that he was a non-factor because he was recovering from elbow surgery (I learned that from Sports Illustrated, so I'll assume it's true).