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.

ESPN decided to pull off an interesting idea the other night, by placing both of their Monday Night Baseball analysts in opposite camera wells, while the PbPer stayed up in the booth. I thought the plan had some promise, but after watching some of the game, I quickly figured out that wasn't the case. It wasn't that the reports from the wells were bad, rather that they were just boring. Others, namely Diane Pucin of the LA Times, seemed to agree as well....

Anybody watching ESPN's Dodgers-Cardinals television broadcast, where analysts Orel Hershiser and Steve Phillips are working the game from photo wells near the dugouts? Has it been noticeably bad or good?

Seems kind of neutral. Not at all like when Chicago Cubs broadcaster Harry Caray used to take off his shirt and report from the Wrigley Field bleachers with some beery-headed observations that often didn't make sense. But Caray always had the professional Steve Stone to lead the fans gently back to the action when Harry was having too much fun.

Honestly, if ESPN hadn't told us this was happening would you have even noticed Dan Shulman was alone in the booth? At least, so far, neither Hershiser nor Phillips have been nailed in the chin by a baseball a la Erin Andrews a few weeks ago.

Zing! Good one, Diane. As far as the whole sideline analyst thing goes, the reason this setup works for Hockey and NBC in particular, is because there's so much action between shifts. That and Pierre McGuirre actually talks with the players on the bench, as the game is going on. It just doesn't work with the slow pace of Baseball. Hershiser and Phillips, just did their same old analyst jobs, but from a different location.

No harm, no foul. It was worth a shot, didn't work, and now you move on.

ESPN's announcers in the photo well experiment (LA Times)

Baseball announcing has rarely ever deviated from the norm. You usually have two or three announcers in the booth, and an on-field reporter. That's the way it's been for years, and very few networks have tried something different. Well that's until ESPN airs its Monday Night Baseball game, between the Dodgers and Cardinals tomorrow night.

The "Leader" plans on dividing up its three man team of Shulman, Hershiser and Phillips, by putting the two analysts in the camera wells beside each dugout. Via USA Today....

ESPN will formally announce Monday that it will experiment Monday night on its Los Angeles Dodgers at St. Louis game (7 ET). ESPN will keep play-by-play announcer DanShulman in the booth, but analysts Orel Hershiser and Steve Phillips will be stationed in the camera wells beside each dugout.

Matt Sandulli, ESPN senior coordinating producer, says the Cardinals preferred ESPN use the camera well on the outfield side, rather than home plate side, of its dugout to reduce chances its analysts might somehow interact with players. Sandulli says that won't happen anyway — "we're not supposed to talk to players and wouldn't do it" — and hopes to get the Dodgers to allow access to the well on its dugout's home plate side.

TV sports commonly station reporters along sidelines, in pit road or on golf fairways. But putting main game announcers in separate locations rarely has been done, such as NBC's Pierre McGuire being rinkside on NHL games or ESPN having Paul Maguire chime in on football from a sideline camera cart. Says Sandulli: "There's lot of non-verbal communication in the booth. We joked that maybe (the analysts) will will send signals from dugout to dugout."

Sandulli says its possible that ESPN could send more baseball announcers out of the booth on future games, depending partly on whether Monday night's experiment delivers a "wow factor."

While my initial reaction is that this might become a bit distracting, the intrigue almost outweighs that. The Pierre McGuire idea has worked wonders for NBC Hockey, and the same could potentially work for Baseball. Besides, it's Monday Night Baseball, why not?

ESPN baseball announcing team goes separate ways (USA Today)

One of the great benefits of working from home is being able to watch daytime events, like Playoff Baseball and the NCAA Tournament, without having to come up with new lies every year to tell to your boss. I always love to help those out who are stuck at work, or don't have access to the game, so this spot will serve as your goto for updates, quotes and videos of the game.

Dave O'Brien, Orel Hershiser and Steve Phillips are on the call for the game airing on ESPN2 and your pitching matchup is Freddy Garcia against Gavin Floyd. Leave your predictions and thoughts in the comment section and I'll update this spot throughout the game.

Update: The tarp is on the field and we're looking at a bit of a rain delay. Dave O'Brien promises Baseball in a few, so I'll update you when I know what the start time is.

Update #2: It's 5pm and we're underway! Orel Hershiser is talking about energy bars and eight track players for some reason. They must have gone stir-crazy during this three hour delay. If anything exciting goes down I'll be sure to grab the video and put it up in this spot. If not, I'll see you for Monday Night Football.

Update #3: Alexei Ramirez broke a 2-2 with a grand slam in the sixth and the White Sox are currently batting in the bottom of the 8th. I'll have video of that and the final few outs up shortly following the game.

Update #4: The Sox win it 8-2 and there will be a one-game Playoff tomorrow with the Twins coming to Chicago. The game will air on on TBS at 7:30pm.

I'm an unabashed fan of the LLWS, and I don't necessarily think broadcasting every game of it is a bad thing, but thirty two games across three platforms seems like a lot. Either way, that's the exact same total they did last year and they even have an entire show devoted to LLWS "Web Gems" this go around!

Welcome back to Williamsport, Brent Musburger, Gary Thorne, Karl Ravech, Orel Hershiser, and Orestes Destrade. Also say hi to Stacey Dales and Pedro Gomez (still getting the choice assignments now that Bonds isn't playing).

Here's your schedule in case you care to check out your state's game(s)....

Pool Play Round

Fri., Aug. 15

Midwest (Rapid City, S.D.) vs. Southeast (Tampa, Fla.)- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN, 2pm)
Canada vs. Latin America- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN2, 4pm)
New England (Shelton, Conn.) vs. West (Waipahu, Hawaii)- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN2, 6pm)
Mid-Atlantic (Hagerstown, Md.) vs. Great Lakes (Jeffersonville, Ind.)- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN, 8pm)

Sat., Aug. 16

Caribbean vs. Mexico- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN, 11am)
Europe vs. Asia-Pacific- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN, 1pm)
Midwest (Rapid City, S.D.) vs. New England (Shelton, Conn.)- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ABC, 3:30pm)
Japan vs. Middle East and Africa- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN, 6pm)
Southwest (Lake Charles, La.) vs. Northwest (Mill Creek, Wash.)- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN, 8pm)

Sun., Aug. 17

Europe vs. Mexico- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN Classic, Noon)
Canada vs. Japan- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN2, 1pm)
Great Lakes (Jeffersonville, Ind.) vs. Southwest (Lake Charles, La.)- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ABC, 3:30pm)
Latin America vs. Middle East and Africa- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN2, 6pm)
Southeast (Tampa, Fla.) vs. West (Waipahu, Hawaii)- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN2, 8pm)

Mon., Aug. 18

Northwest (Mill Creek, Wash.) vs. Mid-Atlantic (Hagerstown, Md.)- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN2, Noon)
Asia-Pacific vs. Mexico- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN, 1pm)
Midwest (Rapid City, S.D.) vs. West (Waipahu, Hawaii)- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN2, 3pm)
Caribbean vs. Europe- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN, 4pm)
Southeast (Tampa, Fla.) vs. New England (Shelton, Conn.)- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN2, 6pm)

Tue., Aug. 19

Latin America vs. Japan- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN2, Noon)
Northwest (Mill Creek, Wash.) vs. Great Lakes (Jeffersonville, Ind.)- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN, 2pm)
Canada vs. Middle East and Africa- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN, 4pm)
Caribbean vs. Asia-Pacific- Karl Ravech and Orestes Destrade (ESPN2, 6pm)
Southwest (Lake Charles, La.) vs. Mid-Atlantic (Hagerstown, Md.)- Gary Thorne and Orel Hershiser (ESPN2, 8pm)

Single Elimination Round

Wed., Aug. 20

International Semifinal #1- Gary Thorne, Orestes Destrade and Pedro Gomez (ESPN, 4pm)
U.S. Semifinal #1- Brent Musburger, Orel Hershiser and Stacey Dales (ESPN, 8pm)

Thu., Aug. 21

International Semifinal #2- Gary Thorne, Orestes Destrade and Pedro Gomez (ESPN, 4pm)
U.S. Semifinal #2- Brent Musburger, Orel Hershiser and Stacey Dales (ESPN, 8pm)

Sat., Aug. 23

International Championship- Brent Musburger, Orel Hershiser, Orestes Destrade, Stacey Dales and Pedro Gomez (ABC, 12:30pm)
U.S. Championship- Brent Musburger, Orel Hershiser and Stacey Dales (ABC, 3pm)

Sun., Aug. 24

Consolation Game- Karl Ravech, Orestes Destrade and Pedro Gomez (ESPN, Noon)
Little League Web Gems Special (ESPN, 2pm)
Little League World Series Preview (ESPN, 2:30pm)
World Series Championship- Brent Musburger, Orel Hershiser, Stacey Dales and Pedro Gomez (ABC, 3:30pm)
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I'm also hoping that this umpire is involved in the games somehow....

Man I'm starting to feel bad for this girl. She can't go more than ten minutes at a ballpark with either a fan, player or colleague hitting on her. Well last night at during the Sox-Rays game it was Dickie V's turn...

Not all that out of the ordinary, but I'm waiting for EA to freak out on some unsuspecting guy who just wants to buy her a beer. "NO! I am not interested in your penis!!!" (If you get that reference +1 to you). Be careful out there boys.

You may have already seen this on Deadspin's Morning Video Wake Up Call, which I'm putting together each morning, but I thought it deserved a spot here. Georgia player Matt Cerione struck out and he was none too happy with the call as ESPN's cameras followed him into the dugout (:37 secs)....

Too funny. Anytime you surprise Mr. Britney Spears you've done well in my book. Bravo Mr. Cerione.

Okay now that the rain has stopped in Chicago we're going to try this again. Brent has already called Tony Gwynn Junior, Tony Gwynn Senior and Orel's hair is losing some of it's hold in the rain.

"I told him I sampled his mother's product. I can always tell the difference when it's Mrs. Braun."- Brent Musburger

Ryan Braun's mom is a brewer for Anheuser-Busch, but if you came in at the right time that could have been really funny. Hey there's the Edgar Renteria I know! A strike out with less than two outs and a runner at third and an amazing play by Alex Gordon to end it. Tigers....0 and 1.

And we're out to Dodger Stadium to hear from Dave O'Brien and Steve Phillips. It's definitely not raining there.

Jeff Kent just jacked a homer off Zito to make it 3-0 Dodgers. Vin Scully is making the impending blowout entertaining. (Via S2N)

I wish I had him because Dave O'Brien puts me to sleep. Utley homers for his first on the year 6-3 Nats. Cubs fans seem to really like this Fukudome guy too.....

If I had one wish today, it would be that Harry Caray could have lived long enough to have to pronounce the name "Kosuke Fukudome". That would have never failed to be hilarious. (Via Mal)

I concur. Zambrano's pitches are moving like crazy today in the cold weather. Good sign for Cubs fans. He's only given up one hit through six and two thirds. Santana is also perfect through two innings.

I heard this gem early in the Tigers/Royals broadcast and had to take note of it to put on here..."He did a nice job there pulling out-- up, pulling up."- Rob Allen of FSN Detroit (Via Chase)

If Erin Andrews is doing a game in So Cal, two words should be required: tube top. (Via Mal)

I was going to say sun dress, but either would suffice. I have yet to see her on the telecast though. Nevermind....here she is....



Wow...the Nats are doing it again in the ninth. Nick Johnson with a double that scored Lastings Milledge from first....barely.

"DeRosa moves in to keep Gwynn close on second base."- Brent Musburger
"Prince Fielder not the fleetest of foot but he scores easily from 2nd base."- Orel Hershiser

These two seriously have no idea who's on base. Gwynn bunted over Weeks to 2nd and Prince Fielder got an intentional walk and is on first. Good to see Kerry Wood in midseason form already as well. 1-0 Brewers in the ninth. Make that 3-0 nothing after a double.

Annnnnd.....It's Eric Gagne's turn to blow the game! Single, 4 pitch walk, and......3 Run FUKUDOME HOMER!!!!!!

Great call by Brent Musburger noticing that ex-Cub Jason Kendall was trying to steal signs behind the plate.

Moving onto Joe and Jon and we find out one of our replacements for Rick Sutcliffe this season.....Joe Morgan. Boooo.

"One thing I know is....the ball hurts."- Joe Morgan