ESPN shut out of All-Star Game

[bobbymagee]

Finally appears their inappropriate journalism has come to haunt them. YES!!!!!!!!!

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/...65dfae65c9791c

[b-ball-lunachick]

Interesting decision...I guess MLB really had no choice as ESPN did break the agreement and if MLB ventures into any deals with other networks in the future, they have to show that they would stand behind their exclusivity...

I do think if TBS has that show next year, they need to plan the timing better..obviously nobody expects a rain delay AND extra innings but that's why you don't plan for something like that immediately following a game...

I'm sure everything will be fine between MLB and ESPN -- they both need each other...

[TheYankee]

I'm glad to see them being held accountable. Too many times, people bend over backwards for ESPN.

[hardrain]

YES!!!!
YES!!!!

This makes me happy!

[b-ball-lunachick]

It would be kind of funny if ESPN cancelled that idiotic home run derby at the last minute..nobody wants to compete in it anyway.

[JDPNYY]

It would be kind of funny if ESPN cancelled that idiotic home run derby at the last minute..nobody wants to compete in it anyway.

It would be great if....


Nevermind. I think everyone knows how I feel by now.

[rca1230]

Vladdy in the HR derby = yay

[penfold]

This smells like they're laying the ground for putting everything onto the MLB Network.

[Steve J. Rogers]

This smells like they're laying the ground for putting everything onto the MLB Network.

ESPN should get shut out of Cooperstown as well.

-It has been shown on CLASSIC, it is live though, while The Mothership gets the Canton one for football (because God knows there are more fans into Benny Friedman and Fritz Pollard* than Ryne Sandberg and Wade Boggs)

-ESPN Classic gives you the intro of the returning HOFers but then throws it right back to a studio set-up where the anchors "chat" while Cooperstown's MC (George Grande) and others are talking, throwing it back only for the speeches of the Frick, and Sphinx winners as well as the new HOFers, except for last year when they CUT OUT of several of the Negro League inducetees and not one segment was done about ANY of them. And one, Jud Wilson had one hell of a nickname that is on his plaque, "Boojum." Why did I have to go to Wikipedia to find out that this was a moniker given to him by Satchel Paige because of the sound the ball made after hitting his bat? That is something I should have been told while watching.

-The NFL gets Chris Berman so obviously his entire spiel gets viewed, well except for introducing the returning HOFers and whateverelse doesn't include the new HOFers and who ever is inducting them.

-The Cooperstown coverage has failed to include Stan Musial's harmonica stylings, come on, thats one of the treats of watching the ceromonies, and sadly there are fewer and fewer opportunities.


*Not a knock, just saying that on the main ESPN you could see those two pioneers of the NFL and professional football finally get their due while you had to search for ESPN Classic to see the induction of guys who played in MLB a decade ago.

[TheYankee]

ESPN should get shut out of Cooperstown as well.

-It has been shown on CLASSIC, it is live though, while The Mothership gets the Canton one for football (because God knows there are more fans into Benny Friedman and Fritz Pollard* than Ryne Sandberg and Wade Boggs)

Thank you. I'm absolutely tired as hell about the coverage they grant to the NFL, and minimal coverage dedicated to Major League Baseball.

Every night, there has to be a new edition of NFL Live. Why? What could possibly be happening in the NFL offseason that necessitates you airing a show every night? Michael Vick's dog fights? Tank Johnson's legal battles? If you can air this every night when they aren't even in season, you could definately do it for baseball considering more moves are made every year in the MLB offseason than in the NFL.

Not only this, their Baseball Tonight is half-assed in my opinion. I seem to remember a few years ago, the show would be recut in certain spots so that in the morning, should you watch it, the west coast games would be finals. Now they simply replay the latest show the night before, and at 11:00 AM, I'm seeing that the LA Angels are currently tied 3-3 in the 7th inning with the Tigers. Why? Why have they become so half-assed? The all baseball all the time channel will be a breath of fresh air.

*Not a knock, just saying that on the main ESPN you could see those two pioneers of the NFL and professional football finally get their due while you had to search for ESPN Classic to see the induction of guys who played in MLB a decade ago.

Well put... great post.

[26 and counting]

I almost never watch Baseball Tonight anymore. I remember when the show first started, I would look forward to it every night. They would show you a million highlights of every game. Nowadays, for some games they don't show any highlights. They just say, "And tonight, the Pirates beat the Reds 10-7." Dammit, I don't care if the game featured two sucky teams. I still want to see the highlights!!! Instead, they have another feature on the Bonds steroid investigation that the majority of fans don't care about.

[Yankeeah]

I watched a full SportsCenter tonight for the first time in months. They we're going to discuss UFC and I wanted to see it. It was awful. They a combined 13, 14 minutes on Vick and the Who's Now segment. Chuck Liddell was one of the Who's Now people and none of the panelists watched MMA. So it was pointless. If you're going to cover a sport, include a reporter from the sport on your show.

[Yankees1962]

My heart bleeds peanut butter for ESPN. I can't wait until the Baseball Channel and NFL Channel get bigger and bigger while ESPN gets a little smaller.

[TheYankee]

I watched a full SportsCenter tonight for the first time in months. They we're going to discuss UFC and I wanted to see it. It was awful. They a combined 13, 14 minutes on Vick and the Who's Now segment. Chuck Liddell was one of the Who's Now people and none of the panelists watched MMA. So it was pointless. If you're going to cover a sport, include a reporter from the sport on your show.

That's what drives me nuts... 15 minutes on Michael Vick... NO ONE cares about that. Really... give us the sport that is in session... baseball.

[46Mattingly23]

I almost never watch Baseball Tonight anymore. I remember when the show first started, I would look forward to it every night. They would show you a million highlights of every game. Nowadays, for some games they don't show any highlights. They just say, "And tonight, the Pirates beat the Reds 10-7." Dammit, I don't care if the game featured two sucky teams. I still want to see the highlights!!! Instead, they have another feature on the Bonds steroid investigation that the majority of fans don't care about.

And idiotic segments like the other night the episode on George Steinbrenner's birthday, the topic was "Who will eventually replace George as the owner?" John Kruk says Donald Trump, Mark Cuban, or John Henry (!!!!!!!!) Eduardo Perez lists Oprah Winfrey, P. Diddy , and Spike Lee. I lost 25 IQ points watching it.

Oh yeah and ESPN's coverage of MMA is hilarious, it's like when sports announcers talk about pro wrestling and get everything wrong.

[Yankeeah]

Oh yeah and ESPN's coverage of MMA is hilarious, it's like when sports announcers talk about pro wrestling and get everything wrong.

Before UFC 71 they had a boxing VS MMA debate with Joe Rogan for MMA, some boxing guy for boxing and Brian Kenny hosting the segment. Ya know, the Brian Kenny who won a few boxing analyst awards who hosts several boxing shows on ESPN. It was two on one and must've looked bad for anyone who didn't know much about MMA.

ESPN is just awful

[b-ball-lunachick]

Thank you. I'm absolutely tired as hell about the coverage they grant to the NFL, and minimal coverage dedicated to Major League Baseball.

Every night, there has to be a new edition of NFL Live. Why? What could possibly be happening in the NFL offseason that necessitates you airing a show every night? Michael Vick's dog fights? Tank Johnson's legal battles? If you can air this every night when they aren't even in season, you could definately do it for baseball considering more moves are made every year in the MLB offseason than in the NFL.

Not only this, their Baseball Tonight is half-assed in my opinion. I seem to remember a few years ago, the show would be recut in certain spots so that in the morning, should you watch it, the west coast games would be finals. Now they simply replay the latest show the night before, and at 11:00 AM, I'm seeing that the LA Angels are currently tied 3-3 in the 7th inning with the Tigers. Why? Why have they become so half-assed? The all baseball all the time channel will be a breath of fresh air.


Well put... great post.

I agree -- waaaaay too much NFL and BBT has been substandard the past couple of years...

my question is -- do they listen to the voices of the guys they are hiring? Part of broadcasting is having something to say but part of it is how they say it...Eduardo Perez and Eric Young's voices are so bad, I can't even listen to them...blech..

[Toaderly]

I watched a full SportsCenter tonight for the first time in months. They we're going to discuss UFC and I wanted to see it. It was awful. They a combined 13, 14 minutes on Vick and the Who's Now segment. Chuck Liddell was one of the Who's Now people and none of the panelists watched MMA. So it was pointless. If you're going to cover a sport, include a reporter from the sport on your show.

I simply do not get the "Who's Now" segment. It doesn't make any sense to me whatsoever. I've tried following it but it just gives me a headache. I mean, what is the point of comparing a golfer to a no-holds barred fighter?

[BillBuckner]

[Yankees79]

wow.. i thought i was the only one who does not care for ESPN... one of my main complaint with them is they talk to much football even during baseball season!..and the baseball tonight crew is a joke, harold reynolds was the best on that show. I used to watch/like FoxSports when they tried to go one on one with ESPN

[BillBuckner]

wow.. i thought i was the only one who does not care for ESPN...

You apparently don't spend a lot of time in this forum then.

[yankeesAZ]

Now if we can just get Fox to violate the embargo!

[tdel23]

I watched a full SportsCenter tonight for the first time in months. They we're going to discuss UFC and I wanted to see it. It was awful. They a combined 13, 14 minutes on Vick and the Who's Now segment. Chuck Liddell was one of the Who's Now people and none of the panelists watched MMA. So it was pointless. If you're going to cover a sport, include a reporter from the sport on your show.

That Who's now segment has to be the dumbest thing ever.

[ojo]

they lowered the common denominator several years ago. it's just blatant at this point.

[TheYankee]

my question is -- do they listen to the voices of the guys they are hiring? Part of broadcasting is having something to say but part of it is how they say it...Eduardo Perez and Eric Young's voices are so bad, I can't even listen to them...blech..

Oh exactly... they sound like a broken record as well... nothing ever new to add. And you said it, they sound simply terrible. It's like your listening to a conversation with the kid's that fell behind in English class. Hate to say it, but I was surprised they even hired Tino Martinez. At first, he was simply God-awful... by the end of the year, he was actually their best analyst and could speak much better... I haven't seen these guys make any improvement from their first show.