Paul Finebaum starts new radio show today on ESPN: But will you be able to hear him?

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Paul Finebaum begins his new radio gig today at ESPN. The four-hour show debuts at 2 p.m. ET.

The question is where?

This is from the official release from ESPN:

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ESPN Audio has selected Cumulus Media Networks to secure terrestrial radio distribution for Finebaum’s show.

ESPN affiliated stations in every market will have the first opportunity to carry the show. His former home station in Birmingham, Ala., WJOX 94.5 FM, as well as WAPI 100.5 FM, will offer the show.  His previous show attracted nearly a quarter of the adult male listeners in Birmingham, ESPN’s highest-rated college football television market the past several years.

ESPN Audio is overseeing satellite and digital distribution.

Paul Finebaum on ESPN

Finebaum will appear on a variety of other ESPN shows and outlets, including SportsCenter, College Football Live, College GameDay and in ESPN The Magazine.  Starting in August 2014, when the  SEC Network launches, a television simulcast of Finebaum’s radio show will anchor the network’s afternoon lineup.

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In a USA Today story, Finebaum “could not confirm how many affiliates have committed to airing the show.”

So I guess, check your local listings.

Hopefully, ESPN will find a way to place Finebaum’s show nationally on a Sirius XM outlet. Otherwise, I’ll never hear his show in Chicago. There’s no room at the Inn here.

That’s also the case for me with shows such as John Feinstein’s on CBS Sports Radio and Brian Kenny’s on NBC Sports Radio. I know, I know: Those programs are available on the Internet, but I can’t walk and chew gum at the same time, let alone work and listen to the radio.

As a result, the bulk of my radio listening in the car. Since I am in the car quite a bit, I hear a lot of radio, which is a big reason why I subscribe to Sirius XM. That’s where I heard Finebaum prior to him making the jump to ESPN.

There’s little question that this is a great move for Finebaum, especially when the SEC Network gets up and running. However, it isn’t so great for people like me who won’t be able to hear his show.

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As for the show, Finebaum told USA Today the format will remain the same.

So what will be different about the show? Finebaum doesn’t anticipate changes other than it will be broadcasted from Charlotte, N.C. and have better resources being an ESPN product.

“I’ve said this before and I’ll say it as long as I’m doing radio,” Finebaum said. “There are better shows in the country with better guests, who may have better hosts, but no show has better callers.”

 

 

 

Mannings brothers as rappers? Behind latest DirecTV commercial

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The guys take it to another level here.

As for who thinks of this stuff? Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News offers some insights.

Alex Kaplan, DirecTV’s vice president of marketing, says the idea came as a collaborative effort by the satellite dish company’s marketing and advertising divisions, along with its partner, Grey Advertising in New York.

“It was kind of a leap of faith in that we hoped it was as funny as it looked on paper,” Kaplan said this afternoon. “I think we pulled it off.”

And..

Payton and Eli filmed the spot in New Orleans in mid July, as one can see from the French Quarter background, Kaplan said.

“What’s so cool is they’ve been great spokesmen for Sunday Ticket, and they’ve wanted to do another one of these for us, ever since they did the ‘Football Cops’ video a couple of years ago,” said Kaplan. “They’ve been bugging me to do something outside the box. We’ve been waiting for the right idea and this one popped up.”

Posted in NFL

Sunday funnies: Remembering Art Donovan, football’s funny man

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Art Donovan passed away this week at the age of 89. The former Baltimore Colts defensive lineman made a second career about telling stories from his first career.

Donovan cracks up Johnny Carson in this appearance on The Tonight Show.

Peter Richmond of Sports on Earth wrote about one of football’s most unique characters:

Artie wanted to be a cop, then a teacher. He applied to Columbia to see if he could get some teaching credits; the Ivy bastion, after reviewing the application, advised him to stick with professional football. So he did. And took another ring in ’59 when they routed the Giants. Marchetti was the leader of the defense; the man his teammates called Fatso was the court jester — until the opening kickoff. He was good. He’s in the Hall of Fame. He was All-Pro four times. Then after the final whistle, he’d be Fatso again, when he’d bitch about how the strongest refreshment in the locker room was orange soda.

By the ’80s, Artie knew he had a good thing, this gift of storytelling. So natural were his chops that he would become a Letterman regular. But he knew it was shtick. He was a Bronx guy at heart. And when he was running the country club down in Maryland, you could always find him — not at the bar, in that basement kitchen.

 

Random baseball card: Lou Brock with the Cubs; How did that trade work out?

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Through 52 games in 1964, 25-year-old Lou Brock was hitting .251 with 10 stolen bases. The Cubs saw a chance to land Ernie Broglio from St. Louis and jumped.

On the surface, it looked like a great deal for the Cubs. They got a 28-year-old pitcher who went 18-8 in 1963 for a slow-to-develop outfielder. Really, who wouldn’t have made that trade in 2013?

Well, you know the rest of the story. Broglio developed a sore arm and faded to oblivion. Meanwhile, Brock took off with the Cardinals and went straight to the Hall of Fame.

Here is the link to his stats.

Oh what have been, Cubs fans.

 

 

 

Jim Nantz thought about turning pro–for about 11 holes

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I did a Q/A on the voice of golf for CBS for this week’s official PGA Championship program.

As everyone knows, Jim Nantz roomed with Fred Couples and Blaine McAlister at the University of Houston. He recalled a round where he thought he actually might join them on the PGA Tour. The dream, though, died quickly.

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Nantz: I did not have the talent my roommates had. To put it in perspective, I played in only one tournament at Houston: a tournament for freshman. I shot 35 going out. I was 1-under through 11. When I stepped foot at Houston, I knew I wanted to broadcast golf for CBS. Through 11 holes that day, I’m thinking, ‘maybe I got this thing upside down.’

On the 12th hole, I used a 2-iron off the tee and hit right off the hosel. It nearly struck someone in the head. I then went double-double-double. I shot 77 without making a bogey.

Of course, I was too far ahead of myself. I realized during those last seven holes I was going to get there with my microphone instead of my clubs.

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As for the caliber of his game these days, well…

Nantz: First off, I was not that good. It haunts me that people think I’m that good. I’m met on the first tee with unrealistic expectations. It’s a curse. I can really hit it sideways at times. People then say, ‘I read somewhere that you were on the University of Houston golf team. Did you really room with Fred Couple and Blaine McAlister?’ Then they look at you like they’re beginning to doubt that.

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Fortunately for Nantz, there’s more than one way to get inducted into the Golf Hall of Fame. Nantz will be joining his buddy Couples there one day soon.

 

 

 

Posted in CBS

Jack Clark’s radio gig done in St. Louis: Pujols says he will sue over steroids remarks

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Is any publicity good publicity? That probably isn’t the case with the St. Louis radio station that now is regretting hiring Jack Clark.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports the fallout has begun from Clark’s allegations that Albert Pujols used steroids.

Former Cardinals icon Albert Pujols said late Friday that he plans to sue former Cardinal Jack Clark, as well as those connected with the St. Louis radio station on which he appears, for Clark’s on-air steroids allegations about Pujols.

Then shortly after midnight Saturday morning, the company that has put Clark and co-host Kevin Slaten on the air abruptly announced they will not be returning — after just seven shows.

At least twice in the first week of a program that made its debut Aug. 1, Clark said that former Pujols trainer Chris Mihlfeld told him in 2000 that he “shot him up’’ with steroids. Both were working in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ organization at the time. Clark also has made other steroids allegations about Pujols, attributing them to comments Mihlfeld had made to him more than a decade ago.

Pujols’ statement:

“I’ve said time and time again that I would never take, or even consider taking, anything illegal,’’ Pujols said. “I’ve been tested hundreds of times throughout my career and never once have I tested positive. It is irresponsible and reckless for Jack Clark to have falsely accused me of using PEDs. My faith in Jesus Christ, and my respect for this game are too important to me. I would never be able to look my wife or kids in the eye if I had done what this man is accusing me of.

“I know people are tired of athletes saying they are innocent, asking for the public to believe in them, only to have their sins exposed later down the road. But I am not one of those athletes, and I will not stand to have my name and my family’s name, dragged through the mud. I am currently in the process of taking legal action against Jack Clark and his employers at WGNU (920 AM).

“I am going to send a message that you cannot act in a reckless manner, like they have, and get away with it. If I have to be the athlete to carry the torch and pave the way for other innocent players to see that you can do something about it, I am proud to be that person.

“I have five young children and I take being a role model very seriously. The last thing I want is for the fans, and especially the kids out there, to question my reputation and character.”

Clark is about to find out there is a big difference between saying something in private and saying it on a radio station. Probably not a good weekend for the person who hired him.

Weekend wrap: John Henry-Boston Globe pitfalls; new Fox Sports 1 guys from Canada; Nate Silver is Tigers fan

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Spanning the globe to give you the constant variety of sports media…

Henry and Globe: Dean Starkman at CJR.org examines some of the pitfalls of John Henry buying the Boston Globe.

Henry and Globe, part 2: Gethin Coolbaugh, writing for Boston Sports Media Watch, says Henry’s ownership taints the Globe’s coverage of the Red Sox.

The Canadian guys: Steve Lepore of SB Nation has a Q/A with Jay Onrait and Dan O’Toole, the two guys from Canada who will be key players in the Fox Sports 1’s version of SportsCenter.

ARod coverage: Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News thought the YES came up short in its coverage of ARod’s return.

Gary Danielson: He addresses the criticism he receives as CBS’ analyst for SEC. Richard Deitsch at SI.com.

Nate Silver: Didn’t know he was a Detroit Tigers fan. And other stuff about ESPN’s big hire in a piece in FT Magazine.

Fox Sports 1: John Ourand of Sports Business Daily suggests some shows he would like to see on the new network. “Watching Games with David Hill.”

U.S. Open: Fang’s bites has some thoughts on Fox Sports acquiring the U.S. Open.

Bob Ryan: A 2012 book featuring the best of Bob Ryan’s Boston Globe columns. Sports Book Review Center has the rundown.

“The Best of Bob Ryan” catches that feeling nicely, as it goes by almost too quickly – like a conversation with a friend. You don’t even have to be from New England to like it.

Writers on TV: Jeff Pearlman has an amusing post about realizing he enjoys appearing on TV.

PGA TV coverage: Always love when Classic Sports TV and Media reviews the coverage history for a big event. The tournament has been on CBS since 1991. Pat Summerall and Ken Venturi were in the 18th tower.

Frank Deford: On his NPR commentary, Deford recalls the last Ivy League player to win the Heisman Trophy.

Bill Veeck: Grantland revisits Thomas Boswell’s 1981 profile of Bill Veeck as he is about to leave baseball for the last time. Recommended reading.

Podcasts:

Awful Announcing: The one and only Mike Tirico.

Sports-Casters: Two of them this week. Rich Eisen and SI’s Stewart Mandel are in one, and the other features Adam Lazarus (Freelance Journalist, Author), and Patrick Burns (Deadspin).

Sports Media Weekly: Brian Berger, Sports Business Radio.

 

 

Montville: Buying the Boston Globe for less than John Lackey

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Leigh Montville in Sports on Earth writes a column putting the John Henry-Boston Globe deal in perspective. And it isn’t pretty from the newspaper side.

The price that he paid for this addition was the great surprise.

“I can’t believe he bought our newspaper for $70 million,” I, a one-time sportswriter at The Globe, said to another one-time sportswriter at The Globe. “He gets all that real estate. He gets all of those trucks. He gets the rights to all of the stories, all of the pictures, the 22 Pulitzers, all of the past, plus the computer present and future of the pre-eminent voice in all of New England. The Times paid $1.1 billion for The Globe 20 years ago. He gets it for $70 million? The stories say that’s about four percent of what The Times paid.”

“He just gave Dustin Pedroia a $110 million contract extension for eight years,” the other one-time sportswriter said. “So he’s paying $50 million more for the starting Red Sox second baseman than he is for the pre-eminent voice in New England…”

This fact made the two of us feel very old.

And then there was this stunning revelation:

The Red Sox player whose mega-contract to play baseball best approximates the price the Red Sox owner paid for the newspaper, the buildings, the trucks — did I mention that the Worcester Telegram and some smaller newspapers that also were included? — is 34-year-old starting pitcher John Lackey. Right-hander, 6-feet-6, 235 pounds, born in Abilene, Texas, October 23, 1978. He is in the fourth year of a five-year contract he signed for $82.5 million to join the Red Sox in 2010.

His other numbers do not crunch very well. He has won 33 games during his time in Boston. He has lost 32. He has been a controversial character, all grimaces and snarls on the mound, outspoken at times, a contributing member of the fried chicken and beer collective that was singled out after the Sox’ late collapse in 2011. He missed all of last season after Tommy John surgery. He has returned this year, thinner and stronger, more positive, but still has a 7-9 record despite a 3.21 ERA. He is — basically — a .500 pitcher. He will earn $15.25 million this year. His five-year contract is worth $12.5 million more than the price of The Globe.

“Wow,” the other sportswriter said.

“Wow,” I agreed.

Wow, cubed.

 

USGA official on Fox: “Quite frankly, I hope they push us a little bit”

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Interesting story from Adam Schupak of Golfweek about the USGA’s new deal with Fox Sports.

Apparently, the USGA is serious about wanting a fresh look for the U.S. Open. Oh, the $100 million or so per year influenced the decision too.

Schupak writes:

The framework of a deal took shape that day until the two sides adjourned for dinner around “6-7ish.” From inside Proskauer Rose’s Times Square headquarters, the USGA brain trust of Hirshland, Henry Smokler, the USGA’s managing director of broadcast and digital media, consultants from Wasserman Media Group, and Proskauer Rose lawyers burned the office lights deep into the night. They discussed Fox’s lack of experience covering golf and concluded that it shouldn’t be considered a stumbling block.

“They have a very proven track record being able to launch in new sports and do it in a very strong and powerful way,” Hirshland said. “They did it in football, they did it in baseball so we have a very high comfort level that they will be able to produce world-class production.”

And then there was this:

Hirshland said the association would collaborate with Fox in selecting the broadcasters to cover its events.

“In fact, Fox invited that. We didn’t have to force that,” Hirshland said. “Quite frankly, I hope they push us a little bit. That’s one of the goals for us. We want to welcome the fresh perspective.”

Does that mean NBC’s Tommy Roy is so yesterday? Go ahead be ticked off, Tommy.

And finally:

Those with long memories may recall that the USGA’s fortunes improved when it abandoned longtime partner ABC and signed a lucrative deal to broadcast USGA championships on NBC Sports in 1994.

“That (deal) was profound and proved to be terrific for the organization,” Hirshland said.

Time will tell if history repeats itself.

Yes, indeed. This is a big dice roll here.

Golf is a game that likes it traditions. There’s going to be a fine line between innovative and “are-you-kidding-me?” with any changes.

Almost can’t wait until 2015 U.S. Open to see what Fox does.

 

 

Fox announce team for 2015 U.S. Open: Gus Johnson, Simon Cowell, Regis and Frank Caliendo as guess who?

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So how is Fox Sports going to bring “a new and innovative” approach to golf, beginning with its first U.S. Open in 2015?

Don’t write in that Joe Buck will be manning the 18th tower just yet. Even though it is mostly about the U.S. Open, this is multi-tournament deal for Fox, covering several other USGA events. Fox needs to find its voice of golf, much like Jim Nantz, Dan Hicks and Mike Tirico.

I would expect Buck will have a role in the Open. Perhaps as a host like Bob Costas does for NBC.

Anyway, it is anyone’s guess at Fox’s opening lineup for 2015. Given that it is Fox, here are some possibilities.

Lead announcer: Gus Johnson. Hey Gus, forget about soccer and start brushing up on golf. Gotta have Gus at the Open. “IT’S IN THE HOLE…IT’S IN THE HOLE…AWOWOWOWOWOW…” Of course, that’s Johnson describing a tap-in for par.

Lead analyst: Simon Cowell. “That shot was horrible. The worst I’ve ever seen. What a choke. What a colossal choke.” Come to think of it, sounds a lot like Johnny Miller. Cowell also could fill the role of the British/Aussie/Irish voice that the networks need for golf.

17th Tower: Regis Philbin. “Where’s Jimmy Demaret? Has anyone seen Jimmy Demaret?”

16th Tower: Terry Bradshaw. “So you’re telling me the guy with the lower score wins? I still don’t get it.”

15th Tower: Tim McCarver. “In this situation, Mickelson wanted to hit the ball as close to the hole as possible…”

On-course reporter: Jay Glazer. “I just got off the phone with Brian Urlacher and can confirm that he is playing Medinah today.”

Jack Whitaker guy: Bill O’Reilly: Will be very popular with PGA Tour players; 98 percent of them lean to right.

Family Guy: Seth McFarlane: Hey, you take your chances when someone is willing to give you $100 million per year. However, might want to warn Tiger Woods in advance. Statute of limitations haven’t expired when it comes to racy jokes about his former life.

Chris Berman: Frank Caliendo. We can’t watch a U.S. Open without him, right? That’s Berman, of course. However, for many, Caliendo’s version might be more palatable

Special innovation: Glowing golf ball. Naturally.

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Matt Yoder at Awful Announcing has his view of Fox’s potential coverage. As for a mascot:

Digger!  What better way to reach out to golf fans than by including Fox’s lovable NASCAR rodent as an homage to Caddyshack.  Also, Fox will employ Jackie Mason as one of their hole announcers as an homage to Caddyshack II.

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If you have any suggestions, please feel free to contribute.