Take Me Out To Ballgame: Jim Belushi narrates ESPN story on Wrigley tradition

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I went to the Cubs-Los Angeles Angels game Tuesday. The 7th inning stretch singers were performers from a local performance of The Jungle Book.

No offense to the stars of the play, but some days are better than others at Wrigley Field.

While there has been some debate in Chicago whether the tradition has run its course, the stretch has provided some memorable moments (see video). ESPN looks back at the 15-year run in a piece that will air during SportsCenter Sunday morning (10 a.m. ET) and on Baseball Tonight Sunday (7 p.m. ET). Chicago native Jim Belushi narrates.

And here is the ESPN write-up on Front Row:

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It might be a few years before Jackson O’Connor asks his father to “Take me out to the ball game,” but this Sunday morning he can watch 20 “guest conductors” sing that iconic song in a “SportsCenter Featured” piece his dad was working on the day he was born (July 3, 2013).

Producer Mike O’Connor enlisted Chicago native Jim Belushi to voice-over the feature (debuting on the 10 a.m. SportsCenter and also airing on Baseball Tonight 7 p.m., ESPN), which focuses on celebrities and athletes who’ve carried on Harry Caray’s legacy the past 15 years since his death: singing Take Me Out to the Ball Game during the seventh inning stretch at Wrigley Field. (Watch preview clip here.)

“We liked Jim for the voice because he wasn’t just some Hollywood guy, he is as big a Cubs fan as there is and truly represents the voice of Cubs fans,” O’Connor said of the actor/comedian. “I asked Jim if he was interested in serving as the voice of the piece, rather than being interviewed for it, and he was in. The key was in the presentation of the script, which is where ESPN.com writer Wayne Drehs came in. In [Feature Manager] Drew Gallagher’s words, we asked Wayne to take it and, ‘Chicago it up.’ Wayne [whose Twitter bio includes “Cubs geek”] set the tone with his writing, and Jim had some leeway to make it his own.”

For the recording studio, Belushi recommended Parr’s Audio on Martha’s Vineyard where he lives. Normally, O’Connor would have been there personally, but who wants to visit an exclusive island off Cape Cod in July?

“I decided to do it over the phone knowing that my wife, Rebecca, could have the baby any day,” O’Connor said. “I was connected with Jim so we could communicate, I could listen in, and we could discuss wording and tone as he went. Jim was great to work with — he was committed to doing it well and gave us several variations to choose from.”

“Jim was an absolute pro in the studio and has more personality in his voice than anyone I know,” said Jim Parr, the studio’s owner. “His obvious love for the Cubs came out in the session, and there was a bunch of fun repartee between Jim and Mike back in Bristol that should make for a pretty entertaining piece.”

Singers in the piece include Bill Murray, Ozzie Osbourne, Eddie Vedder, and Bozo the Clown, while Jeff Gordon, ESPN’s Mike Ditka, Ernie Banks, Caray’s grandson and Atlanta Braves’ broadcaster Chip Caray, and long-time Wrigley Field organist Gary Pressy are among those interviewed.

“The timing of the piece is tied to this season’s policy change at Wrigley to include celebrities and athletes who are Cubs fans or have Chicago ties rather than out of towners,” says O’Connor, a native of Farmington, Conn. and 2003 graduate of Western New England College.

And although immersed in Chicago Cubs tradition, O’Connor claims his week-old son is already Yankees fan, just like his dad.

Editor’s Note: The St. Louis Cardinals visit the Chicago Cubs on Sunday Night Baseball, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN.

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More chatter about Keith Olbermann returning to ESPN; Late-night talk show?

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The latest on Keith Olbermann-ESPN comes from Bob Raissman in the New York Daily News:

Is Keith Olbermann headed back to ESPN?

The Daily News has learned Worldwide Leader is in serious discussions with Olbermann to host a New York-based late night talk show on ESPN 2, according to industry sources.

The sources said the situation is still “very fluid” and no decision on green-lighting Olbermann or the project has been made.

If the move to Olbermann is made, it could blunt the buzz Fox hopes to generate with its August launch of Fox Sports 1.

This could be the first shot in an all-sports cable TV war. The sources added ESPN is also considering unleashing a multi-million dollar SportsCenter advertising campaign/counter attack that would air around the launch of FS1.

Of course, Olbermann is slated to work as the studio host for TBS’ postseason baseball coverage. So there could be some issues there.

However, ESPN President John Skipper is interested in developing some sort of late-night program for the network. Olbermann, while polarizing, definitely would make things interesting.

Golf Channel’s Molly Solomon: On making history, role models and working with husband

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Molly Solomon making history at the Golf Channel is the subject of my latest column for the National Sports Journalism Center site at Indiana.

From the column:

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Molly Solomon never was into the notion of role models until she went on a trip to New York this spring.

Last summer, Solomon made history when she was named executive producer for the Golf Channel. The appointment made her the first woman to assume that role for a sports division.

Initially, Solomon downplayed the distinction. She insists she never saw herself as a female sports producer.

“I just wanted to be known as a producer,” she said.

Solomon’s attitude, though, changed a few months ago. During a trip to the Sports Emmy Awards in New York, Solomon visited her former staffers at NBC.

Solomon said she had “an epiphany.”

“I was talking to these young women at NBC Sports,” Solomon said. “They were saying how much I meant to them and how they missed me. It really meant a lot to me.

“Now, I get it. It is important to have role models. To be there and show them that there are no barriers based on gender.”

******

Solomon on Dick Ebersol and the need to “over perform”:

Looking back on her career, Solomon credits former NBC Sports Chairman Dick Ebersol for always pushing her to do more.

Recently, she thought of Ebersol while reading Sheryl Sandberg’s bestseller, “Lean In.”

“Sandberg said (to women), ‘Just raise your hand,’” Solomon said. “If only somebody gave me a copy of that book when I was 22. Girls don’t raise their hands. Dick forced me to raise my hand.”

It wasn’t always easy. She admits being a woman in a male-dominated field might have pushed her to greater heights.

“You do feel like you have to over-perform,” Solomon said. “You don’t want to stop. You have to work even harder. It propels you. You are determined not to fail.”

*******

Solomon on another epiphany:

In 2010, she made a presentation for NBC to the International Olympic Committee.

At the end of the meeting, a woman from the IOC approached and presented her with a scarf.

“I said, ‘What’s this for?’” Solomon said. “She said, ‘I’ve never heard a woman give a major presentation in this room before. I’m very happy about that.’

“Wow. Sometimes you really don’t know. You’re just doing your job. Then you realize how meaningful it is to someone else.”

********

Also, Solomon’s new job comes with a unique challenge. She is working just down the aisle with her husband, Geoff Russell. The former editor of Golf World now is the Golf Channel’s senior vice-president and executive editor.

“I feel closer to him than ever, but it’s harder than you think,” Solomon said. “We never fight, but we have had some spirited discussions. Our biggest problem is turning it off when we get home. We’re so passionate about the Golf Channel. We have it on all the time. Finally, one night, our daughter said, ‘Can we stop talking about golf.'”

 

Really, a feel-good story about Twitter sparked by Richard Deitsch

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Master tweeter Richard Deitsch usually is at his best when he is feuding with Darren Rovell or going on off on something, which is all the time. However, the SI.com sports media columnist hit on something this week, and it could be big.

At least it was big enough to merit a write-up on CNN.com.

Also want to give a shout out to Steve Bennett of Sports-Casters (wearing Yale cap), who inspired the idea.

From CNN’s Dorrine Mendoza:

Richard Deitsch was perusing Twitter when one photo made him stop. At first glance it’s unremarkable, not much different from any other victory photo. It’s a bit grainy and shows three young men smiling and hugging.

One of the men had just won an NCAA hockey championship at Yale.

Deitsch said he was struck by something more than just the photo. He knew the man who posted it, Steven Bennett, host of a Buffalo-based sports podcast. Bennett is in the picture celebrating his younger brother’s victory, despite having just spent more than six weeks in the hospital.

“You gotta come now,” Bennett remembers his younger brother, Anthony Day, telling him over the phone. Bennett made it for the semifinal, which his brother’s team won in overtime. For the final game, Bennett was joined by 23 family members, one of whom snapped the photo of all three brothers embracing.

“I thought to myself how remarkable it was to have an image of what was clearly one of the best moments of Steven’s life,” Deitsch said. “I wondered: How many others have a similar image? So I took to Twitter and asked,” he said. He credited @Sports_Casters, one of Bennett’s accounts, for the idea in his tweet.

And just like that, the heart of the Internet broke wide open.

“I could never have expected what came next,” he said.

And this is what came next:

Hundreds of photos have been shared with both accounts, and continue coming in, Deitsch said. Scrolling through his newsfeed, one finds photos of a child’s first day of school and high school graduations. A child meeting a sibling for the first time and a baby recovering from open-heart surgery. But there are also unexpected moments of joy witnessed, like a long-married couple exchanging a final goodbye, hard-earned sports victories, and the day a woman opens her eyes after undergoing a heart and double-lung transplant.

CNN has a rundown of some of the pictures people sent in. Definitely worth a look.

 

 

Hanging with Obama: Frank Deford honored in White House ceremony

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Just when you didn’t think it could get any better for Frank Deford, it does.

Yesterday, Deford received the National Humanities Medal from President Obama during a ceremony at the White House.

Judging by the picture, Deford shared a light moment with the President.

Here is the citation read by Obama:

Frank Deford, sports writer, for transforming how we think about sports. A dedicated writer and storyteller, Mr. Deford has offered a consistent, compelling voice in print and on radio, reaching beyond scores and statistics to reveal the humanity woven into the games we love.

But then you already knew that.

Prior to the ceremony, Deford, 74, told his hometown paper, the Westport (Conn.) News, that he was stunned by the news.

“Obviously I was astonished. This isn’t something you expect or that anybody expects. It came completely out of the blue. I was taken aback,” Deford said. “We were in the process of moving from Westport at that time and the house was a mess. The trauma of moving and everything, it was an extraordinary moment.”

Congratulations, Frank. Well deserved.

ESPN response to declining spring ratings: Blame San Antonio Spurs

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It’s been a relatively slow week on the sports media front. So news that ESPN’s spring ratings suffered a sharp decline prompted a mid-level feeding frenzy.

According to Sports Business Daily, ESPN had a 32 percent dip in primetime ratings during the spring, its worst performance in a single quarter since at least 2006. The network’s total-day viewership fell 20 percent, the lowest since 2007.

DOOM AND GLOOM IN BRISTOL!!

The reason, though, seemed fairly obvious. ESPN got dealt a sucky hand for the NBA playoffs. It was capped off by a West Final featuring two small market teams that don’t move the needle. Then to make matters worse, San Antonio finished off Memphis in four games.

Meanwhile, TNT cashed in with ratings-monster Miami winning in 7 over Indiana.

ESPN PR guru Mike Soltys didn’t single out the Spurs in a post on ESPN’s Front Row, addressing the ratings decline. Also, he didn’t use the word sucky. But both were implied:

The reason for the drop? It is largely attributable to the end of 2012’s NBA lock-out shortened schedule being particularly strong.

You might recall the end of the season last year was back-loaded with a big increase in highly rated games (23 over a month in 2012 versus eight in 2013). This was combined with fewer Conference Finals contests (seven from the Eastern Conference in 2012 compared to three in the 2013 Western Conference). The lack of major market teams’ appearances on ESPN — in 2012 the Lakers and Heat combined for 11 ESPN appearances but just two in 2013 — also factors in.

Boston was featured in 10 2012 playoffs games but only two in 2013, resulting in fewer marquee players in marquee cities to drive viewership. In all, ESPN had 31 fewer NBA games, which not only affected game ratings but also hurt studio shows that routinely get a post-game lift.

Additionally in 2012, ESPN benefitted from 21 Euro Championship matches. This year, ESPN had the Confederations Cup, but it was only about half as many matches with lesser national interest.

“Last quarter was a rare aberration and we expect our demographic delivery to return to normal levels in the second half of 2013,” said ESPN Senior VP of Research and Analytics, Artie Bulgrin.

It is interesting ESPN felt the need to explain the ratings situation on Front Row. Perhaps with Fox Sports 1 starting next month, the network doesn’t want to show any signs of being vulnerable.

While nobody likes lower ratings, I don’t think there’s too much concern in Bristol. Football is coming soon, and all will be right in ESPN’s world.

 

 

 

Jeff Saturday joins ESPN as resident Peyton Manning expert

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After playing 172 games with the now Denver quarterback, Jeff Saturday should be more than qualified to know what makes him tick.

From ESPN:

Super Bowl champion and six-time Pro Bowl center Jeff Saturday has joined ESPN as an NFL analyst. The 14-year NFL veteran will appear on NFL Live and SportsCenter and contribute to other ESPN platforms. He will make his debut next week with three days of appearances, July 17-19.

Saturday, who visited ESPN as a guest analyst in March, spent 13 years with the Indianapolis Colts (1999-2011) before playing his final season with the Green Bay Packers in 2012. Though he entered the league as an undrafted free agent, Saturday was a fixture on the Colts teams that won Super Bowl XLI and represented the AFC in Super Bowl XLIV. He was named by Sporting News to the NFL All-Decade Team (2000-09) and achieved first-team All-Pro honors twice (2005, 2007).

Saturday and Peyton Manning started an NFL record 172 games together as a center-quarterback duo. Over a decade-long period with the club, Saturday anchored a Colts offensive line that allowed the fewest sacks in the league (242), and his 132 career wins as a Colt are second only to Manning (141) in franchise history.

In addition to teaming with the four-time NFL MVP quarterback in Indianapolis, Saturday played his final season under center with 2011 NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay. He earned his sixth Pro Bowl appearance there and helped the Packers capture the NFC North title. He signed a one-day contract with Indianapolis in March to officially retire as a Colt.

“Offensive linemen make some of the best analysts because they understand the nuances of the game and they typically have fun personalities — Jeff definitely fits this mold,” said senior coordinating producer Seth Markman, who oversees ESPN’s NFL studio shows. “It’s also no accident he played center for two NFL MVPs in Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers.”

Added Saturday: “I look forward to joining ESPN, which is the premier sports network. I’m excited about the opportunity.”

SI on Bob Uecker: A trip inside the one-and-only

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Just caught up with Luke Winn’s terrific story on Bob Uecker in the June 27 edition of Sports Illustrated. Highly recommend you take the time to read about one of the most unique characters in baseball history, who still is going strong as the voice of the Brewers at age 78.

Loved this description from Winn:

It’s a shame that you can’t see him talk, can’t watch the ripple effect words have on his face, the creases and folds and that bulbous schnozz, the whole cartoony lot of it framed by a swept-back, polar-white mane. In the Philly booth Uecker is a festival of facial animation, while the rest of him is placid. His head stays level. His back and disproportionately broad shoulders stay tilted toward his tabletop microphone. He taps his black loafers slowly, soundlessly, as he speaks. Uecker wears an earpiece in his right ear, attached to a clear cord that curlicues behind his neck. He sits on the right side of the booth, with highlighted game notes and a scorebook.

And there’s this:

Uecker imitators must perfect a complex repertoire: his drawn-out vowels (“heeeeeeee struck him out”), his talent for sausage-ad improvs, his deftness at weaving balls and strikes into story time, his propensity for breaking into his home run call on balls that lack the sauerkraut to get over the fence. This sequence, from the bottom of the sixth on April 29 against the Pirates, is a fine template:

“Baseball being brought to you in part by Usinger’s. People here in Wisconsin, and everywhere else for that matter, know fresh is best, like fresh crisp kraut, stacked high on a tasty Usinger’s brat hot off the grill. And the pitch by Sanchez rides high and outside. All into a local-made Pretzilla soft pretzel bun, and you’ve got the perfect meal, folks. And if you’re looking for tailgating par excellence, that’s the way to do it. Outside on Segura, two and oh. Baseball season and Usinger’s sausage: doesn’t get much better than that, nope. I probably eat Usinger’s sausage at least twice a day. And maybe five to six pounds. There’s a strike on the outside corner.”

(Block: “And now we know what you’re doing during the third, fourth and seventh.”)

“Two balls and a strike. I pack it and stack it. That’s low on Segura, 3 and 1 now. Woodman’s Food Market home run inning. Jenna Speltz from Independence. Woodman’s gift card jackpot, 1,200 bucks now. Whoo. And the pitch to Segura, a drive to right, DEEP! GET UP, GET OUT OF HERE—OFF THE WALL! Just missed, Jenna. He’s going for three now and he’s going to be in there with a sliding triple.”

And there’s much more. Again, worth your time.

 

 

Put it on Board: Hawk Harrelson to be featured in new MLB Network documentary

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I know Ken “Hawk” Harrelson can be a polarizing figure, but there’s no disputing that he has had an interesting career in baseball. Check that, an interesting life, period.

It all will examined in a new MLB Network documentary, The Colorful Life of Ken Harrelson. Narrated by Bob Costas, it debuts Thursday, July 18 at 6:30 p.m. (ET).

Besides a very colorful baseball career as a player, broadcaster and even general manager, Harrelson played pro golf (missed the cut by a stroke in 1972 British Open), and even dabbled in boxing. On the documentary, he talks about an encounter with Rocky Marciano, who told Hawk just a few days before he died about how he wanted to promote a boxing match between Hawk and Sonny Liston.

There’s some great throwback footage included in the show, including an old Yellow Pages ad Hawk filmed on a golf course and a “Who’s On First?” bit he filmed with Cleveland Indians teammate Sam McDowell.

Given that Harrelson is the subject, you can be sure it won’t be dull.

Stay tuned. More details to come.

 

 

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