ESPN hires NBA referee equivalent to Mike Pereira

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Sound move by ESPN. The network has hired a former NBA official to lend insights for its coverage of the finals on ABC.

Richard Deitsch of SI.com reports Steve Javie will work as a rules analyst for the network’s pregame and postgame coverage of the NBA Finals, as well as SportsCenter.

Javie, a 25-year ref who had to retire because of a bad knee, told Deitsch that he was inspired by Mike Pereira’s work on Fox’s NFL coverage.

“Mike and I are friends and I think what he’s done has fantastic,” Javie said.  “He’s been the trailblazer here and he told me he thought the NBA, ESPN or TNT  would be interested in something like this. I think Mike has really gained  credibility for officials in the NFL, but fans of the NBA have never heard from  or been given the perspective from the officials’ point of view. I’m hoping for  positive feedback because I believe it’s something that’s been missing. I hope  people come away and say, “Boy, I didn’t even look at it that way, and I never  knew that.”

Yes, but what happens when he has to call out one of his former NBA colleagues for missing a call?

“Now I’m not going to be a jerk about it because these are my guys. But I want  to be the voice of the official and tell people, ‘Look at this play. Maybe you  should have had a whistle here, but here is the reason why they didn’t blow it.’  I won’t be a guy who blasts the officials but at the same time I will be someone  who points out to fans that the ref did not get call right and here’s why. It’s  not necessarily a criticism but an explanation on why a call was missed.”

I like the move. More explanation and less whining about the officials is the way to go.

 

Sherman Interview: High honors, challenging times for John Feinstein

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First of two parts:

You would think being inducted Monday to the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association Hall of Fame in North Carolina would be the top thrill for John Feinstein this week. However, the noted author also has something else on his agenda:

A command performance from Robert Redford.

The actor invited Feinstein to Sundance in Utah Saturday to discuss books at one of his arts functions. It’s such a unique opportunity that the Golf Channel gave Feinstein permission to skip the third round of the U.S. Open in San Francisco to attend the event.

“He heard me on NPR promoting a book,” Feinstein said. “When I called the Golf Channel, they said, ‘Yeah, you’ve got to be there.’ It’s pretty cool.”

Feinstein, 56, has enjoyed plenty of cool moments in his long career. More than enough to merit a nod to the Hall, where he will go in with Bob Costas on the sportscasters side.

He is the greatest selling sports book author of all time; his 29th book, Rush for the Gold, aimed for kids, just hit the shelves. Nearly 30 years after he wrote it, Feinstein still is fielding compliments for his breakthrough, A Season on the Brink.

However, the changing publishing industry (much lower fees) has even affected bestselling authors like Feinstein. It has forced him to take on other duties to make up for the loss in revenue. While he says he enjoys his new gig as co-host with Bruce Murray on the Beyond the Brink show on SiriusXM’s Mad Dog Radio, he frankly admits it is something he is doing out of “necessity rather than want.”

Several times during our interview, Feinstein talked about the need to find the time to exercise in the wake of having heart bypass surgery in 2009. It all makes for a compressed and hectic lifestyle for Feinstein.

I checked in with Feinstein last week. Here’s the first part of my Q/A where he talks about his career, past and present. Tomorrow, we’ll discuss his views on sports talk radio.

What does it mean to be inducted into the NSSA Hall?

It’s up there. You look at the names on the writing side: Red Smith, Jim Murray, Dave Kindred, heck, Damon Runyon. Bob Ryan got inducted last year. That what it means to me. When you get older, you get a lot of honors and you say, ‘OK, thank you.’ But this is one where you go, ‘Wow. This is cool.’

How does it feel to go with Bob Costas?

It’s thrilling for me because I will be the tallest inductee. He actually called to congratulate me. We both grew up in the business together. In the early 80s, he was calling college basketball games for NBC and I was covering college basketball for the Washington Post. It’ll be great to go in with him.

What does this award signify about your career?

It says I’m old. It’s the old cliche: It’s nice to be recognized by your peers. I’ve learned to take compliments from people in stages. To this day, I still have people who say they love watching me on Sports Reporters. I haven’t been on the show since 2007.

When they say, they enjoy me on the Golf Channel or that they loved Season on a Brink, I say, ‘Oh, thank you very much.’ Now if they say they love A Civil War (Army vs. Navy), they’re my best friend. Civil War is my favorite book.

To have people understand what it means to write 29 books and work at the Post all these years, that’s more important to me than a fan poll about who’s your favorite sportswriter. Not that I’d win anyway.

Your last book, One on One, was personal, telling the back stories of people you covered in your books. Why did you go that route?

The great thing about doing that book was that I realized I developed some real relationships through the years. When you do a book, it isn’t just five minutes in front of a locker. You spend time with these people. To be able to go back to those people you haven’t seen in years, you realize there was some kind of relationship and trust that was built.

Any new books in the works?

I’m doing a book on Triple A baseball. The other day I watched the PawSox play the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.

How have you been affected by the changes in the book business?

It doesn’t dim my desire to write books, but it’s harder because the money has gone down. It’s gone down for John Grisham too. I had a long period where I could focus on books and do other stuff that I chose to do. Now, I enjoy doing the radio show, but it takes four hours out of my day.

Because I’m not making as much as I need to on the books, because of (supporting a family), it forces me to take on more work where, frankly, I’d rather be focused on books. It’s not a matter of choice. It’s a matter of necessity.

You’ve done books for Little Brown for years. Now you’re next book will be with Doubleday. Why the change?

After One on One, we made a mutual decision to go in different directions. Little Brown has gotten much more into publishing fiction. I started to feel a little uncomfortable and less of a priority.

You’re also working as a contributor to the Golf Channel. How did that come about?

When they reached out to me, I said, I’ve never had good experiences with TV. I told them I used to do essays for CBS. They said, fine, let’s do that.

It’s great, and I enjoy everybody over there. But if it was up to me, instead of being on the set, I’d rather be walking the course or working the range. That’s no putdown to the Golf Channel. Writing is what I love. It’s what I do best.

How do you balance everything?

It’s not easy. I try to write every morning before the show starts. But I also have to exercise. It’s something I must do. The radio show takes up a good portion of my day. When it’s over, I still need to have the energy to do the reporting and writing.

You’re 56. What frontiers are there left for you to conquer?

It’s interesting. Again, it comes down to necessity vs. want. Necessity keeps me doing radio and TV. I still love writing for the Post. That’s something I’ll always do. I love writing the books. I love doing the books for kids. You get those letters from kids or parents of kids, who say their kid never read a book until he read mine.

If there’s one thing I haven’t done is that I’d like to write a play. I’m 99.9 percent sure it never would leave the house. I love the theater. I’ve always thought Red Auerbach could be a great one-man play. I would like to write a play about men and their relationships in sports.

It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I just haven’t had the time to do it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday funnies: Rodney Dangerfield was a jerk, Deford writes in book

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In his great new book, Over Time, Frank Deford devotes a fun chapter writing about his experiences in those classic Miller Lite commercials. The alumni gatherings for the group commercials, he writes, were terrific fun.

However, there was one guy who Deford, and everyone else, detested: Rodney Dangerfield.

Deford writes:

We were a pretty happy gang, and everyone got along. Well, except for Rodney Dangerfield. He was a total horse’s ass. His trademark line–“I don’t get no respect”–was well deserved, and he was as insecure in person as he portrayed himself in his act. Rodney was, I think, intimidated by the All-Stars and dealt with his fear by setting himself far apart from them. Plus, he was generally disagreeable.

There’s great stuff about Mickey Spillane tearing into Dangerfield, and how Big Ben Davidson once defended Deford during a Dangerfield tirade by saying, “That’s enough, Rodney.”

Writes Deford:

For the softball shoot, when the other guys had been on location for hours and Dangerfield finally only bothered to show up at the end of the day when everyone was assembled for the team picture, Billy Martin began the chant as soon as Rodney stepped out of the limo.

“Big Fucking deal!” Martin cried, and all the others picked up on it. “Big fucking deal! Big fucking deal!.”

The chorus rolled across the diamond, and Dangerfield’s face turned red as his signature tie. He just silently, sullenly took his place in the photo, though. Hecklers in a nightclub he could deal with. These burly athletes scared him into silence.

Still, the guy was funny. Here’s one of the memorable alumni commercials.

 

 

Belmont still ratings go up; NBC makes best of tough situation

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Give NBC and producer Rob Hyland a lot of credit for adjusting on the fly Saturday. It isn’t easy to tear apart an entire telecast at the last minute.

NBC still benefited from the hoopla around I’ll Have Another prior to the horse’s withdrawal. From the release:

Overnight ratings for the Belmont Stakes on NBC soared, despite the scratch of Triple Crown-hopeful I’ll Have Another, topping last year’s overnight by 13%, and the 2010 overnight by 74%. Yesterday’s overnight rating is the highest for a non-Triple Crown Belmont since 2005 on NBC.

NBC’s broadcast of the Belmont Stakes, which was won by Union Rags, registered a 5.4 overnight rating and a 13 share for the race portion, up 13 percent from last year’s race (4.8/11 on NBC), and up 74% from the 2010 race (3.1/7 on ABC). Yesterday’s Belmont had the highest overnight for the race in a non-Triple Crown year since 2005 on NBC (6.0/13), according to overnight ratings data provided today by The Nielsen Company.

 

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Sunday bookshelf: Triumph offers Dawson, Killebrew and Oil Can

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At a time when publishers are cutting back, thankfully Triumph Books in Chicago continues to produce sports books. Here’s the link to a catalogue of their wide array of offerings and some of the selections that stood out for me.

If you Love This Game…An MVP’s Life in Baseball, Andre Dawson with Alan Maimon; Foreword by Greg Maddux.

From the catalogue:

Reflecting on his accomplishments, his colleagues, and the future of baseball, Andre Dawson tells the story of his four-decade career as a player and executive in this intimate memoir. Seriously injured at a young age, Dawson struggled with chronic pain throughout his career and was only seriously scouted by the Montreal Expos during college. Overcoming these odds, he went on to be named the National League Rookie of the Year in 1977, earn eight All-Star appearances, seven Gold Gloves, and a Most Valuable Player Award. This behind-the-scenes look at a dedicated player’s journey from a segregated Miami neighborhood to the fabled halls of Cooperstown offers fans a window into the psyche of a fan favorite.

They Call Me Oil Can: Baseball, Drugs and Life on the Edge, Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd and Mike Shalin.

From the catalogue:

Speaking candidly to veteran sportswriter Mike Shalin for the first time about his often tumultuous career in Major League Baseball, Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd recounts a life that began in the Deep South of Mississippi, and the events that led him toward great heights atop the pitcher’s mound at Fenway Park. As part of a stellar rotation alongside Bruce Hurst and a young Roger Clemens, Boyd served a dazzling array of pitches to opposing batters, most notably during the Boston Red Sox ill-fated 1986 World Series run against the New York Mets; and while he was at once brilliant and focused on the mound, off the field—as he affectingly reveals here—Boyd was unraveled by the personal battles he waged with substance abuse and destructive mood swings. As one of the few African American starting pitchers in the history of baseball, Boyd offers a candid, insightful, and often funny portrait of an athlete with boundless passion for the game, his teammates, and the Boston Red Sox.

Harmon Killebrew: Ultimate Slugger, Steve Aschburner; Foreword by Jim Thome.

From the catalogue:

When Hall of Famer Harmon “Killer” Killebrew died in May 2011, the baseball world lost one of its best hitters and one of the finest ambassadors the game has ever known. Killebrew was second only to Babe Ruth in home runs by an American League slugger, and finished his career with 573 home runs and in 11th place for all-time Major League Baseball history. This book takes a look at the 22-year career of a perennial Most Valuable Player candidate and baseball powerhouse, reviewing his life in and out of baseball and peeling back the mystery surrounding this intensely private athlete. This biography is a look not only at Killebrew’s long career as a player, but his life as an announcer and businessman after his retirement from baseball.

Sherman Interview 2: Feinstein a different voice for Mad Dog Radio

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John Feinstein never will consider himself to be a radio guy. As he established in part 1 of our interview, he is a writer first and foremost.

However, since radio now occupies four hours of his day, Feinstein wants to be good at it. In his mind, it means doing some things that break from the tradition of sports talk radio.

In part 2 of our Q/A, he discusses his relatively new show with co-host Bruce Murray, Beyond the Brink (Mad Dog Radio, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. ET). He talks about differences in approach with Murray, boring guests, and Tony Kornheiser, whose radio show serves as a blueprint for Feinstein.

What has it been like doing a daily radio show?

I haven’t found it that hard. I can talk for four hours with taking a breath.

It took a while for Bruce and I to adjust. He had been doing it alone. We have different ideas for what makes good sports talk radio. Bruce is more traditional. He focuses on games, NFL, NBA, baseball. We had an argument on a Monday about what was the big story: Tiger Woods winning the Memorial or Celtics-Heat. I thought it was Tiger. He thought it was Celtics-Heat.

Tiger Woods, for better or worse, is the best-known athlete in the world. I tend to talk about people, tell stories about people. Bruce likes to break down the games. It’s OK to get two different guys. Over the course of four hours, you don’t want to sound the same.

Is it possible to do a successful sports talk show without a lot of bluster?

Tony Kornheiser has shown you can be successful by doing a smart show. A lot of what I do comes from him. His philosophy is that you don’t have people on just because they are big names. A couple of times, they came to me and said, ‘We can get so and so.’ I said, ‘He’s terrible.’ Tony has a no athletes rule. I don’t think I can get away with that, but I’d rather have on a smart TV commentator or journalist or a coach willing to talk.

They booked (Baltimore GM) Dan Duquette. The Orioles have had a lot of success. Dan came on for 15 minutes and it was physically painful. Then I booked (Baltimore baseball writer) Peter Schmuck. He was great. Peter’s going to be honest, while GMs are paid to hide stuff.

Whether or not we can succeed this way, I don’t know. I’m going to try to do it.

What is your view on callers?

If you get a smart caller, that’s fine. Let him make a few points. But if you get someone who is screaming, get him off. Bruce said, ‘Oh no, you can’t do that.’ I said, ‘Not only can you do that, but you should.’

We had a cadre of callers who were pissed when I first got here. Part of it was people reacting negatively to change and part of it was people who felt it was their show. One day, we had a guy who was screaming because he was put on hold. I said, ‘Fine, don’t call.’

Some of those callers have gone away, and we’ve replaced them with some quality callers. We have 6-8 regular callers where I’m kind of interested in what they have to say.

What do you bring to the show?

I think I’m able to add some things because of my background. Because of what and who I’ve covered through the years. Sometimes I tell stories about people I know. Like when Casey Martin qualified for the U.S. Open. I talked about being in the Supreme Court when they heard his case, and then talking about it to Casey later. I talked about some of the arguments I witnessed in the locker room. I told the story of Fred Couples arguing with Payne Stewart. Fred thought he should get a cart because he had a bad back. Your typical sports talk host doesn’t know this.

What kind of feedback have you gotten thus far?

It’s been positive. But you know in TV and radio, you’re great until the day they fire you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Costas interview with Leyland: Bonds, Tigers, retirement and being a singer

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On MLB Network Saturday:

Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland looks back on his 26-year career as a Major League Baseball manager in a new episode of MLB Network’s Studio 42 with Bob Costas this Saturday, June 9 at 2:00 p.m. ET.

Studio 42 with Bob Costas featuring Jim Leyland will re-air on Sunday, June 10 at 10:00 p.m. ET

And here are some excerpts:

On managing the Pittsburgh Pirates in their 1992 NLCS loss to the Atlanta Braves:

The ’92 loss was probably the toughest I’ve ever suffered and it was a very interesting scenario.  I said it at the time and I still think about it today, this whole picture flashed in my mind [of] a Little League World Series.  It was almost reduced to that, like a Little League game, where one side’s jumping up and down and one side’s crying.  It was unbelievable.

With all due respect to the media people [and] TV people, I asked them, “Can we have a couple of extra minutes?”  I said, “This is a tough one,” and they gave us that.  I always appreciated that…It was pretty much what you’d expect, some guys crying, some guys just really lost…I was in a total fog.  You know the old saying from Jack Buck, “I can’t believe what I just saw,” that’s kind of the way I felt.

On managing Barry Bonds while in Pittsburgh:

I saw a lot of good things in Barry…He’s not as tough as he lets on. I think he’s one of those guys that it was a motivational tool for him to upset people, to make them mad at him.

He was coachable and he was manageable.  A lot of people didn’t think so, but it depended on how you coached him.  Barry was one of those guys where he was very coachable, but you had to let him think it was his idea.

On managing the last inning of the 1997 World Series between the Florida Marlins and Cleveland Indians:

I thought “Devon [White] is going to hit a sacrifice fly, get a fly ball over somebody’s head, get a base hit, whatever it may be,” We were gonna win the World Series.  When he hit the ground ball to second and they forced the guy at home, I said, “Oh my God, I’m almost out of pitching.  I gotta look at what I’m doing.”…I was looking back down at my card and just before the pitch to Edgar [Renteria], I looked up again…Just as I looked up, Edgar hit it and I looked it and it was in center field.  I’m going, “Oh my God, it’s over, and what a relief.”  I was actually relieved more because I didn’t have to continue to work on my lineup card…It was an amazing feeling.

On Game Seven of the 1997 World Series being underrated:

It’s always stuck in my craw, it’s always bothered me a little bit…I really believe had that been the Yankees [and] the Dodgers, Yankees and the Mets, it might’ve gone down as the second greatest World Series game of all time. … It was truly a better game for me than the Arizona [Diamondbacks] and Yankees [Game Seven in 2001] …It’s one of the greatest games, I think, that was ever played…I think the fact that it was Cleveland and Florida, it just didn’t get the hype that it should’ve gotten.

On if he felt he was done in managing after one season in Colorado in 1999:

I didn’t think I would ever manage again.  I truly did not think that I would ever manage another Major League Baseball team. I left four million dollars on the table.  My wife wasn’t real happy about it.  I just felt like I didn’t want to go back there and try to fake my way through it.  It wasn’t the right thing to do.

On taking the managerial position in Detroit in 2006:

[Detroit] was probably really the only situation [I would go to]. I live in Pittsburgh so Philadelphia would’ve been a nice little ring.  I would’ve been interested.  They had a good team, a nice, new ballpark.  But [Detroit] had more to it than a lot of other things.  I didn’t think, at my age, I was ever going to get a chance to manage the Tigers.  All of a sudden, this kind of fell in my lap. Here it was and I said, “You know what, I’m reenergized.  This is what I thought I always might have a chance to do, get a shot to do. Here it is, a little late.” But, yeah, this worked out good.

On when he will retire:

When the passion’s not there. When I start getting up in the morning and not wanting to go to work, I’ll go home. Tony [La Russa] and I are a little bit different in that I had a six-year sabbatical [from 1999-2006] and that really refreshed me. That got the battery going again.  I think that really helped me out. I think if I would’ve tried to do it like 33 straight years like Tony did, I probably would’ve stepped away too, maybe even before that.  But that six-year sabbatical, I spent some time at home and watched the kids grow up a bit.  It really refreshed me.

On what he would do if he wasn’t in baseball:

I’m embarrassed to say this, but I would’ve liked to have been in a band.  I love to sing.  I played the trumpet as a kid.  Our family sat around the piano. I never played a piano in my life, but my brother played the piano, my two sisters played.  I love it.  I still like to sing.  I’m not as good as I was at one time.  I was ok at one time…I can’t quite hit the high ones like I used to, but I was ok.  I sang weddings and I was in a choir and different things like that, and I loved it.  But this worked out a little better, I think.

I love soft rock.  I’m not into the rap too much, obviously.  I’m a little old for that….I love the oldies.  I saw “Jersey Boys” four times…I love musicals.  I saw a lot of the musicals.  I like those and participated in those in school, so that’s probably what I would’ve tried to do.  I doubt it would have worked out, but who knows?  That’s a tough business.  That’s probably tougher than our business to be successful in.

 

 

Dream Team rises again in NBA TV documentary

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The U.S. basketball team will have plenty of star power in London, but there will be only one Dream Team.

Twenty years ago in Barcelona, a team for the ages transformed basketball. A new documentary on NBA TV (Wednesday, 9 p.m. ET) chronicles Michael, Magic, Larry, Charles, Patrick, Scottie and the rest with interviews and rare footage.

I’ll have more next week, but here’s a video clip with the release below.

From NBA TV:

NBA TV will celebrate the 20th anniversary of USA Basketball’s iconic team, which captured the attention of fans around the globe, when the network premieres NBA TV’s “The Dream Team” presented by Right Guard on Wednesday, June 13, at 9 p.m. ET.

Narrated by writer/director/producer Ed Burns, the film will be the definitive documentary of the historic 1992 USA Basketball team, featuring recent interviews with all 12 members, including Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Charles Barkley.

The 90-minute documentary will showcase never-before-seen footage and untold stories of how the most dominant team ever assembled returned USA Basketball to glory, while turning basketball into a global phenomenon.

The world had rarely seen a frenzy as the one the Dream Team created when it arrived in Barcelona, Spain, in July 1992. The Dream Team featured 11 future Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame players and three future Hall of Famers on the coaching staff, including head coach Chuck Daly.

NBA TV’s “The Dream Team” presented by Right Guard® will take viewers on a behind-the-scenes journey into the selection of the team, the dynamic personalities, the legendary team-building experiences in training camp and exhibitions, and ultimately its rock-star-type unveiling in Barcelona.

NBA TV’s “The Dream Team” presented by Right Guard® will include:
· Exclusive one-on-one interviews with the entire Dream Team: Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Clyde Drexler, Patrick Ewing, Christian Laettner, Karl Malone, Chris Mullin, Scottie Pippen, David Robinson, and John Stockton, as well as assistant coaches Lenny Wilkens, Mike Krzyzewski, and P.J. Carlesimo
· The Team’s only loss, as documented through rare footage from USA Basketball’s film library, and the untold story behind what has become part of basketball legend
· The Story of the greatest game never seen, featuring exclusive footage from 20 years ago in Monte Carlo when Magic and Jordan went head-to-head in practice
· How The Team was chosen: the story behind the selection process for the Dream Team’s roster
· Many other exclusive interviews with those connected to the team.