Help Get & Keep Major League Baseball Off of Fox-TV

[TMC]

One really postive thing about the year 2004 about to come to a close is that we're getting closer and closer to the end of Major League Baseball's current television contract. MLB as you may know, currently has an exclusive six year long contract with the Fox Broadcasting Company. Before Fox got the exclusive rights in 2001, they had to share with NBC for five years.

You know, when Fox first got into baseball back in 1996, I was very optimistic. Fox, in my mind came in to rescue us the fans from that horrific "Baseball Network" concept that ABC & NBC had during the strike.

I wouldn't realize Fox's full wrath until the first few years of their exclusive contract (the first exclusive TV contract that MLB had since the CBS days back in the early 1990s). Among Fox's crimes against baseball include:
*Scooter-An annoying, utterly intellegence insulting, kid pandering cartoon character devised to "explain the science" of pitches.

*Shamelessly tacky cross-promotion left and right. Examples:
-Having play-by-play man Joe Buck's Budweiser ad co-star "Leon" interviewed live during the 2004 World Series.
-Opening up Games 2 & 6 of the 2002 World Series with a vignette/commercial for the upcoming "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle."
-Putting the camera on Drew Barrymore & Jimmy Fallon, who were filming a scene for "Fever Pitch", in the middle of the Boston Red Sox's victory celebration after winning the 2004 World Series (their first in 86 years).
-Using one of the pre-game shows an extension to plug the just released "Star Wars Triolgy" DVD box set.
-Countless virtual ads (for Fox TV shows and 20th Century Fox movies) during the World Series.

*Dumping first round playoff games on Fox (now ABC) Family which perhaps has a fraction of the audience/availabilty as say ESPN. Not only that, but some of these games have started on 11:00 PM on the East Coast.

*Repeatedly broadcasting both League Championship Series at the same time (a tatic that "The Baseball Network" was notorious for), with one of them being dumped on Fox Sports Net.

*Simply hiring anybody who happens to be a desendent of a legendary sportscaster (i.e. Joe Buck, Kenny Albert, Thom Brenneman, and Chip Caray).

*Obnoxious habits like barely missing a pitch because Fox is too busy sticking the camera on some lonesome fan.

*Waiting until late May before starting coverage for the Saturday "Game of the Week." The "Game of the Week" itself (which was ruined by CBS' sporadic scheduling tatics back in the early 1990s) is basically a boring series of regionalized games (thus killing the "marquee" value and specialness of TGOTW). What's the point of regionalizing TGOTW when we can see our local teams any other day of the week. It's really sad when the only place these days, to get a much anticipated national outlet is on cable (i.e. ESPN on Sunday nights).

Here's a further explaination about this particular suggestion:
www.nyyfans.com/article/8163/

I've already found several petition sites that I would like to send to the front offices of Major League Baseball as well as the other major networks (i.e. ABC, CBS, and NBC).

www.ipetitions.com/

www.PetitionOnline.com/

www.petitionsite.com/

www.webpetitions.com/

www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_League_Baseball_television_contracts

For more on this discussion:
http://www.forums.mlb.com/n/mb/message.asp?webtag=ml-mlb&msg=40114.1&ctx=0

[Brian Damage]

I agree that Fox does a lousy job with their broadcasts

[snl75]

a little off topic but i feel the same way about my nba i cant stand abc and ther lousy coverage i least you baseball fans might get a decent shot at a better network us nba fans have to wait at least 3 more years before the abc contract is up.

[TMC]

Originally posted by snl75
a little off topic but i feel the same way about my nba i cant stand abc and ther lousy coverage i least you baseball fans might get a decent shot at a better network us nba fans have to wait at least 3 more years before the abc contract is up.

I'm also a bit disappointed with ABC's coverage of the NBA (I'm actually missing NBC more and more). First and foremost, I'm disappointed that ABC doesn't have any inspired theme music like NBC (John Tesh's "Roundball Rock") or CBS' immediately catchy, dramatic theme music ("Dada Dada Da-Da-Da-Da Da-Da-Da-Da Bada Ba-dom"). During the first year, we had to put up with that tacky "We Got Hoops" big-band-like theme. Then, leading up to the 2004 NBA Finals, we had to endure the Black Eyed Peas' "Lets Get (Retarded) it Started" shoved down our throats.

I also hate it that ABC sporadically covers regular season games sans the double-headers that NBC & CBS did. No wonder the ratings for the 2003 NBA Finals were so bad (since ABC didn't really advertise the NBA with enough passion from start to finish). Basically, it seems like you can't really count on ABC to deliver (outside of the Finals) as opposed to cable outlets like TNT & ESPN. What's even more ridiculous is the fact that ABC during this current contract, doesn't cover the All-Star Game (leaving the job instead, in the hands of TNT).

[snl75]

my thoughts exactly

[Pavan]

Originally posted by TMC
What's even more ridiculous is the fact that ABC during this current contract, doesn't cover the All-Star Game (leaving the job instead, in the hands of TNT).

Ummm, that's because the NBA WANTED it that way. NBC's ratings for the All-Star game were VERY weak, especially recently. So, they wanted to move the All-Star game and ONE of the Confernece Finals to cable.

Also, FYI, the 2004 NBA Finals on ABC was one of the highest rated NBA Finals in a long time. Probably since the Lakers first championship with Shaq and Kobe.

The 2003 Finals was weak not because of the lack of promotion, it's because the Spurs do not draw ratings, like the Lakers do.

And as for this season, ABC is promoting the Christmas game a lot. The theme is pretty good too, "ABC, Easy as 1, 2, 3." I hope they stick to that for a while.

[James]

Originally posted by pavanbadal
And as for this season, ABC is promoting the Christmas game a lot. The theme is pretty good too, "ABC, Easy as 1, 2, 3." I hope they stick to that for a while.

Pav, is that the game where the Lakers play the Heat and Kobe gets to play against his old teammate Shaq?

[Pavan]

Originally posted by James
Pav, is that the game where the Lakers play the Heat and Kobe gets to play against his old teammate Shaq?

Yes...

[TMC]

Originally posted by pavanbadal
Ummm, that's because the NBA WANTED it that way. NBC's ratings for the All-Star game were VERY weak, especially recently. So, they wanted to move the All-Star game and ONE of the Confernece Finals to cable.

Also, FYI, the 2004 NBA Finals on ABC was one of the highest rated NBA Finals in a long time. Probably since the Lakers first championship with Shaq and Kobe.

The 2003 Finals was weak not because of the lack of promotion, it's because the Spurs do not draw ratings, like the Lakers do.

And as for this season, ABC is promoting the Christmas game a lot. The theme is pretty good too, "ABC, Easy as 1, 2, 3." I hope they stick to that for a while.

I think what eventually hurt NBC on the basketball side was that spent most of their energy on promoting Michael Jordan. Jordan's Bulls going on their two "Three-Peat" runs were highlights of the "NBA on NBC" era. Just like Larry Bird's Celtics, Magic Johnson's Lakers and eventually the Pistons' "Bad Boys" were the highlights of the "NBA on CBS" era.

I'm not sure that NBC really spent as much energy beyond pushing other stars besides Jordan. So when Jordan retired the first two times (the first was when the Houston Rockets won back-to-back titles by the way), the NBC's ratings suffered.

[TMC]

I really don't have much of a problem with Fox using flashy graphics (even if they over do it) or any other technical innovations. Before Fox got into the sports business in 1994 with the NFL, none of the networks were using permanant on-screen scoreboard graphics (AKA the "Fox Box).

I also didn't really have a huge problem with their "glowing puck" idea when they had the rights to cover the NHL. Televised hockey games in the US has always played second-fiddle to baseball, basketball, and football. I'll give Fox credit for doing something "edgy" for an otherwise dormant televised sport.

What really annoys me about Fox's baseball coverage is that Fox just seems to be using Major League Baseball to further their own best interest (rather than the pure passion for the sport).

As for Tim McCarver, he must be doing something right if the major networks like ABC & CBS keep hiring him. I find it kind of odd that Joe Buck is willing to work with McCarver for so long (sans some kind of grudge). Didn't Joe Buck's father get fired from his top play-by-play spot at CBS because he couldn't gel with McCarver?

Now as the for bias issue, apparently, Joe Buck has seriously lacked enthusiasm whenever he has to call a Cubs game. Buck will talk in a deadpan, low tone of voice whenever the Cubs hit a pivotal home run. Then, Buck's voice will raise whenever he gets to toss to a game break involving the Cardinals (the club his dad called for many years).

I kind of dreaded the fact that Buck & McCarver, a long time catcher for the Cardinals, were going to be assigned to call the World Series involving the Red Sox & Cardinals. I bet Buck was extremely squirmy while being forced to stay "neutral" while his Cardinals were getting their butts kicked left and right by the Red Sox. I wonder what Vin Scully was feeling when his Dodgers were in the 1988 World Series while Scully was working the games nationally for NBC?

Major League Baseball should've learned its lesson from the disasterous billion dollar CBS deal (i.e. awarding exclusive broadcasting rights to a single network). CBS lost roughly $400 million and forced the creations of the even more dreaded "Baseball Network." The only positive thing to come out of the strike was that it accelerated the demise of the Baseball Network.

Major League Baseball on a nationally televised level as gradually gone downhill ever since it went to CBS back in 1990. Personally, I hope that Bud Selig and company do the right or rational thing and not give in to the outragous money that a single network (whether it's Fox today or CBS almost 15 years ago) may offer them.

Personally, I hope that NBC, who was for a long time (i.e. pre 1990) the official "Baseball Television Network", will get their act together and step back into the major sports business. NBC last had baseball in 2000 and even then, they weren't willing to cover regular season games. They already have Bob Costas, who is very, very passionate about the game (despite being relegated to HBO work these days).

As for ABC, a lot of people probably don't know or remember that Al Michaels was an excellent baseball commentator. When ABC encountered the earthquake during the 1989 World Series, Michaels quickly tried to give light to the situation by quipping that it was the "greatest opening in the history of television...bar none!"

[TMC]

Originally posted by snl75
a little off topic but i feel the same way about my nba i cant stand abc and ther lousy coverage i least you baseball fans might get a decent shot at a better network us nba fans have to wait at least 3 more years before the abc contract is up.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/martzke/2004-12-26-martzke_x.htm

Saturday's 8.0 overnight rating for the Miami Heat's overtime victory against the Los Angeles Lakers was the best for an NBA regular-season game on any network in nearly seven years.

Shaq vs. Kobe topped last year's 4.5 overnight for a Rockets-Lakers game on Christmas by 78% and registered the best regular-season overnight rating since an 8.9 for a Bulls-Lakers matchup on Feb. 1, 1998 on NBC.

If only ABC's presentation of NBA games matched that of NBC's, or CBS' before NBC's reign. In its third season as the NBA's broadcast network telecaster, ABC has yet to find the winning groove exemplified by TNT today and NBC and CBS in the past.

Except for ABC's game broadcast combo of veteran analyst Hubie Brown and Al Michaels, possibly the all-time best in TV sports play-by-play, shortcomings were noticeable during the Heat-Lakers game.

• Considering the mammoth buildup in the Bryant-O'Neal confrontation, ABC should have constantly updated Kobe's and Shaq's individual statistics. And while Michele Tafoya asked proper postgame questions of O'Neal, this game could have used both Tafoya and Jim Gray as reporters.

• Unlike NBC, which sparked viewers' interest by going to commercial breaks following a package of exciting replays, ABC's lead-ins to breaks often were flat. Except for the shot of Shaq winking after a brush with a charging Kobe, Saturday's broadcast offered little production pizazz.

• ABC finally reunited the entertaining former NBC analyst team of Bill Walton and Steve Jones on the studio show, then didn't get them to debate or put down each other as they did on NBC. And give Jones a phone book on which to sit so he doesn't have to peer up at Walton and host Mike Tirico.

[Pavan]

Originally posted by TMC
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/martzke/2004-12-26-martzke_x.htm

Saturday's 8.0 overnight rating for the Miami Heat's overtime victory against the Los Angeles Lakers was the best for an NBA regular-season game on any network in nearly seven years.

Shaq vs. Kobe topped last year's 4.5 overnight for a Rockets-Lakers game on Christmas by 78% and registered the best regular-season overnight rating since an 8.9 for a Bulls-Lakers matchup on Feb. 1, 1998 on NBC.

If only ABC's presentation of NBA games matched that of NBC's, or CBS' before NBC's reign. In its third season as the NBA's broadcast network telecaster, ABC has yet to find the winning groove exemplified by TNT today and NBC and CBS in the past.

Except for ABC's game broadcast combo of veteran analyst Hubie Brown and Al Michaels, possibly the all-time best in TV sports play-by-play, shortcomings were noticeable during the Heat-Lakers game.

They need to just watch the game instead of analyzing everything. TNT is not what you think. Ratings for TNT are way down. The NBA is not some sort of ratings phenomenom anymore. No Michael = no ratings.

ABC's Sunday afternoon games are doing fine and will do fine this season. And the 2003 NBA Finals on ABC were the highest rated in several years. ABC's primetime ratings are way up this season, so that will equal more promos for the NBA.

[Dr. John Becker]

I like Fox's coverage of both baseball and football. I just wish they'd buy the rights to college basketball.

[TMC]

Like I said earlier, Major League Baseball as a nationally televised sport started to go downhill the moment that it moved to CBS back in 1990. CBS shot themselves in the foot when they paid all that money to get exclusive rights for baseball only to sporadically cover it. It seemed lke CBS only wanted to use baseball as an excuse to cross-promote their Fall schedules. I guess it can't be that suprising to see CBS mistreat a major sport considering that this is the same network that used to air the NBA Finals on tape delay late at night.

CBS' idea of getting information about baseball was to elevate Tim McCarver as the showcase. Jack Buck's firing after the 1991 season was for the most part due to CBS wanting to appease McCarver's best interests. Here's an excerpt from Jack Buck's book that explains why CBS ran him out as the top baseball play-by-play man:
"My biggest problem was understanding my role. As happened earlier in
football when I was paired with John Madden, I learned the CBS people
wanted McCarver to be the star. They wanted him to dominate the
broadcast and have me be the mechanic and stay out of the way. I
didn't want to broadcast that way. I guess I should have accepted it
more readily, but relying on my experience on 'Grandstand', when I had
not challenged anyone, I couldn't let others make all the decisions
which put me in a position where I couldn't perform at all. I didn't
want the same thing to happen again." Jack Buck, "That's a Winner!",
page 192.

"The people in charge knew nothing about baseball. McCarver was their
man. Anytime they needed guidance, they turned to Tim. He pretty
much ran the show, on and off the air. McCarver and I knew each other
well. I was hoping we would develop a good relationship on the air,
but it never happened. I wanted it to be a broadcast where we laughed
and had fun."
Id at p. 192.

Because CBS screwed up so much since they wound up losing a lot of money from their baseball deal, the owners felt fit to create "The Baseball Network." While it brought baseball back to ABC & NBC and reinstated the practices of showing regular season games in primetime on major networks, it also started the practices of regionalizing telecasts (which is what Fox does now).

The Baseball Network was horrible because just like CBS, they absolutely showed little regard or respect for the fans. Where as CBS sporadically showed the Saturday "Game of the Week" and shamelessly fired Jack Buck simply in order to pander to Tim McCarver, the Baseball Network waited until after the All-Star Game before showing regular season telecasts. To add insult to injury, the Baseball Network went as far as refusing to show the first two rounds of the postseason nationally.

I honestly believe that Major League Baseball is right now relagated to the home of great works of art like "Who's Your Daddy?", "The Swan", "When Animals Attack", "America's Wildest Police Chases", "Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire?", and "Playing it Straight" because of baseball's negativity in the past ten years (i.e. the 1994 strike). How else can you explain NBC, who for years had baseball as their main sporting draw, refusing to broadcast regular season games the last time that the had at least part of the rights?

You know, NBC recently aquired the national television rights for the NHL. But instead of paying the NHL upright for rights fees, NBC managed to get some unusual revenue sharing format out of the deal. But since the NHL is currently going through a long lockout (which may potentially wipe out two seasons), I really don't think that the deal will hurt NBC that much.

Fox on the other hand, simply needed baseball as another way to build "credibility" just like they did when they first got the rights to cover the NFL in 1994. To put things in perspective, really don't think that younger network like Fox has as much at stake as say when CBS had the baseball TV rights (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MLB_on_CBS).