Comments on: The Dip: A Broadcasting Plan For The Future

By: jjweiss

jjweiss — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:04:25 +0000

a 3 man booth? you destroyed any credibility you have. ridiculous.
and i think you’re hallucinating if you can find any reason to listen to matthews.
folksy? hardly. just ignorant. i despise him. he’s lazy and has hardly improved in 3 years. doesn’t even know JA happ is not Jay AY. mccarthy? heaven help us if he becomes the lead broadcaster. he’s adequate but no story teller, and kind of boring, really. he seems to do everything at one single volume setting. his commercial readings are more or less equal to his home run calls.
by your logic, you prefer matthews over wheeler b/c matthews played the game. that, my dear sir, is proof enough that it doesn’t matter. i’d pick wheeler toupee and all, any day over that twit, matthews. still i love your steve jeltz award and think bruntlett could retire it. or maybe it should be the jeltz-bruntlett award and then paul (catcher’s (interference) bako could get some consideration. jjweiss

By: Carol

Carol — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 13:06:59 +0000

Well said! I can’t see how anyone can disagree with your analysis.

And ‘haughty gargoyle’! Ohhh that’s rich! That sooo gives a perfect mental image of the man I’ve always personally thought of as a squinting weasel.

I so want new TV Broadcasters for the Phils.

And yes, Sarge is endearing. Like you, I’d rather have Botallico, who is greatly improved in post game this year, in my view, or Mitch. (Love Mitch Williams.) But Sarge is not the problem. (Tho I never DO understand all the fast feet, slow hands, slow bat stuff)

I want new TV Broadcasters for the Phillies. May it happen!

By: Allen Thomas

Allen Thomas — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 03:29:19 +0000

Sarge may very well be one of the worst commentators in the history of the sport. Yes he was a good player for many years, but not every good player is meant to be a commentator. He obviously knows the game, but his seemingly endless blabbering ruins the entire television experience for me. He talks more than mccarthy and doesn’t contribute anything that isnt extremely obvious. After a routine groundball out the other night, this is what Sarge said after T-Mac made the call. “And right here Chase Utely fields the ball into his glove and as you can see throws it over to Ryan Howard at first who catches it for the out.” It goes on and on, he needs to get off the air. McCarthy is ok, you gotta give him some credit he’s got some big shoes to fill after the passing of Harry K. The Phillies need to work on their broadcast to return it to the enjoyable presentation it once was

By: bill anderson

bill anderson — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:24:39 +0000

The phillies repalced Harry Kalas, the epitome of excelence in broadcasting, with a Walt Disney clown, Tom Mccarthy. Mccarthy’s
preoccupation with trivia and his constant clowning are so irritating
I have turned off the audio on the tv and I listen to play-by-play by Anderson and Franzke whose coverage is on a par with Harry Kalas.

If Elmer Dud, i.e. Tom Mccarthy, is retained as tv announcer, I question
the judgment of the Phiilies organmization.

By: LH

LH — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:36:52 +0000

Tom McCarthy – My son and I listen to what we call McCarthyisms which occur a couple times during a game. Example: (Contact by a Phillies hitter: That ball is going going, oh he caught it. I thought it was hit a lot further (it never made it the warning track)

Chris Wheeler – can take his banter as long as a good play-by-play man would reel him in

Gary Matthews – Captain Obvious. He seems like a gentle man but he doesn’t add much to the mix because he’s not asked penetrating questions. McCarthy tends to joke with him about his food intake.

The Phillies had two on and two out during a recent game with the Braves. Fans were desperate for runs. But McCarthy & Wheeler were enjoying each others company talking about a non-baseball story which had nothing to do with what was happening on the field. The third Phil’s out was more frustrating listening to those two banter on non-sensibly. Timing is everything and they should have saved their story for a pitching change or some other period.

Larry Anderson, like Sarge, is fun to listen to for old war stories. I like Larry Anderson is better because of his upfront comments when a Phillies player is doing badly. I think Sarge tends to sugar coat in order to avoid hurting feelings. I enjoyed the perspective of an ex-pitcher.

By: Phils76

Phils76 — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 02:59:21 +0000

Just like with anything else in Philly sports, fans have a huge take on the announcers. I seem to think it’s a 60-40 split favoring the guys in the lineup now. Do fans of other clubs discuss the broadcasters as much as we have in the past or do now?

By the way, I love when Sarge says “filthy” or “cadillac time.” Makes me chuckle every time.

By: Nationals#1

Nationals#1 — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 02:22:04 +0000

ugh, how did the dipsy get his own column on here? one of the site’s worst posters

By: Corey Seidman

Corey Seidman — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 00:53:36 +0000

I disagree. The McCarthy/Sarge and McCarthy/Wheeler combos both have chemistry, that isn’t the problem. McCarthy is much like Michael Barkann in that he can bring the best out of anyone. He may be a “vanilla” announcer, but most play-by-play men are. We were just used to one who wasn’t.

Wheeler not being a former player bothers so many people, but he simply knows the Phillies better than anyone. Would I rather have Mitch Williams/Ricky Bottalico? Absolutely not.

Having formerly worked at CSN with these guys and been exposed to them a lot, I can tell you that Mitchy Poo and Ricky Bo do a better job of stating the obvious than even Sarge. Ricky struggles mightily to improvise or counterargue a situation. He delivers a thoughtful point rarely.

Larry Andersen is the Phillies best color analyst. However, his rebellious attitude is why he won’t be back on TV anytime soon. He’s perfect for the radio, his voice, his sense of humor, etc.

But something tells me the Phillies brass are too nervous of him crossing the line of inappropriateness during TV telecasts.

Scott Franzke is a very good, young announcer, and deserves to be on TV. Putting him on during innings 4-5-6 and switching Tom to radio would be a great idea.

I do think the Phillies announce booth can be boring at times. But they don’t lack chemistry.

By: frank

frank — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:43:58 +0000

the tmac wheels team has got to go.

By: Dan

Dan — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:37:34 +0000

yeah but it says this is posted by tim malcolm

By: mg52

mg52 — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 22:13:48 +0000

Dipsy, I have always liked your comments on other posts. This one of your own is gold. Commentary is an overlooked part of baseball. When a team is in a slump, a really good broadcaster – or a group of them – can provide the fans with something else to focus on. And Harry always found a way to accentuate the victories, too. That’s why he was in the booth for so long and made virtually all Phils fans into Kalas fans. I could not be prouder to be in that category.
Wheels and T-Mac are not earsores, but they just aren’t “with it” sometimes. I have always known Wheels to deflate exciting situations and overanalyze certain plays. To his credit, he is well-versed in the nuaces of the game, despite never having spent any time as a player. T-Mac is glib, but there is, once again, not enough contrast between good and bad events in the game in his discourse.
What LA and Sarge bring is emotion. I have heard them slam incompetent umpires and ostentatious opponents; they prove that color commentary need not be dispassionate. And yes, they are funny -even when they do not intend to be. Sometimes, it’s more than just knowing the rules of the game. It’s about knowing the moods of it.
Scott Franzke raises his voice when home runs are hit and sounds downcast when a hitter strikes out in a key situation. Radio announcers have to be able to describe the details on the field that much more precisely because visual aids are absent. He does a good job of that. Franzke, LA and Sarge would indeed make a wonderful team. Mitch Williams might have to be slotted in there somewhere. He takes no prisoners in post-game shows and just as incisive as LA sometimes is about occasional injustices in the sport.
Your recommendations, Dipsy, are paramount in the name of the reputable Harry Kalas. How all this plays out remains to be seen.

By: baseballfan

baseballfan — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:45:06 +0000

Tim just does not write anymore. It still is his blog.

By: Dan

Dan — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:30:55 +0000

is tim back for good*?

By: Dan

Dan — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:30:29 +0000

i completely agree. I don’t like McCarthy but i haven’t heard much of franzkie. What i have heard of him i thought was good.

Also, I Tim back for good?

By: nate

nate — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:15:57 +0000

big fan of the radio guys, but i do miss scott graham and the graham slam ice cream commercials.

By: Itslikethat

Itslikethat — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:09:45 +0000

I mean, correct me if I’m wrong but not only did Harry hate his guts, (Richie ignored him for he most part) but Wheeler complained about Sarge because Sarge was always making fun of him last year. Hence the reason that sarge was doing like an inning or two at the beginning of the year w/o Wheels. Ow he’s at three innings. Can I get a confirm on this?

By: Dhall

Dhall — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:02:40 +0000

Franzke, Sarge and LA would be great but it ain’t happening. Wheeler will be there until he retires or dies. I don’t have a problem with the fact that Wheeler never played, my problem is that he’s annoying as heck. He doesn’t shut up…EVER. Plus he over analyzes to the point where I want to cut my ears off. My favorite is when he tells you what the guys in the dugout are saying based on their hand movements or when he tells you what the players are thinking during certain moments of the game. Didn’t you know he’s a licensed psychologist? T-Mac does nothing for me either. He’s just there. Plus he knows very little about the game. Sarge has grown on me and I like him. They should have kept Scott Graham…he was pretty good too.

By: Phils76

Phils76 — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:45:27 +0000

As much as I got a laugh out of the Wheels Dance after the final out last year, it still surprised me to hell that there was no emotion exchanged between Harry and Wheels at that moment. After all those years working together, they didn’t even acknowledge each other at that moment.

By: bsg

bsg — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:41:49 +0000

oh yeah at least wheels doesnt harp on and on after a bad play either by the phillies or the other team like he used to do, i use to love when wheels would screw up or say something to piss off harry and harry would just say nothing and their would be dead air for what seemed like forever, golden!!.

By: Georgie

Georgie — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:36:34 +0000

I must admit I enjoyed this article Dips, well written, but I would expect no less from you. I agree for the most part, except I can’t get on board with the Wheels hating, he’s kind of grown on me over the years, it’s weird. I love Sarge, he cracks me up on a routine basis, and I love when he starts over-enunciating when he gets excited. I would say he’s my fav, then Franzke, who’s also hot, imo. Not a big fan of T-Mac, but I know he’s trying and it’s a HUGE undertaking replacing Harry.

All in all, I’d say we’re pretty lucky with the guys we have, and it’s also been a nice diversion from the actual team talk, I think we all feel pretty bummed right now.