Phillies Nation

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast!

Today, Pat Gallen is joined by Trenni Kusnierek of the MLB Network.  She was one of the main reporters for MLB covering the World Series, so Pat gets her take on the Phillies defeat, what they will do in the off season, and how the rest of the league will once again shape up.

A native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Kusnierek joined the FSN Wisconsin Brewers team for her first season in 2008. Her sports broadcasting experience has also included covering the Super Bowl, two BCS National Championship Games, two MLB All-Star Games and two U.S. Golf Opens.

Kusnierek spent 2003 to 2007 with FSN Pittsburgh as a Sports Anchor/Reporter. She hosted Pittsburgh Sports Tonight and the Midwest Sports Report. In addition, she acted as the sideline reporter for the Pirates and the Penguins as well as various high school sports. She also reported on the Steelers, University of Pittsburgh, Penn State University and West Virginia University.

Prior to joining FSN Pittsburgh, Kusnierek spent two years at WDJT-TV 58 in Milwaukee. There, she anchored the sportscasts and reported on local professional, college and high school sports. Kusnierek also worked nine months in the sports department at WQOW-TV in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. A graduate of Marquette University, she holds a degree in Broadcast and Electronic Journalism.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 19

Intro/Outro music: “Here It Comes” – Doves

Pat Gallen can be reached via email at Pat@Philliesnation.com

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast!

Just a few days removed from a World Series defeat, Comcast SportsNet’s Marshall Harris talks with Pat Gallen about the season that was for the Philadelphia Phillies.  Pat and Marshall also look ahead to next season and what the future holds for Pedro Feliz and others.

In addition, Marshall talks about the Brett Myers situation, as we now know he will not be back with the team in 2010.  Also discussed are Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, the possibility of a Cliff Lee extension (now a done deal), and whether or not the Phils have the funds to make a big splash in the offseason.

Marshall came to CSN from Fox Sports Pittsburgh where he was an anchor/reporter. Harris is a 2000 graduate of Mississippi State University where he majored in Communications. In addition to his work at Fox Sports Pittsburgh, he has worked for the Big Ten Network in Chicago, IL, WKRC-TV in Cincinnati, WAFF-TV in Huntsville, AL and WCBI-TV in Columbus, MS. While there he was awarded the Mississippi State Associated Press Award for Best Sports Story.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 18

Pat Gallen can be reached via email at Pat@Philliesnation.com

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast!

On this very special WORLD SERIES edition of the podcast, Pat Gallen is joined by none other than Todd Kalas, son of legendary Phillies announcer Harry Kalas.  Pat and Todd break down the pitching match up for tonight, what the offenses are capable of, and who wins tonight’s game.

Also, Todd talks in-depth about his fathers legacy and how amazing it was for him to call the final out of the World Series last season.  As for tonight, Todd says, “I’m sure he and Whitey, and Tug McGraw, and John Vukovich, they’ll all be watching the next couple of games together, watching down on the Phillies.”

Todd also talks about how 1993 may have been Harry’s favorite cast of characters as they shocked the world with a bunch of fun-loving guys that had no business being winners.

Kalas’ primary role is as pregame and postgame host and in-game reporter for Fox Sports Florida, as well as serving as color analyst for selected games. He has also filled in with play-by-play and color on both the Rays television and radio networks. Prior to joining the Rays, Kalas worked on the radio broadcast team of the New York Mets (1992-1993) and the television broadcast team of the Philadelphia Phillies (1994-1996).

After graduating with a degree in broadcast journalism from Syracuse University in 1988, he moved to the Tampa Bay area as sports director at Vision Cable in Clearwater before beginning his baseball career with the Louisville Redbirds in 1991. In the offseason, Kalas has worked the last six years with Cox Sports Television in Louisiana handling play-by-play of college basketball, football and baseball. In addition, he is part of the University of South Florida basketball radio broadcast team and also fills in as pregame host for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Todd is the son of longtime Phillies broadcaster Harry Kalas, a 2002 Hall of Fame inductee.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 17

Pat Gallen can be reached via email at Pat@Philliesnation.com

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast!

In this special WORLD SERIES episode, Pat is joined by Noah Coslov of MLB.com and Jesse Spector of the New York Daily News.  On the podcast today, Noah and Jesse break down the offenses, the pitching match ups, and the brewing rivalry between the two teams.  In addition, they both give their predictions for the series.

After graduating from Boston University, Noah Coslov spent two summers in Reading, PA calling games on the radio for the Reading Philles. From there, he moved to New York City to work for the NBA and broadcast college hoops for Long Island University in Brooklyn. Through tremendous experiences hosting NBA TV Fantasy Hoops and NBA Radio on Sirius, Noah headed to College Sports Television (now CBS College Sports) and then onto MLB.com. He still gets his NBA fix by voicing NBA 360 which airs internationally on NBA TV and in the New York area on MSG.

Jesse Spector authors a blog for the New York Daily News called “Touching Base“.  In one of his latest posts, he believed Joe Girardi should have been fired had the Yankees lost to the Angels after taking a 3-1 series lead.  Jesse is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and has been writing Touching Base – the News’ inside-the-numbers baseball column – since 2005. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now lives in Astoria, a much shorter subway ride to both Shea and Yankee Stadium.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 15

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast!

Joining Pat Gallen today is the TV play-by-play voice of the Philadelphia Phillies, Tom McCarthy.  Pat and T-Mac talk about the NLCS, the TBS announcers, and a possible showdown with the Yankees.

McCarthy is in his second stint with the Phillies, having left in 2006 to work with the New York Mets. Tom has done extensive broadcasting for collegiate sports in his career. He currently does basketball and football play-by-play for College Sports Television (CSTV), a CBS-owned property, and is the radio voice of the Saint Joseph’s University men’s basketball team. Previously, he was the play-by-play voice for Rutgers University football (2001-03), as well as Princeton University football (1995-2000) and men’s basketball (1995-2003).

In 2000, Tom earned a Mid-Atlantic Emmy Award for his work on CN8 and is a two-time winner (2002 & 2004) of the Achievement in Radio Award for Best Local Sports Coverage.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 14

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast!

On today’s podcast, Pat Gallen is joined by Meredith Marakovits of 97.5 the Fanatic/950 ESPN Radio here in Philadelphia.  Pat and Meredith break down the Game 4 madness, what Cole Hamels needs to do to win tonight, and how the Phils can get to Vicente Padilla early.

Meredith is from the Lehigh Valley and is a graduate of LaSalle University.  In addition to her work with 950 ESPN as a beat reporter, Meredith also does reporting for Service Electric’s 2 Sports in the Allentown area. She is also part of the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs broadcast team as an on-field reporter for the IronPigs Television Network. Marakovits has worked as a sideline reporter for both the Reading Phillies and Lehigh Valley Outlawz (Continental Indoor Football League) on 2 Sports. Meredith has also done production work for NBC’s Sunday Night Football and Fox’s NFL and Major League Baseball coverage.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 13

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast!

On this very special NLCS podcast, columnist Jayson Stark from ESPN.com joins us, as well as Phil Gurnee from the great Dodgers blog TrueblueLA.com.

Jayson helps Pat break down the Phillies side of things, and has an interesting take on how this series will go in the end.

Phil stops by to talk about how much confidence he has in the one and only, Vicente Padilla.

Jayson Stark is a senior baseball writer for ESPN.com, writing several columns a week, including Friday’s Week in Review and Saturday’s Rumblings and Grumblings. He also appears as an analyst for ESPN’s Baseball Tonight and ESPN Radio.  Prior to joining ESPN.com, Stark worked at the Philadelphia Inquirer for 21 years, serving initially as the Philadelphia Phillies beat writer and then as national baseball writer and columnist. He also was the creator and author of the nationally syndicated Baseball Week in Review column, known for unearthing obscure, historic and humorous aspects of baseball, from 1983-1999. While with the Inquirer, Stark twice received the Pennsylvania Sportswriter of the Year award.  Also, be sure to check out his book “Worth the Wait: Tales of the 2008 Phillies”.

Phil Gurnee is part of the SBNation blog TrueBlueLA.com.  Phil, along with writers Eric Stephen and Brendan Scolari, head one of the most popular baseball blogs on the web.  Their website holds a fan forum and also allows for people to add their own articles and pictures.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 12

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast!

Joining Pat Gallen on the podcast is Comcast SportsNet’s Michael Barkann.  Following up on our offensive preview from last night, Pat and Michael breakdown the pitching matchups and discuss the roster decisions made by Charlie Manuel, including the decision to pitch Cliff Lee over Cole Hamels in Game 1.

Michael was recognized as Pennsylvania’s Sportscaster of the Year in 1999, 2001-2004 and 2006-2007. He brings five Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards, as well as a great deal of national sports reporting experience to Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. In addition to hosting Daily News Live,  and CSN’s Pre-Post Game Live programs, Michael often provides reports for SportsNite. His work includes reporting for CBS Sports from the Olympics, as well reporting from the U.S. Open Tennis Championships for the USA Network. Before joining CSN, Michael worked as sports anchor for WLVI-TV in Boston and KYW-TV in Philadelphia.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 11

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast.

Today, Pat Gallen is joined by the founder of STATS Inc. and Baseball Info Solutions, Mr. John Dewan.  Dewan is one of the founding fathers of baseball statistics as we now know them. He and Pat breakdown the Phillies regular season, as well as their upcoming series against the Rockies.

In 1987, John Dewan became the Executive Director of Project Scoresheet, the Bill James-led effort that pioneered a new wave of baseball statistics that are now common baseball terminology. Dewan also formed Sports Team Analysis and Tracking Systems, Inc. (STATS, Inc.). During John’s tenure as President and CEO, STATS grew rapidly and was recognized in Inc. Magazine’s list of America’s 500 Fastest-Growing Private Companies, ranking #144.

In March 2002, John reunited with former STATS executive Steve Moyer to launch part three of his life-long dream, Baseball Info Solutions. His “‘Stat of the Week” column can be found at Stat of the Week with his latest post making a case for Chase Utley for MVP. You can also check out his other website, The Fielding Bible.

Also to help us prepare for the playoffs and our Phillies Nation game-watching party at McFadden’s Ballpark on Saturday, Mark Maggi stops by to give us the inside scoop on all the festivities.  Take Mark’s advice: check out the McFadden’s website, and sign up here on our website for the VIP treatment.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 10

Welcome to the Phillies Nation Podcast!

Pat Gallen is joined by Jody McDonald, or Jody Mac as we know him here in Philly.  Pat and Jody help get you prepared for the opening round series against the Rockies with talk of the closer situation, the offensive struggles, and who should start Game 1 at home.

Jody is the former host of Jody Mac in the Midday on 950 ESPN Philadelphia, and now hosts a daily show on XM and Sirius Satellite radio called “The Show.” He and co-host Rob Dibble talk it up with some of the best in the business on all things baseball.

McDonald is also former 610 WIP’er here in Philly, had been at 950 for four years since the station started as Sports Talk 950 AM.  You can also hear him on 1050 ESPN Radio in New York City weekends from 10am-1pm.

Phillies Nation Podcast – Episode 9