By Bob Smizik | Monday, 7:45 a.m.
Nobody asked me about radio and television, but . . .
* I’m not sure there’s anyone in any sport who does play-by-play better on television than Doc Emrick, who is currently working the Western Conference final of the Stanley Cups playoffs. Emrick is extremely knowledgeable, concise in his comments and able to convey the excitement and drama of the game without becoming hysterical.
* With FSN Pittsburgh grabbing enormous ratings with its coverage of the Penguins in the first two rounds of the playoffs, the radio broadcasts on WXDX (105.9 FM) probably did not get a ton of listeners. But Mike Lange’s calls have been truly exceptional. Being fired from the TV side of the broadcast has revitalized Lange’s career. He’s never been better.
* With the return of the ``The Herd,’’ with Colin Cowherd (1250 ESPN, noon to 2 p.m. weekdays), I am reminded 
why I was so glad when the station removed this show years ago in favor of ``Junker and Crow,’’ (now ``Stan and Guy’’). Cowherd can be an entertaining guy, but no one beats a point to death like he does -- over and over and over until you have no choice but to change the station.
* Whether I’m listening on radio or watching on television, when the Penguins game is over, I tune in to the radio post-game with Bob Grove on WXDX. Nobody has a better handle on what transpired than Grove, who is joined by Phil Bourque, Lange’s color analyst. They break down the game in honest fashion, offer excellent insights and keep overzealous callers at bay.
* So far, so good with Tim Neverett, who has replaced Lanny Frattare in a play-by-play role on Pirates broadcasts. Neverett calls a good game, keeps up with the action and seems to blend well with his color analysts.
* Greg Brown, the Pirates other play-by-play announcer, has to work harder at keeping pace with the action on radio or either stick strictly to television. His failure to keep up with what is happening on the field is an enormous drawback.
* No radio station in Pittsburgh ever has done a better job of gathering news and reporting it than 1250 ESPN.
* In a difficult job, Brown excels in conducting the interview show with Pirates general manager Neal Huntington every Sunday. Brown works for the Pirates, which puts him in an awkward position for an interviewer, but asks good questions and the show works well.
* I’m thinking the bosses at 1250 ESPN weren’t too happy the other day when the point Cowherd beat to death was the unimportance of hockey in general and the Stanley Cup playoffs in particular.
* The guess here is the abundance of promotional announcements between innings of Pirates games is an indicator -- big surprise -- that the team is having trouble selling advertising.
* Speaking of small radio audiences, I’d love to see the numbers on how the Pirates draw on radio when the game is televised.
* If any town can handles a pro football show two hours a night, five days a week, 12 months a year, it’s Pittsburgh. Which means ``Stiilers 365’’ with Ken Laird is a good idea, even if it draws a small audience. 1250 ESPN continues to run roughshod over Fox Sports Radio 970 (not that station owner Clear Channel cares a whit) and this is just another example of the commitment 1250 has and what its competition does not.
* There’s probably never been a more successful sports talk show than ``Mike and Mike in the Morning’’ (1250 ESPN, 6 to 10 a.m. weekdays), nor one that is more slickly produced. The show has made major stars out of Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic. But if you tire of their shtick, and that’s entirely possible, Steve Czaban (Fox Sports Radio 970, 6 to 9 a.m., weekdays) is a refreshing change. Czaban isn’t nearly as programmed as the Mikes and takes his sports less seriously and deals with them with more humor.
Posted
May 18 2009, 07:45 AM
by
Bob Smizik