The 2011 NBA Finals has had some classic matchups. We've been treated to Dirk vs. Wade, Lebron vs. twitter, and Juwan Howard vs. Brian Cardinal. These are just some of the matchups that have made this an ESPN Classic filled series through 5 games. Surprisingly, one of the most exciting matchups has taken place off the court in Charles Barkley vs. Dan Le Batard. Charles Barkley has been not so shy in repeatedly calling out Miami and their fans this postseason. Even though approximately 49 states agree with Barkley, the things he says no other analyst would even come close to touching on TV or radio. On the other side, the bombastic Miami Herald writer/radio host Dan Le Batard has been hilarious with his over the top rants. It really has been Barkley at his best and given Le Batard some great exposure before his own show on ESPN 2 starts up in a couple of months.
Unfortunately, it looks like their hotstreak will be coming to a cataclysmic end. According to Yahoo, Dan Le Batard and Charles Barkley have made a bet on the NBA Finals with seriously awful stakes. How bad are they? If Miami wins, Barkley will take his talents to South Beach and parade around in a speedo. If Dallas closes out the series, Le Batard will be the one in a speedo. Pictures will be taken. No matter what, everyone with eyeballs is the big loser in this one. It really is a shame that Barkley and his problematic gambling habits will negatively effect us all in the coming days.
Surprise A pleasent cameo on tonight's coverage of Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals as Dan Patrick took the reigns of the broadcast, much to the delight of the Twitterverse. Patrick was a staple of ESPN's meteoric rise over the years but has focused elsewhere after his very public departure from ESPN. He's mostly been relegated to print and radio although his radio show also graces DirectTV's 101 channel which has been branded "The Audience Network".
Patrick has had roles with NBC in the past, doing some coverage for the Olympics and prior to that some pre game work for Sunday Night Football. He also played a part in last year's Stanley Cup Finals, so his surprise appearance wasn't all that shocking this wasn't really a surprise given his appearance was announced on a press release a month ago (one that this author didn't read/ or get). There were some rumors of a return to ESPN a couple years back, but unfortunately nothing ever came to fruition.
Patrick's popularity and relevance still makes him an elite entity despite the lack of work on television. Many have commented that Patrick may be past his prime or for a lack of words "aging too fast" but the reality is he's still smooth, sharp as a whip, and a great voice who covers sports with the best of them.
Having retained the Olympics and the NHL, Comcast Versus has essentially played defense of their programming although they were bested in the end for Pac 12 rights by a Fox/ESPN coalition. Should NBC/Comcast begin to acquire additional sports media rights on top of their current portfolio, I think it's safe to assume that Patrick may find himself a big part of those plans. Unfortunately though, no major rights come up for bid in the short term, so for now the Stanley Cup and Sunday Night Football seems to be all you'll get of Patrick on a major broadcast/cable network in a non Olympic year.
For some reason, my television landed on The Herd today a little after 12:30. I was enjoying lunch and thought that a few minutes of Cowherd would be good for a laugh or two, especially considering the fallout of Game 5 of the NBA Finals and the criticism of LeBron James. I know, I know, nothing good can come from listening to Cowherd, but I was in a rather gracious mood. AA readers will know how we feel about Cowherd (he should be taken off the air) and the laundry list of his offenses over the last few years is too long to count. Well, wouldn't you know that in five minutes of listening to The Herd today, I was able to be "enlightened" by Colin's thoughts on unemployment.
Cowherd has often targeted the Midwest before for whatever reason. Whether his target is Ohio State, their fans, the Bears, the Reds, Aaron Rodgers, Cleveland fans, and basically anyone that isn't an intellectual elite from the Northeast or Los Angeles, he always has something negative to say about this part of the country. He continues to befuddle listeners with his sweeping doctrinal, cultural declarations that are often inaccurate, offensive, and just plain insane. Cowherd sees himself as such a knowledgeable beacon of reason and truth, but in reality he couldn't be further from either. Most of the time, in trying to make an inspiringly brilliant point, Cowherd says something so neanderthalic that it defies description. He did it again today. In talking about the sympathy he has for LeBron James (surprise), Cowherd actually made a very good point that the venom and hate towards James is unnecessary. But, he just couldn't resist saying something jaw-dropping. Have a listen...
Never has someone continually insulted so many of his listeners and get away with it time and time again from his employer. Cowherd can't stop at the point of having sympathy for LeBron, which I would disagree with, but whatever, it's his opinion. No, Cowherd has to include these bizarre statements:
"I could argue that if you still live in Cleveland at this point, you're bringing unemployment on, couldn't I?"
"If you live in Youngstown, Ohio should I have no sympathy that you're unemployed? You're kinda bringing it on yourself."
"If you live in Ohio or Indiana rurally, you're kinda bringing unemployment on yourself."
Seriously. Three times he says this about unemployment and "bringing it on yourself!" I'm sure that Cowherd's listeners in Cleveland, Youngstown, and rural areas across the Midwest really understand and appreciate the idiotic point he is trying to make here. Don't worry though, you poor people have his sympathy regardless. And it's not like these statements are taken out of context either. It's another example of Cowherd trying to make a ridiculous point and totally losing the plot in the process. How in the world could someone justify this?!?! As Ken Fang pointed out on Twitter, you can apply this crappy logic to anything.
Does Cowherd not know the strife of people that live in Youngstown and Cleveland and some of these other areas? I'd like to see Cowherd go door to door in Youngstown (whose unemployment rate fell to 9.1% by the way) and tell the people there that they are bringing unemployment on themselves. I'd like for him to go to rural Indiana and tell the people there how much their life sucks. Maybe he can send a damn sympathy bouquet too. Don't worry though, Colin has "sympathy" for these people, even though they bring their wretched lives upon themselves. As a Buckeye state resident, I can tell you that these Cowherd comments may be the most infuriating of them all. I know too many fine people that are struggling for their livelihoods with unemployment in these parts and doing everything but bringing it upon themselves. It makes me sick.
From the announcing police blotter, former Cubs first basemen and current Diamondbacks analyst Mark Grace was arrested on Memorial Day weekend for suspicion of a DUI. From the looks of the mugshot, he was quite pleased with himself. What a creepy looking dude. Perhaps he was out partying with Miguel Cabrera. Here's the report from TMZ:
According to the police report, obtained by TMZ, cops observed Grace in his 2009 Jaguar weaving in and out of his lane around 1 AM on May 30. Once officers pulled him over, cops say Grace -- who had a female passenger in the car -- admitted to "having a few drinks."
According to the report, Grace said he had consumed two glasses of Macallan scotch earlier that evening -- one of which he finished "5 minutes before the stop."
Cops say 46-year-old Grace -- who's now an announcer for the Arizona Diamondbacks -- also had "bloodshot and watery eyes" ... and he did not have his wallet or license with him at the time of the arrest.
When the officer asked, "How do you think you did on the field tests" ... Grace replied, "Not well enough."
I wouldn't call Grace an "MLB legend" like TMZ does, but I do wonder if there are slumpbusters following DUI arrests? Seriously though, how stupid do you have to be to drink and drive... especially a public figure like Mark Grace? You aren't only risking your own life, but others as well. While Grace is a retired player, his arrest comes on the heels of a handful of current MLB players being arrested for DUI the last few months. It's a serious problem that must be dealt with, it seems, even for the announcers.
One of the most entertaining subplots of the NBA Playoffs this year has been the ongoing feud between Charles Barkley and the fans of the Miami Heat. This isn't your run of the mill analyst vs team/fans feud like Jay Bilas vs VCU or Mark May vs Ohio State... no, this one is much more entertaining because Charles Barkley isn't afraid to say he's actually rooting against the Heat. It started last month when Chuck called the Heat a "whiny bunch." It escalated when some Miami fans started heckling Barkley and throwing towels at him during the Eastern Conference Finals. Chuck then responded with a warm, generous, double barreled salute. After TNT moved Inside the NBA back inside American Airlines Arena, Heat fans responded with an obscene chant directed at Barkley during Game 4 of the Chicago series.
Well, now that the TNT analyst isn't on the air regularly and Inside the NBA is finished for the year, he can say what he really thinks. Barkley appeared on the Waddle & Silvy Show on ESPN Radio 1000 in Chicago before embarking on a Euro Trip and unloaded on the Heat and their fans. Here's the video from Deadspin - highlights include his preference for picking the Washington Generals over the Heat, saying the Heat "annoys him," calling Miami fans the worst in the country, and finally knocking the noise they produce. This interview is why many fans love Charles Barkley. You won't find this opinion on the Heat Index, or on SportsCenter...
California's thrilling, throat annihilating win earlier this week brought them to the Super Regionals with 15 other NCAA teams from around the country in search of a berth in the College World Series in Omaha. The best-of-three series start on Friday and all of the games will be televised on ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU and ESPN3.com. The announcers list has a few familiar names that may be interesting to watch - of course Nomah, but also former big leaguers Morgan Ensberg, Paul Lo Duca, and Frank Thomas. Here's the entire weekend schedule...
Date
Time (ET)
Matchup / Commentators
Game
Network
June 10
Noon
Mississippi State vs. Florida (from Gainesville) Dave Neal & Frank Thomas
1
ESPN2 / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
3 p.m.
Stanford vs. North Carolina (from Chapel Hill) Mike Patrick & Kyle Peterson
1
ESPN2 / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
7 p.m.
Arizona State vs. Texas (from Austin) Carter Blackburn, Nomar Garciaparra & Jenn Brown
1
ESPN / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
8 p.m.
Oregon State vs. Vanderbilt (from Nashville) Justin Kutcher & Morgan Ensberg
1
ESPNU / ESPN3.com
June 11
Noon
Florida vs. Mississippi State (from Gainesville) Dave Neal & Frank Thomas
2
ESPN / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
1 p.m.
UC Irvine vs. Virginia (from Charlottesville) Mike Gleason & Mike Rooney
1
ESPNU / ESPN3.com
3 p.m.
North Carolina vs. Stanford (from Chapel Hill) Mike Patrick & Kyle Peterson
2
ESPN / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
4:30 p.m.
Texas A&M vs. Florida State (from Tallahassee) Dan McLaughlin & Jay Walker
1
ESPNU / ESPN3.com
6 p.m.
Connecticut vs. South Carolina (from Columbia) Clay Matvick & Paul Lo Duca
1
ESPN2 / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
7 p.m.
Texas vs. Arizona State (from Austin) Carter Blackburn, Nomar Garciaparra & Jenn Brown
2
ESPN / ESPN3.com
8 p.m.
Dallas Baptist vs. California (from Santa Clara) Mark Neely & Nick Belmonte
1
ESPNU / ESPN3.com
9 p.m.
Vanderbilt vs. Oregon State (from Nashville) Justin Kutcher & Morgan Ensberg
2
ESPN2 / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
June 12
1 p.m.
Mississippi State vs. Florida (from Gainesville) Dave Neal & Frank Thomas
3*
ESPN / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
Virginia vs. UC Irvine (from Charlottesville) Mike Gleason & Mike Rooney
2
ESPNU / ESPN3.com
4 p.m.
Stanford vs. North Carolina (from Chapel Hill) Mike Patrick & Kyle Peterson
3*
ESPN / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
Florida State vs. Texas A&M (from Tallahassee)Dan McLaughlin & Jay Walker
2
ESPNU / ESPN3.com
7 p.m.
Arizona State vs. Texas (from Austin) Carter Blackburn, Nomar Garciaparra & Jenn Brown
3*
ESPN2 / ESPN3.com
South Carolina vs. Connecticut (from Columbia) Clay Matvick & Paul Lo Duca
2
ESPNU / ESPN3.com
10 p.m.
Oregon State vs. Vanderbilt (from Nashville) Justin Kutcher & Morgan Ensberg
3*
ESPN2 / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
California vs. Dallas Baptist (from Santa Clara) Mark Neely & Nick Belmonte
2
ESPNU / ESPN3.com
June 13
1 p.m.
UC Irvine vs. Virginia (from Charlottesville) ** Mike Gleason & Mike Rooney
3*
ESPN2 / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
4 p.m.
Texas A&M vs. Florida State (from Tallahassee) ** Dan McLaughlin & Jay Walker
3*
ESPN2 / ESPN3.com / ESPN Mobile TV
7 p.m.
Connecticut vs. South Carolina (from Columbia) ** Clay Matvick & Paul Lo Duca
3*
ESPN2 / ESPN3.com
Dallas Baptist vs. California (from Santa Clara) ** Mark Neely & Nick Belmonte
Yep, today's Outside The Lines started off weird with MC Bob Ley showing off his flow by reading Jay-Z lyrics. The lyrics are from a Jay Z diss track called "Blow the Whistle" which you can hear here (audio NSFW) being introduced by Stu Scott. Hearing one of the anchors of ESPN's history read a Jay-Z diss track has to be about the hardest I've laughed at the WWL in years.
It's been an unbelievable last 10 months for the Cal Golden Bears' baseball program. In September, the university announced that they were getting rid of the program in a cost-cutting move. Obviously, that infuriated everybody involved with the program. Heck, the players even made a rap video begging for the team's reinstatement.
Well, in April, the university announced that the baseball program had indeed been reinstated, after donors provided the $10 million that the university needed to do so. And in the 2011 baseball season, the Cal baseball team is rewarding those that donated money to keep the program going.
On Saturday, the Golden Bears host the Dallas Baptist Patriots in the Super Regionals, with the winner of the best-of-three series headed to Omaha for a spot in the College World Series. And they would not have this great situation in place if not for an incredible comeback in the Regional Final on Monday night in Houston against Baylor.
Down 8-5 entering the bottom of the ninth, the Golden Bears scored twice to make it an 8-7 game. Then, with two outs and the bases loaded, Sophomore Devon Rodriguez was at the plate with a 2-2 count. What happened next had radio play-by-play announcer, Danny Fry of KALX Berkeley 90.7 FM, going crazy.
This is my favorite play-by-play call so far in 2011:
"I apologize folks! I'm sure you didn't hear any of that!" "My voice is gone; I called two games yesterday!" Absolutely classic.
And you can totally feel the emotional ride that the Cal baseball team has been through over the last year in Fry's call. What an amazing story it will be if they can make it to the College World series. And if they can win it all, well, I would love to hear Fry's call of that.
