Bob Costas

[GenoSeligPrieb]

"Buck's a latter day Costas. Neither one of them deserved the jobs they got when they got them.....Costas got (his job) for who knows what reason. "

 

Brett:

 

As has already been noted, Bob Costas did not have a father or grandfather who was in the radio wing of the Hall of Fame. He did the grunt work, covering sports in some unglamorous outposts throughout the 70's, 80's...up until now. While I won't copy and paste his career resume, impressive as it has been, I'd say it's safe to say he got where he is today by earning it, unlike Thom Brenneman, Chip Caray, Joe Buck and so many jocks-turned-color men.

 

I'm not taking issue with whether you like him or not, but you'll have a real tough time finding people to agree Bob Costas doesn't have the qualifications and credentials to back him up.

 

"He genuinely loves baseball and isn't a slave to espn or the Yankees. That puts him above almost everyone else working in sports today. "

 

Again, you don't have to admire him (although I do), but it was so refreshing having another national voice denounce Bonds and call his pursuit of Hank's record what it is: a sham.

 

And on the thought you brought up here, Pepsi, it would be amazing to hear someone at ESPN convey an anti-Bonds or anti-Yankee sentiment. Hearing Costas say what 80% of America feels (but never at ESPN) about Bonds was a rare treat.

 

"His book was silly and superficial though. Why do sports journalists think personal observation trumps fact or serious research? "

 

I bought Fair Ball, and found it fascinating, and anything but silly. No more 4-hour baseball games? Stop all the expansion? Salary Floors and Ceilings? Count us in!

 

Agree with him or not, but the fact remains that this was an OPINION-based book. He obviously did plenty of serious research into how his theories could play out in MLB, and backed them up with plenty of facts, otherwise his book come off as genuine as something Paris Hilton's publicist dreamed up.

[joepepsi]

What network gig does Vasgersian have?

[Bruce Ciskie]

I've heard him doing both baseball and NFL games on Fox. IIRC he called the Packers-Dolphins game last year.

[davego]

His book was silly and superficial though. Why do sports journalists think personal observation trumps fact or serious research?

 

 

I suppose because they are easy to write, usually the name of the announcer will sell a few books and most readers/sports fans/Americans tend to like to hear the same stuff over an over. Eaiser then actually being reflective (IMO).

[Big Jay of the North]

I loved listening to Costas with our guys on radio and TV. He is without question one of the best spotscasters of all time (along with Al Michaels). I can see how some are turned off by his supposed arrogance, but I see a man that can call any type of sporting event and do a masterful job. I may be biased becasue I was a kid in the 80's and 90's when he was on the air a lot. Also, the guy has charisma, he can keep the attention of an audience as well as anyone ever has. In my opinion MLB should make a rule that has Costas and Uecker call every World Series. You can have Buck and McCarver.

[Paul77]

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What network gig does Vasgersian have?

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At one point he worked for NBC (I think), but now he works for Fox. He called the Brewers/Cubs game from a few weeks ago.

 

He also does football for FOX.

[pitchleague]

I don't view Costas as arrogant or know-it-all. It's confidence. He displays outward confidence in himself and what he's talking about.

 

People do that. I can't tell you how many times that other teachers and administrators think that I am cocky and arrogant and have had to call them out to tell them that it only appears that way because I am confident in the way I teach and am not afraid of anybody or anything when it comes to teaching.

[LS Brewer]

Bob Costas has the annoying tendency to overhype and overdramatize every moment. He has done as much as anyone to make the Olympics into a syrupy-sweet, Oprah-fied nostalgia-fest rather than about the sports themselves. He also does that with his baseball announcing as well. If he quit trying to make the outcome of every ball and strike call seem like the fate of the world hangs in the balance, he would be a better sports announcer.

[Paul77]

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other teachers and administrators think that I am cocky and arrogant and have had to call them out to tell them that it only appears that way because I am confident in the way I teach and am not afraid of anybody or anything when it comes to teaching.

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I love it, you are like the Ryan Braun of teaching.http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[Baldkin]

You really think Costas has any choice what so ever in what he says or does with the Olympics?

 

Highly doubtful.

 

He doesn't do live events. He does prepared studio crap that the Network hands him.

[GenoSeligPrieb]

" If he quit trying to make the outcome of every ball and strike call seem like the fate of the world hangs in the balance, he would be a better sports announcer. "

 

First of all, that sounds a lot more like Tim McCarver!

 

Anyway, Baldkin already beat me to most of my point here, but NBC Sports was taken to task in the media for its "plausibly live" coverage from the 2006 Turin olympics. (And no, I refuse to call it "Torino", as NBC wanted us to)

 

Those extra hours bought their editors time to sweeten every puff piece they could come up with, kowtowing to the Oprah crowd, as these edited soundbites and interviews were served up in prime time during Sweeps Month in February, up against American Idol. In response, NBC chose to feature more women's skating and other XX chromosome sporting pursuits. Hell, if they were lucky, maybe a Kerrigan/Harding/Gilooley episode could flare up, and *cha-ching!* ratings gold!

 

So, when you have a network trying to court the ladies to watch sports, and you have a few hours to punch up a vignette to be easier for Ford Excursion-driving soccer moms to digest (i.e., less sports-heavy and skewed toward more emotional feature stories), you do it.

 

And Costas, contractually obligated to NBC to do so, was working as he was directed to do, when he read another touching story from the TeleprompTer about (insert American athlete's name here)'s sick sister. A waste of his talents? Absolutely. But Costas, perhaps because of his height, hair, soft-ish metrosexual demeanor, scores well with adult women viewers, as authoritative and well-spoken, and not a testosterone-fueled knuckle-dragging baboon like a Tony Siragusa.

[TheCrew07]

I'll listen/watch to an Al Micheals or Bob Costas game any chance I get. As others have said, they are by far the most underrated broadcasters of this ERA in my opinion. They make logical well thought out arguements, stand by their opinions, and generally let the game speak for itself. I really enjoy Costas, I started watching his show just because I've always enjoyed everything he's done in past. I was pretty indifferent to Micheals as I was very young until, "Do you believe in miracles? YES!"... he had me at hello... That is first sports broadcasting memory, I remember everything about the end of that hockey game. Every time I watch the HBO documentary on the hockey team or the movie I get that same chill up and down my spine. Normally those things where off over time, but not in this case, he just framed the moment so perfectly.

 

I'm a pretty loyal guy, if an announcer grabs me, I'm on the bandwagon for life. It was a sad day for me when Jackson quit doing college football games.

 

On the Hockey note, the Thorne and Clement team were great to listen to, and isn't Clement now doing some baseball?

 

The first memory of Uke that stands out to me is the '82 playoffs, the next was the homerun call on Easter Sunday for team streak. I remember the people in the car ahead of us going crazy like we were so we knew they were listening to the game as well.

[joepepsi]

Thorne is doing TV play by play for Orioles on MASN

[Bring Back the Stein]

Since it sounds like there are Costas experts in this thread, does anyone know if there's any truth to the rumor that Uecker made up his back problems as a reason to get out of calling games with Costas?

 

I heard that a long time ago, but listening to the two together this weekend, and hearing Costas refer reverentially to Uecker when he has the chance, it sounds like there was no bad history between them.

 

(And my two cents on Costas is that he's too prissy sometimes, but give me his learned skepticism over Peter Gammons' whoring anyday.)

[pitchleague]

stein, I've never heard of that. Not saying it's not out there somewhere, though.

[GenoSeligPrieb]

"(And my two cents on Costas is that he's too prissy sometimes, but give me his learned skepticism over Peter Gammons' whoring anyday.) "

 

Perhaps Costas IS too prissy (or metrosexual), so I can understand when guys say he's not their cup of half-caff, no-foam, venti skim latte. But I think he has convictions, which he'll express, regardless of the repercussions, which is more than I can say about Gammons.

 

And maybe this is why Bob Costas does not draw a paycheck from ESPN.

 

To me, Gammons USED TO be a don't-miss source for interesting in-depth baseball rumors. But ever since ESPN became Yankee-ized (which began during the playoff brawls in Fenway, when Pedro Martinez grabbed Yankee team mascot Don Zimmer by his jug ears and lawn-bowled him down the first base line), the network forces its on-air "experts" to discuss and hype the Yankees first, which, to me, seriously undermines their credibility.

 

I mean, c'mon, the Yankeees are a so-so team, who have just flexed their muscles against a Devil Ray team rife with nobodies, that's even worse than the last place White Sox. But this weekend, ESPNews not only led with New York beating Tampa as its top story, but then the anchor breathlessly reminded America "...but they're only 7 games out in the loss column!!"

 

Now THAT's some quality whorin'!

[Bring Back the Stein]

Actually, reading these posts have led me to re-evaluate my feelings about nationa sports and baseballl announcers. Turns out, by comparison, I have a man-crush on Costas, especially when it comes to his imperviousness to the slavish attention paid to the Coastal teams. And he was the national announcer more than anyone that broadcast the virtues of our secret stadium sauce. I'll give him that.

 

Leads me to wonder, what would "Baseball Tonight" look like if Costas produced and anchored? He may even have mentioned during all the Pumpkinhead hoopla this weekend that the Brewers are in a pennant chase.

[GenoSeligPrieb]

"Leads me to wonder, what would "Baseball Tonight" look like if Costas produced and anchored?"

 

I think it would look much more like This Week In Baseball.

 

TWIB does a terrific job of covering which players and teams are either really hot or cold, even if *gasp!* they play outside New York. They cover players from flyover states as equally as they do the Red Sox, but hey, Boston IS in first place, so...

 

Given his measured approach, and desire for a balanced competitive playing field, I could see a Costas-produced BBTN as watchable again. No in-your-face hosts like Kruk, no New York-based writers assuming the rest of the country give's a rat's beehind about the t-shirt Alex Rodriguez's wife's wearing, no dumb-ass debates with Stephen A. Smith "umpiring", no Strong Opinions, some honest discussions of the effects of chemical enhancements and big money on the game, and the Yankees only given attention when they do something noteworthy, like beating a good team for once, and not fattening up on cellar-dwellers.

 

But again, I suspect because Costas's views are NOT for sale, that he and ESPN will not hook up for a contract anytime soon...

[Phenomenal Smith]

Costas is far too condescending to be enjoyable.

[GenoSeligPrieb]

Toward whom? Barry Bonds? Examples, please...

[Phenomenal Smith]

Toward everyone. He has a way of always talking down to people as if he's a brilliant intellect and the rest of us are 3 year olds.

[GenoSeligPrieb]

Oh.

 

I thought you had a specific example. Oh well...

[Phenomenal Smith]

I do.

 

When baseball first went to the wild card system, he said that the people who supported this change "simply hadn't thought it through."

In other words, if you happened to disagree with Bob, you weren't just wrong, you were dumb too.

[homer]

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TWIB does a terrific job of covering which players and teams are either really hot or cold

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Not to mention TWIB has the greatest closing credits music in the world. If I ever get married, that's the music people will hear when I exit the church.

[Mike Felder]

Do they still use that music? I haven't seen TWIB in a number of years...I thought someone told me they had changed it.

 

That is a really great song though...that song and the old CBS postseason baseball theme (from like the early 90s) are my favorite "baseball tunes."