Why is Brian Anderson getting so many games off this season?

[TooLiveBrew]

Thread title says (or asks) it all. While I certainly don't really care for Craig Coshun, my question has more to do just with BA. Did he get a new contract & more perks like time off?

[logan82]

He is working for TBS. It sucks not having him around.

[dadofandrew]

He works TBS games many Sundays. Travel Sat, game Sun.

[barrelman2010]

He works TBS games many Sundays. Travel Sat, game Sun.

IIRC, it is for no more than the first half of the season and then somebody else takes his place at TBS

[honuswagner21]

With both Ueck and Anderson out it really makes me not a fan of the broadcast bench. Craig isn't horrible but not great but I just don't get Nelson's role on this team.

 

With that said, it is only a matter of time before we lose Brian to some other bigger market or national gig

[owbc]

I agree that Brian will likely leave at some point. However, they get hundreds of qualitied candidates for that job opening. Most teams choose experience or family name instead of actual knowledge or skill, so it isn't that hard to find an above-average replacement.

[jjkoestler]

Please bring back Sutton.

[JJHardy7]

IIRC some people weren't all that thrilled with BA when he first arrived and his first year. Now he's grown on most of us. I think it is just something that comes with time.

 

It will kind of stink when we lose him, but it seems like the Brewers have a knack for finding a good candidate. MV, Sutton, and BA are all well above average (or at least were with the Brewers) in my book.

[PKBadger]

This blog post from March sheds some light - although the contract was not final, it mentions BA working the first nine games of the season for TBS.

 

Presumably, Dick Stockton and Ernie Johnson will be able to rotate in after the NBA Playoffs conclude.

 

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/87838552.html

[Invader3K]

Please bring back Sutton.

I hope not. I really don't miss that guy. From what I've heard second hand, he's gotten worse since taking a job with the D-Backs.

[BrewCrewForever]

Coshun is fine on the pre and post games shows, but he is not good at play by play. I'm a big fan of Anderson, really enjoy listening to him. He's good and that is why he got the gig on the side with TBS.

[hawing]

Somewhat related: the Wisconsin State Journal had a story about Craig Coshun in Sunday's edition. I especially enjoyed this part:

 

 

Coshun had just done the play-by-play for the Fox Sports Wisconsin

telecast of the Milwaukee Brewers' game against the Washington

Nationals on April 17.

 

Coshun, the regular Fox pregame and postgame host for the Brewers,

was subbing for Brian Anderson, who was in transit for his Sunday

play-by-play assignment with TBS.

 

Uecker and Coshun both agreed that doing something on a part-time

basis can be difficult.

 

"But, hey, Craig, you did a great job,'' Uecker said.

 

"Thanks, Ueck,'' Coshun said. "But, oh, man, what a dud of a

game.''

 

Washington's 35-year-old righthander Livan Hernandez had thrown a

four-hitter in the Nationals' 8-0 skunking of the Brewers.

 

"No, no, Craig, I know you did a great job on the telecast,''

Uecker said.

 

There was a pause.

 

"You ended up giving us our highest ratings on radio ever,'' Uecker

said.

 

Coshun had to feel like he had strayed from the base and been

tagged out with the ol' hidden ball trick.

 

Gotcha.

 

I thought Craig was all right when he did the sports on Channel 15 in Madison back a little ways, but he's not my favorite play by play voice.

[TooLiveBrew]

Please bring back Sutton.

I hope not. I really don't miss that guy. From what I've heard second hand, he's gotten worse since taking a job with the D-Backs.

Yeah, the Arizona broadcast is one of the worst in the entire league. It's painfully bad.

Thank you to dadofandrew & everyone else that filled me in on why we're missing BA so often this season. I was unaware.

[AZBrewCrew]

I second the AZ broadcast being painful. Sutton is half tolerable when Mark Grace is gone. Im at the fire station today and got stuck watching the AZ broadcast, now I realize its Mothers Day and they wanted to do some feel good breast cancer stories....but I missed about 3-4 plays while they werent even covering the game so they could interview these fans in the crowd. Irritating to say the least. I think one of the things i hate the most about Sutton/Grace is Grace always referring to Sutton as "Daron Sutton" every time he addresses him.

[hammytime]

I watched a couple of D-backs broadcasts last week, and it seemed that all Darron could talk about was beating the Brewers, which he stated quite forcefully multiple times. I enjoyed him when he was in Milwaukee, but now, he is just an overly loud, rather annoying broadcaster. He and Grace would more or less yell/scream during the promo reads during the broadcast. I'll take BA and Bill any day over Sutton and Grace.

[honuswagner21]

I am one of those who wasn't totally crazy about Brian at first but has since grown to appreciate his work. To me, it seems most important to have a play by play guy who can get names of players correct, have a confident delivery, and not flub sentences. This is why I have been giving Davey Nelson a hard time on the radio side. Maybe there is something to be said about practice and the difficulty in doing this thing on a part time basis.

 

I also agree that when the day comes when Brian departs for something bigger that there will be no shortage of well-spoken candidates interested in the job.

[Flying Dutchman]

After watching Coshun on the game today, he struck me as someone who would be a better radio announcer. I don't know why, but with TV (despite there being pictures) it's nice to have a consistent back and forth between the announcers, on the radio I like to hear the ambient ballpark noises, and Coshun often seemed to allow those sounds to come through. Some of that may be a lack of chemistry with Rock, but it reminds me a little of what Ernie Harwell, Vin Scully and Uke do sometimes (not that he is anywhere near there level, just a similar style), just let the sounds of the game speak for themselves. I don't like that on TV, but love it on the radio. I have no idea if I'm making any sense, but that was my feeling on Coshun.

 

Also Brian Anderson has definitely grown on me a lot. I know we'll get a solid replacement for him if he leaves, but I kinda hope that Anderson/Schoeder can become the Brewers equivalent of the Bucks Paschke/McGlocklin booth. A long term pair of announcers that just know each other, and play off each other.

[YoungGeezy]

I liked Sutton. He was really enthusiastic during games. BA is a good play by play and I have no complaints but he is really even keel. To me it just seemed better watching a homerun listening to Sutton call it than Anderson. Personal opinion though. Big factor is I miss the buckethead's, sad day when the brewers put that to a end

[Gobias Industries]

BA is solid, but the guy still can't judge a flyball to save his life.

[logan82]

BA is solid, but the guy still can't judge a flyball to save his life.

Well I guess it is good he doesn't play in the outfield for us.

[Diskono]

They should bring in Jon McGlocklin to do color. I don't even know if he's a baseball fan, but over-the-top homer announcers are just awesome.

[cnycerveceros]

Bring back Jim Paschke!

 

Darren Sutton was, and is awful. At least he didn't mention his abiding love for Greg Maddux at all over the weekend, I was shocked.

[sheethead]

One of my favorite BA comments is when with nobody out, he says, "[insert guy on deck] would be next." Actually Brian, he will be next. Another is the constant use of the word "flare," even using it as a verb sometimes! I wish TBS would somehow take him full time. I'm done with him. At least Darren Sutton knew the game of baseball.

[Dragonbait]

I have no interest in replacing BA..

 

He calls a decent game and as I see it... we could get someone better... and just as likely get someone MUCH worse.

[sheethead]

IMO, they can replace BA with Charlie Brown's parents and it would be an improvement. I've listened to every other broadcast team, and BA/Rock are bottom 5 imo. BA just doesn't know the game, and it is very transparent. I hate the Cubs, but Casper and Brenly are light years ahead of Ba/Rock. I hate being jealous of the Cubs, and this is the only thing for which I am jealous.

 

BTW, I'm not talking about the sound of anyone's voice. I am talking about the words that come out of their mouths. The words are to what I pay attention, and I don't really care what the tone is or how their voice sounds. Similarly, I can't stand Mike Greenberg. He doesn't seem to even know sports with what comes out of his mouth.