As baseball action nears pennant time, TBS telecasts of the games are boosted by impressive camera coverage and analysis from knowledgeable talent that keep viewers alert and not snoozing, finds Grumpy Editor.
For Sunday’s Yankees-Texas Rangers game, for example, former baseball pitchers John Smoltz and Dennis Eckersley will man the TBS booth along with Ernie Johnson Jr.
Smoltz teamed with another former pitcher, Ron Darling, last Sunday in providing comments on TBS during the White Sox-Red Sox game in Boston.
That contest brought interesting chatter and camera work, including outfield/infield panning to show positions of players at crucial moments and on-target slow-motion replays.
This contrasts with some Fox Sports camera work that often zooms in on pitchers and batters for irritating, repeated “nostril shots” --- tight close-ups from forehead to chin. Talk at some of that network’s Saturday baseball “games of the week” often sends Grumpy Editor into a slumber mode.
With TBS, sports producer Glenn Diamond says, “Our crew works very hard every Sunday to provide the best coverage.” Coupling ex-players such as Darling and Smoltz provides output that is “very informative and entertaining,” he adds.
Also doing splendid jobs in covering baseball: Jon Miller and ex-player Joe Morgan, a veteran team that meshes well on ESPN.
Tough to beat, however, is veteran Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully who combines play-by-play with a steady flow of player facts, figures, interesting assorted information and story telling. He adds sparkle even in a dull, low-scoring game.
At 82, Scully works solo --- an amazing task --- on the air, generally calling games west of the Rockies. He’s set for his 62nd season in 2011 describing the action at Los Angeles Dodger games because “when push came to shove, I just did not want to leave.”
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