NESN decides Don Orsillo won't be back in the Red Sox booth in 2016--bad idea
by
, 08-25-2015 at 04:30 PM (797 Views)
More than 40 years ago, when cable television was installed in my home, I became acquainted with Red Sox games on WSBK. At the time, venerable, versatile Dick Stockton was at the mic with Ken "Hawk" Harrelson. "Hawk" wasn't the over-the-top homer he is now for the White Sox, but before you knew it, both were gone. Stockton, of course, splits his time between Fox, the Oakland A's (at last check), and I believe TBS. Ned Martin took over sometime in the 80's, replaced in turn by Sean McDonough. Ex-catcher Bob Montgomery was brought on to be the color analyst. Good times.
However, WSBK left upstate NY cable systems some years back, and now the BoSox have all their games on NESN (New England Sports Network). Currently, Don Orsillo, a McDonough sound-alike (don't believe me, watch a Red Sox game, then an ESPN event w/McDonough) and Jerry Remy, another ex-player, are the announcers.
After this season, though, NESN's decided that Orsillo, because the current head man at the network doesn't like him, will not return for the 2016 season. Reportedly, ESPN's Dave O'Brien, who's been the radio voice of the Sox since leaving the Mets' booth nearly a decade ago, is in line to be Orsillo's successor. To that, I say, meh. O'Brien's fine, but Orsillo & Remy took me on a time warp to the days of the McDonough-Montgomery team (yes, Remy does sound like Monty a tad). From what I've gleaned from Sox games airing on MLB, they are a great team, right up there with the Mets' troika of Cohen/Darling/Hernandez. The Yanks? Forget it. Michael Kay's driving a loaded wagon, and it doesn't help that John Sterling still does radio for them.
Of course, you can't top Vin Scully, but that's for another time.
All I'm going to say is, NESN just made a bonehead play far worse than anything the Sox have done this season. Their viewers will remind them of that as often as possible.