OT-Rod Allen, Kirk Gibson, Jack Morris to rotate FSD broadcasts
http://www.foxsports.com/detroit/story/jack-morris-kirk-gibson-join-rod…
Not a fan. I like Rod and hate Gibson. The Diamondbacks were the worst run club in baseball thanks in large part to his obsession with toughness and payback.
I didn't mind Morris so much last year when he cameo'd but I usually just listen to the radio
February 10th, 2015 at 12:37 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 12:50 PM ^
Jim Brockmire in the booth.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:13 PM ^
Without Rod I would probably not watch listen to as many games. I know a lot of people don’t like him, but I really do. Plus I just got this awesome "Drink when Rod says" coozie from Don Kelly T Shirts.
February 10th, 2015 at 4:29 PM ^
like the Loch Ness Monster, I had always heard rumors that there were fans of Rod Allen.
February 10th, 2015 at 3:05 PM ^
Morris has bounced around as a broadcaster over the past few years. He's below average.
I've heard a lot of the radio and tv crews around the league. I'm not a Tigers fan but Mario and Rod are petty solid. Morris/Gibson will add nothing. Gibson might say something stupid and could be entertaining in that way, but I'm guessing it'll be like listening to some blowhard in a bar wax about the glory days and how the "game should be played."
Jon Miller (Giants, formerly ESPN) is the best TV guy in the business. Radio is a bit tougher to rank. The newer guys around the league sound pretty generic. It's easier for me to list the bad ones. So I won't.
February 10th, 2015 at 11:19 PM ^
I think some people downplay the fact that these guys are on every night and they are bound to become somewhat repetitive. That said, Pricey is probably done though he does know the game very well. His schtick is tired. Dickerson is fantastic PBP and though nobodody will be Ernie Harwell, he calls the games with class and dignity. I like Rod Allen, I think he's got great enthusiasm and plays well off of Impemba. Best team in Detroit is still Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond. The Lions guys suck; even though Brandstatter is a U of M hero...he's done. And Miller should be doing high school games. For Michigan football, the Brandy/Dierfort is obviously shortlived...I suggest they get a totally out of the box but talented PBP and perhapsy Brian Griese as color guy.
February 10th, 2015 at 12:40 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 12:40 PM ^
Radio is the best way to go here, though neither is a good option. Dan Dickerson is great, but Jim Price sucks. The only time Mario or Rod is entertaining is when they show up in extremely corny commercials during the game.
February 10th, 2015 at 12:44 PM ^
Radio is for sure better...I don't know if Jim Price flat out sucks but he sure doesn't bring a lot to the table.
I haven't ever heard Gibson, but Morris was definitely meh. Mario is solid. Rod's shit gets old quick.
But then again I don't watch much more than 3-5 games on FSD all season anyways.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:22 PM ^
The article doesn't say that he is leaving his gig with Minnesota. How does this gig fit in?
February 10th, 2015 at 5:49 PM ^
Gibson had the TV gig with Josh Lewin before Rod & Mario took over. It always seemed like Gibson hated the gig but that could've been becuase broadcasting those Tigers teams was a miserable experience. My favorite Gibson in-the-booth moment, however, was an interleague game between the Tigers and Cardinals which featured Tony LaRussa making multiple trips out to the mound one inning to both change pitchers and protest a call with the umps. The inning is strething on and on and at one point LaRussa starts walking off the field only to immediately double-back to the ump and this puts Gibson over the edge. He shouts over-the-air, "LaRussa, get off the field!" Lewin loses it cracking up laughing.
February 10th, 2015 at 12:46 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 5:22 PM ^
You missed one: arsenal arsenal arsenal arsenal, and oh yeah... arsenal.
February 10th, 2015 at 5:34 PM ^
Price is also a mush mouth. He sounds like he has a half-chewed hot dog in his mouth the whole game.
February 10th, 2015 at 12:50 PM ^
I love Jim Price. Yeah he has a lot of goofy catchphrases but its hard to reinvent the wheel that for 162 regular season games, at least a dozen spring games plus post season.
He also isn't afraid to call out the Tigers when they do something dumb which certainly isn't the case for Mario/Rod.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:17 PM ^
I swear there's a hater for every radio/tv personality out there. I think Price and Dickerson do an awesome job. I've learned a lot about the ins and outs of baseball from listening to them call games. They go more in depth than any TV broadcast can do. The FSD broadcast is mediocre and I've really come to prefer listening to the radio broadcast.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:36 PM ^
I didn't care for Price when he first started but he's grown more comfortable in his role. I'd take 4 of him over Rod and Mario who bring really nothing to the table either as the old guy who has been around for a long time or a keen saber's view of the game. I find Rod and Mario unlistenable.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:26 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 4:15 PM ^
the middle of the game at least once an inning. "Catchers are smart and tough". "#12 is the best number-lots to live up to". "Al Kaline and I are friends and I talk to them all the time". Then beyond that it's the constant chatter without saying a fucking thing. "There's the art of pitching.... it's just ... you know.... the art..... what else can you say, Dan but that he understands the art of pitching".
I can half deal with his little signature lines.... "batting thiiiiird" and "buggywhip" and "nice area" and I actually like "yellowhammer", but he makes the wonderful experience of listening to a ballgame while drinking a beer on a hot summer evening into an excercise in patience.
Dan is good to very good.
Gibby sucks because, like Price, it's all about him. In fact it's worse because with Gibby there's no tongue-in-cheek. It's all about how tough he is. In fact it's a little easier to be tough when you're the biggest strongest guy on the field
Morris was surprisingly good and he has apparently gotten his own massive ego under control.
Rod used to be very good now he's just bored.
Mario is fine
The shame is Petry isn't on the lineup card. Pretty good already and getting better.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:18 PM ^
Like others, I am not the biggest fan of Jim Price either (but at the same time, I do not mind him, so a neutral feeling), but I do like that he will call players out on occasion for less than brilliant plays. That's actually rather refreshing when compared to the FSD coverage, where at best the criticism is very mild and at worst non-existent. When I am looking for what I deem to be the more thoughtful analysis of the game between TV and radio, I tend to go with Tigers radio.
February 10th, 2015 at 4:24 PM ^
in mind when I listen to him..... He does get very frustrated when a Tiger does something lazy or stupid (although I still hate listening to him.
It's even worse now that he's sucking on candies to combat dry mouth from chemotherepy. Every time he smacks his gums (which is every time he speaks), I feel guilty for not wanting to listen to him. I wish he'd retire or do the TV interviews after the game (Keating is an intolerable idiot as well). Regardless of what he does I hope he continues beating the shit out of the bitch cancer.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:26 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 1:40 PM ^
I gotta say I've listened to 100's of Tiger broadcasts and I've never heard Price act like he was a great player.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:14 PM ^
He talks like he knows a lot about baseball...which, it sure seems like he does compared to me, so I will take it. I'd like to have some guys in the future for both TV and radio with better grasps on sabermetrics (i.e. if you're going to share stats, make them good, relevant ones) but hearing the little tidbits and stories about baseball life from a former player is very important as well.
I don't totally get the Mario hate, I think he is fine. Rod gets to be grating but is ok in small doses.
Our old buddy Jeff Moss seems to think this is some sort of deal where Mario hates working with Rod and he's on his way out. It's plausible.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:30 PM ^
DIckerson does add a little bit of sabr stuff, though I wish he would do more.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:17 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 2:25 PM ^
Well he's not wrong. He did play with a lot of great players. And I hear Rod talk about swing mechanics all the time.
I guess we are just going to have to agree to disagree and look forward to baseball season!
February 10th, 2015 at 2:57 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 3:08 PM ^
To be fair, unless your name is Bench or Piazza, .220 is pretty standard for a backstop.
February 10th, 2015 at 12:51 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 1:56 PM ^
Dan Petry. Not sure who Jim Petry is???
February 10th, 2015 at 3:34 PM ^
Yes Dan Petry, brain fart on my part.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:17 PM ^
As for the OP, viva Rod. He's a veggies guy, after all.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:38 PM ^
mouth full. He is taking medication (I think related to a cancer scare) which accounts for that.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:48 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 1:49 PM ^
Correct. He sucks on candies/cough drops because the chemo leaves him with a dry throat.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:28 PM ^
On a side note, I'm not saying price is great or anything, but for some people to clown a guy's sound while he is working through cancer treatments is pretty low.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:46 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 7:59 PM ^
February 10th, 2015 at 4:28 PM ^
to combat dry mouth from chemotherapy.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:20 PM ^
Drink a shot every time he mentions the "Art of Pitching." Nobody would last long.
February 10th, 2015 at 12:53 PM ^
Not a fan of Gibby at all and the way he ran that clown shown in the desert.
February 10th, 2015 at 12:56 PM ^
Kind of a disappointing move, because Mario and Rod do an excellent job IMO. Underneath Rod's goofy exterior is a guy with a ton of insight. He's a lot like Bobby Knight actually. Points out all sorts of game tidbits that you wouldn't think of but make perfect sense.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:09 PM ^
Yeah, I don't know why he gets so much hate now days. I think he's one of the best in baseball right now for the reason you just gave. The beauty of baseball is in the minor details.
February 10th, 2015 at 12:58 PM ^
The Diamondbacks were the worst run club in baseballUmmm... Gibby got NL Manager of the Year in Arizona. Just sayin'
February 10th, 2015 at 12:59 PM ^
I know the sample size is small, but these comments are a microcosm of what has happened to baseball. Fans used to love having ex-players in the booth and would forgive them for their flaws. Al Kaline was terrible his first few years, but everyone loved listening to him because of what he meant to Detroit and nobody would have even thought of criticizing him. He was allowed to grow and "learn on the job."
In this era, nobody cares about the tradition of baseball anymore. It is a sport played at too slow a pace and free agency has shattered any illusions that a fan may have had about loyalty. While there is still a certain magic in the game itself, especially how the dimensions have remained perfect no matter how we evolve physically, heroes have become disposable.
Compare this to Denard Robinson. If he was invited into the Michigan booth as a third man, we would all be thankful that he was there. He would be allowed to grow into a great broadcaster, even if the first year or two were rough.
Tradition: it's all about tradition. Michigan has it; baseball is losing it year by year.
February 10th, 2015 at 2:19 PM ^
I remember how Kaline had a hard time criticizing the team early on. He got over that eventually.
February 10th, 2015 at 3:44 PM ^
Bernie Smilovitz? He would fit in great for Tigers live with Craig Monroe.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:12 PM ^
A lot of people don't like him for some of the goofy things he does or says, but if you pay attention to the insights he presents, more often than not he is very very right. The number of times he has says "now look for the Tigers to do X here because of Y and Z" and then they do it for exactly those reasons really surprises me when I watch his broadcasts.
He tries too hard to cover his insight with sthitck and sizzle, but if you ignore that and just listen to what he is saying he brings a lot to the table IMO. So I'm not a fan of pushing him out of the booth. That being said, since I moved away from MI 2 years ago and I don't buy the MLB package I rarely see any games on FSD anymore. I just listen to the radio broadcasts.
February 10th, 2015 at 1:21 PM ^
As for old Kirk, he's a Spartan. Do not want. Already have Spartan Mario.