Boston Red Sox
“Merloni and Middlebrooks do not shy away from criticism when circumstances warrant it.”
Jerry Raimi (left) and Dennis Eckersley (right) were at the top of their game at the NESN booth with Dave O’Brien in 2020. Jim Davis/Global Staff
I was convinced in those few glorious years when they shared the broadcast booth, and I’m even more convinced now that those days are five years on:
We will never hear a more satisfying baseball broadcast than we heard when Jerry Remy and Dennis Eckersley worked together in the booth. Their peak together — along with play-by-play voice Dave O’Brien — occurred when some of us were at our lowest ebb, during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Raimi and Eckersley had charisma and candor in abundance. It went double for them, especially when they spoke openly about their fears during their playing days.
Remy He died in October 2021. Eckersley retired After the 2022 season To spend more time with his grandchildren. I still find myself wondering what they would say on a daily basis This disbanded Red Sox team.
As much as it’s missed, it has to be said: The Red Sox have had success with color analysts in both the TV and radio booths. Lou Merloni, NESN’s lead analyst, has the same ability as Remy to predict what will happen and why something will happen. I’m convinced he would have been a good manager if he had gone that route.
On the radio side (mostly), Will Middlebrooks has become very easy to listen to. One thing he does extraordinarily well is present analyzes in an unobtrusive way, such as offhandedly pointing out Thursday night That Red Sox outfielder Payton Tull threw a version of his fastball 96 percent of the time in that particular game is an unusually high number.
Yes, there is a bit of consolidation in both broadcasts, which is an epidemic everywhere in sports. But Merloni and Middlebrooks do not shy away from criticism when the circumstances call for it, and the circumstances have called for it in spades every night this season.
There will never be another IC/REMI duo. But Merloni and Middlebrooks deserve the maximum value they have become.
Change station
Friday was Adam 12’s (Adam Chapman) last day as executive producer of 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Toucher and Hardy morning show. He will move to WROR — also owned by Beasley Media — to co-host Mornings with Lauren Beckham Falcone, starting Monday, the station announced Thursday.
This move makes sense on several levels. Adam 12 is a longtime Boston on-air radio personality, best known to many for his time at the late, great WBCN. (He’s always a BDC radio guy for me, first and foremost.) He ended up at Sports Hub in September 2024 after his on-air role at Rock 92.9 (also Beasley’s station) ended when the signal was switched to Bloomberg Radio.
Adam 12, who was already good friends with hosts Fred Thatcher and Rob “Hardy” Paul, proved to be a perfect fit for the show. His upbeat nature — he’s one of the most decent people I’ve met in many years covering sports media — and discipline helped him find his bearings after the crisis. A messy departure for Rich Schertenlieb A few months ago.
“Leaving is bittersweet,” Adam 12 said in a text message Thursday afternoon. “I had to turn on the radio with my friends every morning and laugh.” [butt] on. “But this was too good an opportunity to pass up.” He said on Friday’s show that the new role comes with a pay increase, a rarity in radio these days.
It is not clear at this time who will be promoted to the executive producer role.
More SI layoffs
Sports Illustrated, the magazine that spawned Generation Magazine that We expected them to appear in our mailboxes Every Thursday afternoon has been transformed into a monthly one, supporting a host of relentless pop-up ads thinly disguised as a website. But through it all, SI has managed to maintain a group of talented, albeit small, writers on staff. Unfortunately, many of those survivors lost their jobs in another senseless corporate incident on Friday. Notable writers let go include Stephanie Epstein, Michael Rosenberg, Greg Bishop, and Mike McDaniel. They have all done excellent work in a place that in many ways no longer deserves them.
Lots of eyes watching
I’m fascinated to see what the Nielsen ratings and viewing numbers look like Saturday Night Game 7 Showdown Between the Spurs and the Thunder on ESPN. As of this writing, final viewership data for Games 5-6 is not available. But through the first four games, the series has averaged 9.6 million viewers, including 10.3 million viewers for Game 4. It is on track to become the most-watched Western Conference Finals ever, though that ranking will come with a caveat since Nielsen has changed several aspects of its methodology in recent years, including finally including out-of-home viewing.