ryno4ever
Feb 12th 2007, 10:23 pm
Ex-Cubs big part of Fox lineup
Girardi, Karros, Grace new analysts
By Teddy Greenstein
Tribune staff reporter
February 11, 2007, 8:29 PM CST
It's the modern-day version of the ex-Cub factor. Once your playing days on the North Side are done, you trade in your glove for a microphone.
Fox is set to announce this week that it has hired three former Cubs—Mark Grace, Joe Girardi and Eric Karros—as analysts for its coverage of Major League Baseball
The three will rotate each week, either providing game analysis or working on Fox's Saturday pregame show.
Joe Buck and Tim McCarver remain Fox's No. 1 team, with Grace, Girardi and Karros joining play-by-play broadcasters Thom Brennaman, Kenny Albert, Josh Lewin and Matt Vasgersian.
Girardi, who had an awkward split with the Marlins despite being named 2006 National League Manager of the Year in his first season on the job, also will rejoin the YES network for game and studio analysis of the New York Yankees.
Grace, who finished his 16-year playing career with 2,445 hits and a World Series title with Arizona, will also begin his fourth season as the TV analyst for the Diamondbacks.
Karros, who hit .286 for the 2003 Cubs, retired after playing for Oakland in 2004. He then provided analysis for Fox's playoff coverage in 2004 and joined ESPN the next season. Karros also works on a pregame show for the Los Angeles Dodgers, for whom he played in 1991-2002.
Fox also will announce the return of Diamondbacks outfielder Eric Byrnes, who will contribute a monthly feature on Fox's pregame show that takes a whimsical look at life in the big leagues.
Fox's weekly coverage begins April 7 with a slate that includes the Twins-White Sox game. The network has expanded its coverage this season from 18 to 26 weeks.
I have always hated watching games covered by Fox, but maybe it won't be so bad now that we have Cubbie Blue Blood in the booth!
Girardi, Karros, Grace new analysts
By Teddy Greenstein
Tribune staff reporter
February 11, 2007, 8:29 PM CST
It's the modern-day version of the ex-Cub factor. Once your playing days on the North Side are done, you trade in your glove for a microphone.
Fox is set to announce this week that it has hired three former Cubs—Mark Grace, Joe Girardi and Eric Karros—as analysts for its coverage of Major League Baseball
The three will rotate each week, either providing game analysis or working on Fox's Saturday pregame show.
Joe Buck and Tim McCarver remain Fox's No. 1 team, with Grace, Girardi and Karros joining play-by-play broadcasters Thom Brennaman, Kenny Albert, Josh Lewin and Matt Vasgersian.
Girardi, who had an awkward split with the Marlins despite being named 2006 National League Manager of the Year in his first season on the job, also will rejoin the YES network for game and studio analysis of the New York Yankees.
Grace, who finished his 16-year playing career with 2,445 hits and a World Series title with Arizona, will also begin his fourth season as the TV analyst for the Diamondbacks.
Karros, who hit .286 for the 2003 Cubs, retired after playing for Oakland in 2004. He then provided analysis for Fox's playoff coverage in 2004 and joined ESPN the next season. Karros also works on a pregame show for the Los Angeles Dodgers, for whom he played in 1991-2002.
Fox also will announce the return of Diamondbacks outfielder Eric Byrnes, who will contribute a monthly feature on Fox's pregame show that takes a whimsical look at life in the big leagues.
Fox's weekly coverage begins April 7 with a slate that includes the Twins-White Sox game. The network has expanded its coverage this season from 18 to 26 weeks.
I have always hated watching games covered by Fox, but maybe it won't be so bad now that we have Cubbie Blue Blood in the booth!