June 24, 2008
Nation Watching the Nation
It's Jerry Remy Day at Fenway, and MLB Extra Innings will be showing the Red Sox pre-game show at 6 PM EDT so fans of the President of Red Sox Nation across the nation can tune in and see the show.
I enjoy Jerry's announcing. He's local, he's knowledgeable and he's funny. Lately, however, I've detected a certain amount of tension in the booth. I thought that maybe the relationship between Don Orsillo and Remy was fraying, but a friend of mine with NESN connnections says that Jerry is upset about the hiring of Heidi Watney. According to my sourse, Heidi knows nothing about baseball. From what I've seen during telecasts, she just introduces taped pieces, which either Don or Jerry could do just as well.
Congratulations to Jerry on twenty years of Red Sox broadcasts!
Posted by David Pinto at
12:53 PM
|
Broadcasts
|
TrackBack (0)
Heidi may know nothing about baseball but she really doesn't need to know too much. She wasn't hired for her baseball knowledge. Don Orsillo knows nothing about baseball but really should. Clue to Don - when there's a runner on second with 1 out - that's a lot better than a runner on 3rd with 2 out.
Heidi Watney is terrible. Actually, scratch that. She WAS terrible, now she's just bad. She flubs a ton of lines, her segments are awkward, etc. In fact, at the beginning of the year, she flubbed her first three segments I believe. That's like making an error on your first three chances in the bigs. But she wouldn't understand that analogy, would she?
You can do a lot better with baseball knowledge, and a lot better in the looks dept (though she is attractive). Find a cute 25 year old wearing a blue sox hat and give her a mic. Everyone would be happier, I think.
Not sure what Fenway you've been going to, but at the one in Boston, there aren't any cute girls with blue Sox hats...or any other color, either.
Find a cute 25 year old wearing a blue sox hat and give her a mic.
I dunno - Heidi seems pretty sober.
I realize that this is blasphemy in RS Nation, but I'm getting a little sick of the RemDawg. He's a good color guy and definitely knows the market, but his self-promotion is getting a little over the top. He forgets that he's calling a Red Sox game and not a Home Shopping Network segment to hawk his cheap merchandise. Just the opinion of a long-time Sox fan who misses the old Channel 38 broadcasts.
Andy, i want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for that link...I could wake up to any those babes and be happy
As a Yankees fan, I just want to say that Remy is pretty good. He's fairly objective and a heckof alot better than many of the other local broadcast guys, such as Rod Allen or Hawk Harrelson (seriously, how does that guy still have a job?)
The RemDawg is getting a little self-important, but he's still entertaining as a color guy. He jabs Orsillo all the time, which is okay as long as he avoids outright rudeness.
As for the eye candy, she's eye candy. Was Remy expecting anything else?
As someone who's had a drink with Bob Gamere*, I can tell you Remy and Watney aren't people you need to complain about.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Gamere
*This was at a friend's Christmas party. Gamere lived nextdoor and invited himself in. First thing he does, swear to God, is point to the ornaments and yell, "My balls are bigger than these."
i'm another yankee fan, one who lives in the heart of boston, and i also find remy to be a fine broadcaster.
...much better than some of the yankees' voices anyway.
also, for the record, i've nearly given myself whiplash checking out some of the ladies at fenway. there are a few lookers there. maybe my standards are a bit lower than other people's.
As an expat in Japan, I have no choice about which broadcast I watch. That means I get to listen to the Mariners broadcasters (sound like they have consumed valium, cut themselves regularly, and are praying for death -- even during last season), Yankees broadcasters (so absurdly obnoxious and factually incorrect on so many things it bothers me), Colorado broadcasters (Seattle with hope?), etc.
The simple fact is that when a baseball game gets absurd, so does Jerry Remy. That's nice. Watching a 12-3 laugher does not merit focused commentary. It merits entertainment. And Remy is very good at that.
If Heidi is the blonde girl who has a really obnoxious "I was a communications major!" voice, I understand Remy's frustration. I don't watch baseball for the women.
Heidi does what she was hired to do everyday - look good and talk into the mike. You'd think that with the technology available today they could do this with a Barbie doll and a voiceover and it would be a lot cheaper.
I'd rather see and listen to Heidi Watney on NESN than Suzy Kolber and Michele Tafoya on Monday Night Football.