Baseball Musings: The Fall of BBTN

May 24, 2007

The Fall of BBTN

The Dia Tribe sounds the death knell for ESPN's Baseball Tonight.

Well, as with most good things, it has come to an end. Maybe it was Gammons' health scare that convinced him to not stay on the nightly show, or Reynolds' unceremonious firing from ESPN, but the show has devolved into a 3-ring circus. With the addition of John Kruk and Steve Phillips to the everyday lineup with Karl Ravech (who must just sit there every night wondering what the hell happened), the show has lost all credibility and fails to even be interesting. I can't tell you the last time I sat through a whole show, which would be simply unheard of a mere 2 years ago, when my post-game viewing revolved around it.
The problem with the show in its current incarnation is that it seemingly tries to be like The Best Damn Sports Show Period or TNT's NBA Studio Crew (a bunch of guys who enjoy each other and talk sports while having fun); the difference is that there's nothing fun about the show, and the personalities couldn't be less compelling (unlike Chuck and Magic). To pass the show off as anything remotely insightful or "insider" is irresponsible.

When I started with the show in 1990, we did 1/2 hour and always managed to get in 13 highlights, one for each game. Now it seems in an hour, they can't get in 15 games. There was less insider talk back then, but you got to see the games.

Part of this is the way the baseball world changed. I now can watch live games at 10 and midnight, so why would I watch a highlight show? I can get up to the minute scores on the internet. I can read great commentary from fans all over the world. The fact is, what made Baseball Tonight unique in the 1990s is gone. The show needed to change. And while it may no longer attract fans like me, it wasn't going to keep fans like me anyway. Remember, shows are driven by ratings, and someone did the research and decided this is the show that brings in the most eyeballs. They're different eyeballs than the people who watched the show in the 1990s, but that audience has new shows that take their attention.

Hat tip, Deadspin.

Posted by David Pinto at 10:28 AM | Broadcasts | TrackBack (0)

Comments

The fact is, what made Baseball Tonight unique in the 1990s is gone.

Remember calling the sports department for the late scores? Or the joy of the first USA Today Sports section back in 82?

I thought the sports daily "The National" was the greatest thing ever when it came out.

So... BT is sub par... everything else is off the charts compared to yesterday.

Posted by: Brian at May 24, 2007 11:13 AM

BT has been substandard for years...actually it looks like a cross between the show you mentioned and on of those NFL pregame things they have on fox...whatever they are...i watched one once, and didnt know if they were talking about football or just attempting to do standup comedy...

Posted by: glenn at May 24, 2007 11:51 AM

As an ordinary TV viewer, I want to watch sports, not people talking about sports. ESPN and Fox both have way too much talk and not enough sports.

Posted by: Cameron King at May 24, 2007 11:55 AM

If they altered BT so it reflects a more "internet style", I think it would work more. It just feels too...linear. That makes it boring.

Posted by: Devon Young at May 24, 2007 12:07 PM

One of the things that used to make SportsCenter and BBTN so go was they weren't tied to one city or region. Over the last decade or so it has become a ratio of 10 minutes of Yankees coverage for 30 seconds for any other team.

Brian,

Being a pack rat, I still have old copies of the National. It was a good idea but never really had a chance.

Posted by: largebill at May 24, 2007 12:51 PM

For me what's caused baseball tonight to go down the drain is the increase in analysis making the highlights few and far between. I understand that the increase in availability of baseball makes highlights less attractive then they used to be but if I want baseball analysis, I can find it from a million different places. I have no reason to get in from a few unintelligent guys who have a propensity for making over the top predictions.

Posted by: ben at May 24, 2007 01:56 PM

I'd prefer they stick to highlights, too. I look it at as SportsCenter, but without highlights from sports (NBA, NHL) I have little interest in.

Posted by: Kyle J at May 24, 2007 04:39 PM

Kruk is the town fool; Phillips is a moron. It is that simple.

Posted by: abe at May 24, 2007 06:02 PM

I have lost my faith in BT. I was a big fan, but it has become too much of a Red Sox-Yankee show. I used to watch because you could see all of the highlights. Not any more.

Posted by: Tony M at May 24, 2007 10:19 PM