Eck is done in the NESN booth after the season

teddywingman

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I remember the first time Eck was a guest in the booth, late 90's I think. He only did part of the game and he definitely sounded drunk.

We've come a long way. He truly adds an element of entertainment that few others can.

I wonder if he'll ever pop in, "just to keep in shape." More likely tonight is his last time in the booth.

How's the weather looking?
 

jmcc5400

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That anecdote about Billy Martin referring to him as a breaking ball pitcher was so funny. "Are you kidding me? I'm Gas Masterson."
 

Leskanic's Thread

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Yes, NESN is cheap and has made some dumb decisions in which talent to keep and which to let go, but I think the entire league is going to have a problem getting good color guys soon. The non-stars from Eck and Jerry's generation didn't make much money, so they really needed to keep working after they retired. They were willing to call 162 games because that's what the job was. If you want someone with major league experience calling every game for you these days, you need to find someone who washed out of the league before they made free agency. That's a small pool to draw from. It seems like the rotating booth is going to be a permanent thing going forward, so you can get someone like Youk to do half the games and try to fill out the rest.

I have tickets to today's game, but I set the DVR to record to see Eck's send off. I hope it doesn't get washed out.
Excellent point here.

If it does end up being a rotation anchored by Youk, I'd be ok with that -- of all the people they've tried out over the last few years, I've felt he has the most potential. But, as you say, why would he agree to a 162-game grind when he made *checks internet* over $50 million in his career?

The Sox are lucky enough to have had four (four!) championship teams in the last couple of decades, which has created a nice list of players who might have had abbreviated playing careers but have a lot of good will with the fanbase. I'm thinking of people like Lenny DiNardo and Manny Delcarmen, who have been on the pre- and post-game shows. I wonder if someone in that range might be interested in the gig. But then you have to find someone in that pool who both wants the job and is, you know, good at it. It's easy to mock the powers-that-be at NESN (I did in my last post!), but it's a difficult puzzle without any clear solutions.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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I think that Middlebrooks will heavily be in the mix and eventually get it. He seemed pretty decent the last few times that I've heard him.
 

Petagine in a Bottle

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It’s made more challenging by the fact that it’s a really difficult job, and few are going to be good at it from the get go.
 

teddywingman

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Eck got sober after the 1986 season. He was probably just amped-up.
That is probably true. I don't really know much about his past with alcohol, only that he used to have a problem.

I was watching the game with friends, all of us underage and drinking. Might have been projection while hearing Eck's unique style for the first time.
 

John Marzano Olympic Hero

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In the late 90s/early 00s, I remember when Eck called into the Big Show on EEI ("Dennis in the car, you're on!") out of nowhere and was ripping on Rico Petrocelli (who was a guest host). Eck was defending the modern player and basically told Rico that he was full of shit. It was fucking great.

That's one of the thing that I appreciated most about Eckersley. He wasn't like Smoltz or (later day) McCarver or any of these other guys who spend most of the ball game bitching about the modern player and how they couldn't hold their jocks and just shitting on the product, sounding as if they'd rather be anywhere but in the best seat in the house. Eck tells it like it is, but also he has a respect for how the game is played today and doesn't wallow in nostalgia.

To be truthful, I liked him way more than Remy (there were a few years when the Rem Dog was completely checked out) and I thought that he brought an electricity to even the shittiest of games that's going to be hard to replace. I'm really going to miss him next year.
 

8slim

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I'm not so sure that recently retired players who made a lot of do-re-mi during their playing careers won't be interested in a color commentator job. Most of these guys want to stay close to the game somehow, and a lot of them want to keep busy.

Plus, I doubt the job is really 162 games. Seems like NESN would be find having the lead guy (like Youks) do 80-90, while they rotate a few other folks in for the other ~40. No one is doing 162 -- between national TV games and exclusive streaming games, NESN probably only carries 130-ish games/season.
 

LoweTek

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Since I'm in the Tampa DMA, the NESN broadcast is blacked out here. I found another reason to dislike MLB-TV blackout foolishness. I would like to have listened Eck's last few games. Congrats MLB.
 

The Napkin

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No one is doing 162 -- between national TV games and exclusive streaming games, NESN probably only carries 130-ish games/season.
true, but I would think a large part of what makes it so hard is all the travel and you'd still have to travel to do the other 2 games of the series.
 

DisgruntledSoxFan77

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In the late 90s/early 00s, I remember when Eck called into the Big Show on EEI ("Dennis in the car, you're on!") out of nowhere and was ripping on Rico Petrocelli (who was a guest host). Eck was defending the modern player and basically told Rico that he was full of shit. It was fucking great.

That's one of the thing that I appreciated most about Eckersley. He wasn't like Smoltz or (later day) McCarver or any of these other guys who spend most of the ball game bitching about the modern player and how they couldn't hold their jocks and just shitting on the product, sounding as if they'd rather be anywhere but in the best seat in the house. Eck tells it like it is, but also he has a respect for how the game is played today and doesn't wallow in nostalgia.

To be truthful, I liked him way more than Remy (there were a few years when the Rem Dog was completely checked out) and I thought that he brought an electricity to even the shittiest of games that's going to be hard to replace. I'm really going to miss him next year.
Wasn’t it Dick Radatz he was ripping on? Think he claimed Eck didn’t deserve his mvp award or something
 

8slim

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true, but I would think a large part of what makes it so hard is all the travel and you'd still have to travel to do the other 2 games of the series.
Fair point. I just think that a lot of ex-players really miss the spotlight. At least some are willing to travel and work to regain that, even though they don't necessarily need the money.
 

Dim13

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Wasn’t it Dick Radatz he was ripping on? Think he claimed Eck didn’t deserve his mvp award or something
It was definitely Rico, but you have the MVP part right. Rico didn't think Eck should have gotten the MVP given how many innings he pitched, or something to that effect and Eck cursed him out.

Edit: Of course, I am wrong. Found this recap of it. It was mostly Radatz, but Rico bore some of the brunt too:

http://osheasbaseballesoterica.blogspot.com/2012/12/you-old-bastards-got-lot-of-nerve.html
 
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DisgruntledSoxFan77

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DisgruntledSoxFan77

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That's right. I guess the only reason why I thought it was Petrocelli is because I can distinctly remember Eck saying, "Ricoooooooo ... Ricooooooo." But yeah, it was Radatz, who was an absolute dunce on the radio.
Yeah if I remember correctly Radatz was saying he didn’t deserve the mvp, Eck took offense and called in blasting him and Rico stood up for Radatz. Or at least tried to…
 

NDame616

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Story making the rounds. It's Eck's estranged adopted daughter. A few more deets in the post below

https://www.wmur.com/article/alexandra-eckersley-manchester-new-hampshire-news/42348303

"MANCHESTER, N.H. —
A woman accused of giving birth in the woods and abandoning her newborn on Christmas night is facing new charges.

Alexandra Eckersley, 26, will face charges including second-degree assault, endangering the welfare of a child and falsifying physical evidence. She had already faced a felony reckless conduct charge in this case."
 
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Rich Garces Belly

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Story making the rounds. Yes it's Eck's daughter.

https://www.wmur.com/article/alexandra-eckersley-manchester-new-hampshire-news/42348303

"MANCHESTER, N.H. —
A woman accused of giving birth in the woods and abandoning her newborn on Christmas night is facing new charges.

Alexandra Eckersley, 26, will face charges including second-degree assault, endangering the welfare of a child and falsifying physical evidence. She had already faced a felony reckless conduct charge in this case."
very sad story, it’s a shame that Eck name is being brought into this. He adopted her knowing she had mental health issues and tried for years to get her help. When she became 18 she left his care and chose a life of homelessness and crime. This story about the baby breaks my heart.
 

NDame616

will bailey
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very sad story, it’s a shame that Eck name is being brought into this. He adopted her knowing she had mental health issues and tried for years to get her help. When she became 18 she left his care and chose a life of homelessness and crime. This story about the baby breaks my heart.
I didn't know those details. I'll update my post
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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very sad story, it’s a shame that Eck name is being brought into this. He adopted her knowing she had mental health issues and tried for years to get her help. When she became 18 she left his care and chose a life of homelessness and crime. This story about the baby breaks my heart.
Well, if nothing else maybe the fact that there's a famous person adjacent to the story will get the most important part publicized -- that New Hampshire has a safe-baby safe-harbor law that parents in the same position as this woman could use.
 

zenax

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Manchester Union Leader today:

The boyfriend pleaded guilty today to charges of endangering the welfare of a child, reckless conduct and witness tampering. He was also sentenced on drug charges and a probation violation. He was sentenced to a year in jail on a misdemeanor child-endangerment charge with credit for 216 days already served. He was also sentenced to six months for the probation violation with a year in jail on the drug charge suspended for four years. In all, he will spend a little less than a year in jail.

According to a police report, he was present when his girlfriend gave birth on Christmas night. She said she didn't know she was pregnant. She led the officers on a "frantic search" for close to an hour in temperatures well below freezing before leading them to the three=month old baby. The child has recovered and is doing well but Alexandra will be going to trial in January for reckless conduct, second degree assault, extreme indifference, falsifying physical evidence, and endangering the welfare of a child. She said that the boyfried told het that the baby had no pulse.
 

Humphrey

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Same week Eck showed up at Fenway. Unless I missed it (I did some fast forwarding during that particular game), they didn't have him on the broadcast, which I was looking forward to.