Keith Olbermann: New studio host for post-season MLB games

PBDWake

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BellhornIsGod

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Olbermann, Pedro, Verducci, Mark Derosa..and some dude named Dirk Hayhurst doing the studio work tonight. Pre-game was painful..they try and do skits and stuff (similar to TNT basketball broadcasts - which I love) but it just doesn't work with this crew. 
 
What makes the TNT crew so awesome is the chemistry. These guys seem like they were introduced 4 minutes before the broadcast (and maybe they were). 
 
Hope it gets better as the LDS get started.
 
As an aside I would love to know how the hell they decided on this five-some. 
 

joe dokes

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BellhornIsGod said:
Olbermann, Pedro, Verducci, Mark Derosa..and some dude named Dirk Hayhurst doing the studio work tonight. Pre-game was painful..they try and do skits and stuff (similar to TNT basketball broadcasts - which I love) but it just doesn't work with this crew. 
 
What makes the TNT crew so awesome is the chemistry. These guys seem like they were introduced 4 minutes before the broadcast (and maybe they were). 
 
Hope it gets better as the LDS get started.
 
As an aside I would love to know how the hell they decided on this five-some. 
Dirk Hayhurst is a retired mostly minor league pitcher who has written a couple of really good books.  Didn't see the TNT performance, but its possible he doesn't translate to TV.
 

richgedman'sghost

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joe dokes said:
Dirk Hayhurst is a retired mostly minor league pitcher who has written a couple of really good books.  Didn't see the TNT performance, but its possible he doesn't translate to TV.
Wasn't Dirk Hayhurst one of the Toronto broadcasters who accused Bucholtz of scuffling with the baseball early in this season? I agree his books have been pretty good but the Toronto episode was a low point.
 

joe dokes

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richgedman'sghost said:
Wasn't Dirk Hayhurst one of the Toronto broadcasters who accused Bucholtz of scuffling with the baseball early in this season? I agree his books have been pretty good but the Toronto episode was a low point.
 
Another data point in suggesting he should stay off tv?
 

BellhornIsGod

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joe dokes said:
Dirk Hayhurst is a retired mostly minor league pitcher who has written a couple of really good books.  Didn't see the TNT performance, but its possible he doesn't translate to TV.
 
Yes it appears you're right. It's just a weird crew. First of all, a 5-man crew is just too much. It sucks when they go with 5-6 men crews on Sunday countdown shows, and this is no different. Just no way to get everyone involved enough. Also, this crew had no chemistry when I saw them, which likely isn't their fault considering they've never worked together, but still made it a tough watch. 
 
I'm hoping Eck is subbed in for someone soon.
 

joe dokes

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BellhornIsGod said:
 
Yes it appears you're right. It's just a weird crew. First of all, a 5-man crew is just too much. It sucks when they go with 5-6 men crews on Sunday countdown shows, and this is no different. Just no way to get everyone involved enough. Also, this crew had no chemistry when I saw them, which likely isn't their fault considering they've never worked together, but still made it a tough watch. 
 
I'm hoping Eck is subbed in for someone soon.
 
5 is just too many to be coherent. I sawn a few minutes of  KO just with Verducci and Pedro before the TB-Tex game.  It was pretty good. Pedro has the disadvanage of uttering complete thoughts in complete sentences. When one of the co-hosts likes to talk, as KO does (unlike say the excellent traffic cop Ernie Johnson), adding more people hurts all of them and forces them into Kruk-style blurts.  That's why the MLB network works. A (generaly good) host with only 2 guys. It forces both of the non-hosts to engage, and even a mostly-doofus like Reynolds or Bowa or Magrane isn't totally devoid of baseball knowledge, so when forced to focus on a game or play they come off OK. 
 

SunkToANewLowell

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joe dokes said:
Dirk Hayhurst is a retired mostly minor league pitcher who has written a couple of really good books.  Didn't see the TNT performance, but its possible he doesn't translate to TV.
He was brutual every answer he and Verducci gave was "im chosing x because im a writer and makes for a good story." There was no analysis just opinion on why something made for a good story. He picked Iggy as the "x factor" or something to that nature for the postseason and that he he would help knock out the Red Sox. As we all know they dont play first round, but the story writes itself so he was cool with it.
 

ForKeeps

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I'm sure Olbermann suggested Hayhurst. They're cut from the same smug, think-I'm-far-more-irreverant-and-clever-than-I-really-am douche cloth.
 

BoSox Rule

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That was the oddest thing I've ever seen. Pedro hasn't been great so far but that was so far in his wheelhouse that whoever decided to get Hayhurst's opinion, whether it was a producer or Olbermann asking on the fly, should be fired.
 
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I've enjoyed Pedro.  I liked his explanation of the grips on his pitches - talk about a masterclass you couldn't get anywhere else.  He's still warming up to the role, I think - needs a bit of (more?) voice coaching.
 
Keith Olbermann has been a pleasant surprise.  Whimsical without being too domineering about it.  I like him.  They should just have him, Verducci as the easy-talking guy, and Pedro as color/insider/expert.  I think it would work well.
 

Marbleheader

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Curious if he'll own up to completely talking out of his ass about the Sox tricking Myers.
 

garlan5

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BannedbyNYYFans.com said:
Wakefield tweets that it's not possible for bullpen to interfere...Keith, who obviously knows better than Wakefield, disagrees.  
 
Timeline starts at bottom.
 
 
 
yeah and he didnt put the correct quote from meyers.. meyers said it was his CF'er who he saw and backed off.  gave this douche my thoughts on twitter.  
 

Soxy

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Fwiw, my brother's seats are right behind the Sox bullpen.  He texted me immediately after the play saying that the sun was brutal.  Which backs up Bradford's tweet.  Not sure why Olbermann is trying to make it more complicated than that.
 

Average Reds

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Fwiw, my brother's seats are right behind the Sox bullpen.  He texted me immediately after the play saying that the sun was brutal.  Which backs up Bradford's tweet.  Not sure why Olbermann is trying to make it more complicated than that.



Which is garners more attention for the tweeter? Going along with the obvious theory of what happened? Or being "unique and edgy" in your theory?

There's your answer.
 

ForKeeps

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See, this is the problem. I had the same initial suspicions that he did. Fine. But before anyone has any evidence or talks to any of the players, he's derisively mocking anyone who disagrees with him, laying the groundwork for accusations of bias ("they won't kill him like A-Rod!!!111 durr"). And then when he's proven wrong, his only response is to make some lame fucking joke (the only kind he's capable of, btw) without acknowledging it. Dickhead.
 

jayhoz

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Here I was all worried I was going to have to give this D-bag a second ( third, fourth?) chance. Thanks for being you Keith.
 

JohntheBaptist

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Soxy Brown said:
Fwiw, my brother's seats are right behind the Sox bullpen.  He texted me immediately after the play saying that the sun was brutal.  Which backs up Bradford's tweet.  Not sure why Olbermann is trying to make it more complicated than that.
 
Being fooled.
 
Average Reds said:
Which is garners more attention for the tweeter? Going along with the obvious theory of what happened? Or being "unique and edgy" in your theory?

There's your answer.
 
Fooled.
 
ForKeeps said:
See, this is the problem. I had the same initial suspicions that he did. Fine. But before anyone has any evidence or talks to any of the players, he's derisively mocking anyone who disagrees with him, laying the groundwork for accusations of bias ("they won't kill him like A-Rod!!!111 durr"). And then when he's proven wrong, his only response is to make some lame fucking joke (the only kind he's capable of, btw) without acknowledging it. Dickhead.
 
Consider yourself among the fooled, friend!
 
LMontro said:
 
But he KNOWS!  Better than anyone at the game or Myers himself, Keith knows the REAL story.
 
It would appear you too are being fooled.
 

ifmanis5

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When KO met Rush...
 
 
http://www.gq.com/entertainment/sports/201311/keith-olbermann-interview-espn-november-2013?currentPage=1
 
 
 
Flash to '96, probably '95. I walk into SportsCenter, and he's standing in my way. "Hi, Keith! Rush Limbaugh! Big fan!" I said, "No offense, but is there a reason you're here?" He goes, "I finally convinced the guys to let me sit in on the football show. That's all I ever wanted. I'd trade everything I have right now to do that show or co-host SportsCenter with you. My God, this is it!" Seventeen years ago, he would have thrown it away if he had an opportunity to do sports for a living. It's one of those "He didn't get to be this, so he became Napoleon instead."
 
 

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ForKeeps

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It killed me, until I remembered a conversation that I'd had when I met Elizabeth Montgomery [of Bewitched]. We're on a plane. I'm reading a book about Lizzie Borden, who she portrayed once. She said, "Did you ever see the European version? They show me kind of naked in that." I went, "Can we go to your place and demonstrate it?" Turns out she's a fan of mine.
 
 
 
 
How is this guy a real person.
 

Ferm Sheller

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ForKeeps said:
 
How is this guy a real person.
Sounds like a bragglehumb to me. Elizabeth Montgomery died in 1995 at age 62 and Olbermann was born 32 years after she was. What was she? 60? And he was 28? Just a horny old woman trying to use all she had to get some.

Edit: Ah, I see he's actually 26 years younger. Point stands though.
 

mrsbeasley

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Ferm Sheller said:
Sounds like a bragglehumb to me. Elizabeth Montgomery died in 1995 at age 62 and Olbermann was born 32 years after she was. What was she? 60? And he was 28? Just a horny old woman trying to use all she had to get some.

Edit: Ah, I see he's actually 26 years younger. Point stands though.
 
Please, she was married to Robert Foxworth. Unless she was slumming, she was completely out of KO's league, even if he was only 30.
 

blueline

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Anyone who wants to see a true dbag at work just needs to look up Olbermann on Twitter discussing the end of Game 3. 
 
He makes it an art. 
 

PeaceSignMoose

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blueline said:
Anyone who wants to see a true dbag at work just needs to look up Olbermann on Twitter discussing the end of Game 3. 
 
He makes it an art. 
 
Nope.  He's right.  You're wrong.  No explanation needed.
 

blueline

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PeaceSignMoose said:
 
Nope.  He's right.  You're wrong.  No explanation needed.
 
Great post! However I actually don't really disagree with the call.
 
Olbermann claims the game was decided by Saltalamacchia. It clearly wasn't, even if he made a poor decision. He claims Sox fans can't complain about the call because Ferrall checked for interference from the third base coach earlier, an argument that doesn't remotely begin to make sense. Finally he claims that the "Tuck Rule" has some relation to a baseball game eleven years later. 
 
Instead of logically making an argument, he just acts like an ass as always.
 
BannedbyNYYFans.com said:
I've always heard people say this. That he's a social misfit or awkward - that just sounds like bulls hit rationalization from his fans who feel the need to explain him. I've never met Olbermann but I have two friends who worked for him and said he was a terrible human being. Belittling and obnoxious...Just a bad guy who treated everybody poorly. Politically, I probably agreed with 75% of his MSNBC show but I just had to stop watching because he was such a sanctimonious blowhard. I tried his new show but couldn't finish it. It's too bad because I'm sure a lot of it will be great. He's a brilliant guy with original ideas but I just can't get past the asshole factor. I'm sure that's my loss but whatever...
 
I'm quoting myself to show how much of a flip flopping, idiot I am.  
 
I gave "Olbermann" another shot about three months ago and haven't been able to stop watching since.  Tons of baseball highlights and interviews.  He's been crushing Dungy lately too, which is awesome.  
 
The 20% of the time I disagree with him, I want to strangle him...but that probably means he's doing something right. 
 
I'm sure he's still  a jackass, but he probably has the best show on the network at this point. 
 
Edit - Just realized this is the MLB Studio Host Thread...maybe I should start one on his show.  
 

riboflav

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Must see TV right now
 
EDIT: Calls for Goodell's, Newsome's, and the team president's resignation.
 

Couperin47

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Keith was on this from day 1, ESPN clearly had no problem with that and let him hammer Goodell for weeks, albeit at ..sometime after 11 pm as the show bounced around. Then they decided to give him the 5 pm slot about a month ago, and cut it to 30 mins which means removing mostly the SC style reporting on clips... which he could do in his sleep better than 90% since, hell, he was there when that style got invented. (btw he has said, part of the deal is he's going to show up on SC soon again...now and then...). TMZ's timing was friggin perfect, they lobbed it over the plate for him today and ESPN is probably delighted.
 

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Couperin47 said:
Keith was on this from day 1, ESPN clearly had no problem with that and let him hammer Goodell for weeks, albeit at ..sometime after 11 pm as the show bounced around. Then they decided to give him the 5 pm slot about a month ago, and cut it to 30 mins which means removing mostly the SC style reporting on clips... which he could do in his sleep better than 90% since, hell, he was there when that style got invented. (btw he has said, part of the deal is he's going to show up on SC soon again...now and then...). TMZ's timing was friggin perfect, they lobbed it over the plate for him today and ESPN is probably delighted.
Too bad he doesn't work for ESPN.