No really, this is actually a real story
Shortly after Troy Aikman bolted for ESPN, it was rumored that Buck would be looking for a way to join his broadcast partner on the network. And it looks like things are will end up playing out that way even though Buck under contract through the 2022 season.
In exchange for allowing their top play-by-play announcer walk early, Fox seems to have negotiated the Ohio State vs. Notre Dame game that will be played on Sept. 3 this fall.
Now, I have only seen that this is for MNF games, but I have to imagine this will be for baseball as well. If so, I'm very curious on who will step up and fill the, quite frankly, enormous void in baseball announcing on FOX, who has had Buck calling the World Series for 2 decades and still have the World Series contract through 2028.
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This "traded Ohio State vs Notre Dame" thing is 100% false according to the president of ESPN.
ah, they settled for Bowling Green vs Idaho instead
I can see that. Ohio State vs Notre Dame, that reads as Notre Dame is the home team and therefore it is a NBC game anyway.
Notre Dame plays at anOSU. That would mean the broadcast rights go to whoever has rights to B1G games. The top B1G game of each week is on Fox and ND at anOSU would be it.
For baseball, my guess is they'll go with Kevin Burkhardt. Seems like he usually calls Fox games when Buck isn't calling them as is. In fact, I expect Burkhardt to just slide into both of Buck's roles as the #1 guy with football and baseball
Wait, traded *for* Buck? They didn't wait to see what Fox would give em to get rid of him?
Is this a trade where everyone loses?
I have never understood the Buck hate. Love listening to him for the NFL and looove him during the MLB Playoffs. Then out of the booth he's just flat out funny as hell. I know there's barstool hate here, but his PMT interviews are must listens.
I think I remember reading that at the beginning of his career, there was some hate, because it felt like he was given the big Fox gig, because of his dad, and he was also more monotone, and not enthusiastic. But he's become more expressive, so that's kind of turned things around for him.
Now that I get. What was he, like 24-25 when he got that gig? I would've thought nepotism as well, but he just has a "big game" feel that a lot of others lack. Like Steve Levy, like the guy and I think he does ok with MNF, but certainly feels like a second fiddle on what used to be the game of the week.
I'm with you. I think its the nepotism and he kinda has a monotone, droning voice at times. But also, people tend to hate damn near everyone of these announcers. You can be great and the vast majority is still gonna shit on you. Even Tony Romo, who was largely praised at the start, is getting people turning on him.
I will say though, I wish he'd show more of his personality during games. Like you mentioned, his out of booth interviews are entertaining and he shows waaaaaay more personality. If more people saw that side of Joe Buck, he'd probably get less hate.
he's gotten better lately, but he was dreadful in the 2000s and that's where most people's lasting impressions of him were made. Even with improvement, I'd still take Kevin Burkhardt over Buck.
Plus, if you've heard him call any game involving the Packers he pretty shamelessly roots for them.
One thing that people complain about, but I actually like, is when he just lets the moment speak for itself and shuts the hell up. He does this all the time after the final out in the World Series, especially for teams that haven't won it in a while, and it just makes rewatching those highlights that much better.
Contrast that to someone like Collinsworth who won't shut the fuck up during the Super Bowl with his own stupid ass opinions and hopes about what is going to happen next and.... Yeah, I don't mind Joe.
That's not something I have a problem with, every PBP guy worth their salt does that.
Collinsworth is a complete fucking tool. If he's calling one of my teams games i gotta turn off the sound. I really can't stand him.
Sadly, I think I like Collinsworth more than Michaels. I had no use for Al. Sound off was the solution.
IF my memory is correct (checked wikipedia - it is).... The monotone was probably lost on me since I had the ability to listen to him ~'92-'95 when I was leaving near St Louis. He was doing just the Cardinals games if I remember correctly (maybe the Blues as well, but I didn't care about hockey back then). I just remembered him sounding like a younger version of his dad. The meteoric rise was lost on me as a teenager - didn't seem like a big deal and for me it was more of a "hey! that's the guy that did the Cards games" reaction.
For those who don't have a subscription to The Athletic, Richard Deitsch had a good column about the move, but the part relevant to Fox and MLB:
Joe Davis is expected to be bumped to Fox's #1 spot on the MLB package. For those who don't know the name, he had the unenviable task of following Vin Scully as the television voice of the Dodgers.