This summer, we have been subjected, on an almost nightly basis, to Jerry Remy blathering on during NESN broadcasts about the ongoing campaign to elect a "president" of Red Sox Nation. (Whether this silliness is worse than the Remdawg's constant pimping of his website when he should be discussing the game being played in front of him is a very close call. Either way, shut up and do your job, Jerry.)
As dumb as I think this idea is -- it cost another $15 to enter the campaign -- I did enjoy reading about an event last night in Boston, at which the 25 candidates (chosen from more than 1,200 submissions by what Larry Lucchino called an electoral college of team personnel) gave their initial campaign speeches.
Q: If this is so damn important to the Red Sox and its fans, why wouldn't NESN put this on the air? Why have it while the Red Sox are playing a game? Shouldn't it have been scheduled for an off-night?
Some thoughts:
I like Rich Garces's promise to "give each member of Red Sox Nation 'El Guapo' bobble-bellies. Like a bobble-head, except the belly shakes." I really want one of these.
Peter Gammons is a strong candidate, but his obscene fawning over George Steinbrenner and the entire Yankees organization (and the concurrent bashing of all things Red Sox) during the Dan Duquette Era should torpedo his campaign. (LexusNexus search, anyone?)
My choice? Steve Manganello.The self-proclamined "Coma Guy" was struck by a taxi while crossing a street in Japan as the 2004 playoffs were beginning. He remained in a coma for 17 and was barely conscious for another two weeks -- oblivious to the fact that the Red Sox had won their first title in 86 years.
As he said last night, "It's been 89 years for me."
For what it's worth, Joy of Sox endorses Steve Manganello.
...
In other news, I am running unopposed as Prime Minister of Red Sox Nation.
What?! Unopposed! This is an outrage! More like dictator of RSN!
ReplyDeleteDictator!
ReplyDeleteYes! I will rule with an iron hand!
Assassinate Wally.
ReplyDeleteA coup to overthrow Remdawg nation.
Lifetime banishment from Fenway for doing the wave.
"Who in their right mind would pay $15 to make his or her status as a Red Sox fan "official"?"
ReplyDeleteNote: This absolutely was not the reason I, or anyone else, I'd think, bought the card that first season. They used the "official"-ness as a gimmick, but mainly it was a fan club which gave you benefits: I got the mlb audio free that year, which I needed, living in NYC. I got the chance to buy tickets to another game. I got a free Fenway tour for two. I got first dibs on other ticket offers throughout the season. For a really low price. The second year I signed up again, but this year it cost too much for me so I didn't join.
But the last thing I was doing was saying, Hmmm, if I have that card, people will know I'm a real fan! When this thing first came out, my argument against that was that if you buy a T-shirt, you're wearing it to specifically show people you're a Sox fan, whereas when you buy the card, it just sits in your wallet--unless you pin it to your shirt or something. So, the card is in fact LESS of a way to show everyone you're a fan than a hat or shirt is.
Maybe some psychos got the card because they somehow felt like an "unofficial" fan without it, but I think almost everyone who signed up did it for the benefits.
Could they have done the whole thing without the dumb card and the "official" aspect? Yes. But it didn't stop me from signing up.
You're right about the audio deal. The cost of the audio is about the same as the card, so why not? Plus there is some other stuff. That's fair.
ReplyDeleteBut the whole way they've been selling this -- and the "make it official" tagline -- is horrendous.
Ess-actly.
ReplyDeleteAnd, of course, it was a natural "up the price every year" deal. I think it was 10 bucks in year one. Now it's like, "Become an Ultra-extreme member for just 49.99!"
ReplyDeleteYeah.. I bought the Ultra Extreme Membership. When the card came in the mail it flew out of the envelope and hit me in the face.
ReplyDeleteYour site is great. I read it everyday. I can't however understand how you can have a bad word to say about Jerry Remy. IMO he is the best color man out there because it's not just the "color" of the game that he brings. He and Orsillo are the funniest announcers in sports at the same time as they are informative. (I live in Tennessee so I don't get any local Boston sports shows and they're about all I get.)
ReplyDeleteI love our announcing team. But surely you've noticed the over-the-top advertising for Rem Dawg Nation which, on top of all the other ads they do DURING the game (is between innings not enough?), it can get pretty annoying...
ReplyDeleteI was thinking that Orsillo should pick up the Ortiz car due to special feature number one.
ReplyDeleteHe'd be ballin'.
I wish I had NESN every night -- I curse the cable gods when EI gives me the other team's feed.
ReplyDeleteOrsillo is a very good play-by-play guy, but his constant reading of meaningless factoids from the press notes soon becomes a mind-numbing torrent of numbers and dates. Quiet is sometimes much better than words.
Remy pimps his website constantly -- or he shills for Sox Appeal, items for sale at the NESN store, RSN president or some other shit. Or he's kissing the ass of the sponsors in the hopes of getting some free shit (a bathtub or a bigger TV) for his house. Whatever it is, it is NOT the baseball game.
Every pitch that gets hits is described as "middle in" and he often does not correct himelf when a replay shows his initial assessment to be dead wrong (many announcers do this, most notably McCarver and Morgan).
And he really ought to spend five minutes before the game reading his promos. He almost always stumbles over the words.
They can be very funny and entertaining -- like I said, I wish I could listen to them every night -- but they are far from perfect.
I agree with that one, redsock, the "middle in" thing. It drives me crazy. Pitch hits the outside corner and is drilled for a home run and Remy says it's "middle in".
ReplyDeleteI do like the jokes they make, though, particularly about each other: their driving, their manner of dress, how much some of the road trip travelling sucks.
Orsillo reads the "AVG/HR/RBI" line every time, even though all the info is on screen, with the exact same intonation...every...damn...time.
how much some of the road trip travelling sucks
ReplyDeleteGotta disagree with you there. If they don't like the hours, they should find other employment.
Orsillo reads the "AVG/HR/RBI" line every time, even though all the info is on screen
NESN includes OBP on-screen, but I don't think I have EVER heard Orsillo mention it for any player. Which is mind-blowing.
And Remy continues to tout fielding percentage when ranking the teams' "defense". They also seem to think that batting average is the best way to rank a team's offense.
Red Sox fans deserve so much better.
If the actual Red Sox players get in at 4 AM and then have to play a day game, I want to hear about it.
ReplyDeleteIf Remy is yawning -- well, whoopie shit.
Yeah.. I bought the Ultra Extreme Membership. When the card came in the mail it flew out of the envelope and hit me in the face.
ReplyDeleteLOL
Yeah, Cakey, laugh of the day, thanks. :)
There are things I like about Don and Jerry, and things I don't like - no team is perfect.
ReplyDeleteThey have great chemistry together. Not every broadcast team does, and it makes a big difference.
Orsillo does excellent pbp, but lord a'mighty, stop reading us your press notes! Take the meaningless factoids and weave them into a sentence we might be able to focus on, instead of a litany of numbers and dates.
But my problem with Remy's constant harping on his website, t-shirts, nation, etc. etc. is that it's ADVERTISING.
I am hugely bothered (can't emphasize it enough, really) by the constant presence of advertising in our lives and in our game. Every millimeter of space must be sold, we must see and hear advertising constantly, all around us.
During the game, everything from stolen bases to pitching changes to home runs is sponsored. Some of the sponsorship is disguised as corporate donations.
I can mute the ads between innings but when it comes to the de facto advertising during games, I'm a prisoner.
And Jerry Remy brings yet more advertising into the actual broadcast of the game, disguised as "banter" and fun-and-games. He uses his position as Red Sox announcer for his own self-promotion and advertising campaign.
Those of us who think "Rem Dawg Nation" and an "official Red Sox Nation" are complete crap (as I do) have no choice but to listen to it.
Remy could be talking about baseball - what's going on in the league - what's going on on the field. Instead he is advertising his own baseball-related products. IMO, it's inexcuseable.
The many things I like about Jerry Remy's work is far outweighed by this.
When Allan curses because we have a non-NESN feed on our cable package, I'm relieved because I won't have to hear updates on the latest "nation" gimmick.
I will, however, vote for Redsock for Prime Minister of the Canadian chapter of Red Sox Nation. I think he's got at least 4 votes (himself, me, Woti and Tim), and that should seal the deal.
ReplyDeleteI was thinking that Orsillo should pick up the Ortiz car due to special feature number one.
ReplyDeleteLOL! That would be great.
If I buy that car, I'll change my last name to something that starts with O.
I also get tired of NESN advertising itself. Every network does this, it's not at all unique to NESN (just like all the in-game ads are the same for every team).
ReplyDeleteBecause sports networks have such a limited menu of shows, the ads are extremely repetitive, and so I find them even more annoying. Pre-game, post-game, Sox Appeal, Charlie Moore... I wish they'd all disappear from the baseball broadcast.
I think he's got at least 4 votes (himself, me, Woti and Tim), and that should seal the deal.
ReplyDeleteSounds good to me! (however if this nation involves any actual political ideologies, I would have to reconsider :P)
Gotta disagree with you there. If they don't like the hours, they should find other employment.
ReplyDeleteOh come on, redsock. You don't hate ANY aspect of your job? I like mine pretty well, but there are things about it that eat...hours are actually one of them, come to think of it. Anyway, *I* think it's funny. It's fine if you think they're whining and it has no place on the broadcast.
Much of the time, I just hate announcing...at all, including Remy's and Orsillo's. Unfortunately when I mute the announcing (which is most of the time), I mute the crowd and the crack of the bat. I wish there were a way to just watch the game without having someone yammer at me, but where I could still hear the crowd.
We've been brainwashed to accept all the advertising, especially the in-game stuff, as normal. It's not. It didn't used to be. We've been bombarded and brainwashed with it. That's my talking point and I'm staying on message.
ReplyDeleteAs a comparison, I refer you all to the DVD "Impossible to Forget", which has a bonus feature of the live broadcast of the Sat. Sept. 30/67 game between the Sox and Twins. Coleman and Martin have plenty of chemistry without the banter or seeming need to assure us that they're buddies. They also make effective use of SILENCE (it is, after all, TV). And there is very little in-game promo. I almost cried after watching it--not for the game result, but for what game broadcasts have become. Very sad. We've been brainwashed folks, imprinted with the brand, and I include the never-ending charity appeals as well. I honestly think we'ed still be BASEBALL fans without it. Stop it, please. Just gimme the game. I'm payin', ain't I?
Also, as an added bonus, to all you folks sick of hearing Robbie-someday-he's-going-to-win-a-batting-title-Cano being compared to Rod Carew every time he comes up, well, Rod's in the game. He was good. Sorry Robbie, you've got a ways to go.
Redsock for PM, as long he promises to abolish the in-game camera shot of who's in the booth.
Right on, Woti! I agree one hundred million trillion percent.
ReplyDeleteMuch of the time, I just hate announcing...at all, including Remy's and Orsillo's. Unfortunately when I mute the announcing (which is most of the time), I mute the crowd and the crack of the bat. I wish there were a way to just watch the game without having someone yammer at me, but where I could still hear the crowd.
ReplyDeleteHeh, that's what Allan always says about mute. Me, I could watch the whole game on mute and be fine. But then I couldn't hang in the game thread! Cuz on mute, you gotta watch more carefully, you can't look away to type and look up when you hear something.
What did you guys think of Sean McDonough when he did Red Sox games?
ReplyDeleteI grew up with Ned Martin and Bob Montgomery.........I loved Ned Martin......I also remember the Hawk......
ReplyDeleteThe one think about Nesn that I have noticed is that the director sometimes doesn't direct the cameras right...last night Lowell hit a single to left and they showde Manny running to second..never had a shot of the hit.....
Where does that money from Red Sox nation go?
ReplyDeleteOh come on, redsock. You don't hate ANY aspect of your job? I like mine pretty well, but there are things about it that eat.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a job that thousands of people fantasize about - and would likely kill a few people to have for a year. So to hear someone fortunate to have worked their way up to that job complain about some non-traditional hours -- okay, so they get in at 5 AM, but they don't have to be in an office at 9 AM for christ's sake -- well, I don't want to hear it. ... Maybe if Remy didn't mention it so much, it would be better.
His recent bit about being on the west coast and feeling like he fell off the face of the earth was amusing.
I wish there were a way to just watch the game without having someone yammer at me, but where I could still hear the crowd.
You have read my mind. I say that ALL the time. What's EI cost? $160? I'd probably pay $500 for that option. YOU HEAR THAT, MR. MLB???
That 1967 bonus disc is why I really really want to get that set.
NESN has pretty much solved its problem of missing pitches by trying to cram too many commercials in between innings. They will now cut a commercial off midway through to get back to the game.
ReplyDeleteHowever, they are still missing pitches because they want to show 7 replays of the exact same thing.
I liked Crash. Much better and funnier (dry wit) than Orsillo. I think when we finally got the package, he was only on Friday nights, though.
ReplyDelete$$$ goes to Red Sox Inc.
Redsock for PM, as long he promises to abolish the in-game camera shot of who's in the booth.
ReplyDeleteConsider it done.
How about we give each announcer a word limit for each game? Better spend those words wisely!
And if you use them all up in the first three innings, oh well ..... :>)
I grew up with Ned Martin and Jim Woods on the radio (late 70s). I've seen companies that sell random game broadcasts and have wanted to get a couple to see if I still think they are good -- now that I'm old and jaded.
ReplyDelete"I grew up with Ned Martin and Bob Montgomery.........I loved Ned Martin......I also remember the Hawk......
ReplyDeleteThe one think about Nesn that I have noticed is that the director sometimes doesn't direct the cameras right...last night Lowell hit a single to left and they showde Manny running to second..never had a shot of the hit....."
Saw that last night--and yes, this happens all the time and pisses me off. We were in a restaurant, watching the game, but with music playing instead of the TV sound. So I saw Lowell hit the ball, then I saw Manny running to second. He's running, slowing, arriving at the bag, and I have NO IDEA if the ball was caught and Manny's about to toss the helmet and walk to left field or if he's safe at second or if he got forced or what.
When I'd get the Sox, it was the CT affiliate picking up the TV-38 games (you know it--channel 30), usually just Friday night and Sunday afternoon. So I grew up with Ned and Monty, later Sean and Monty. And I liked them all. But not as much as Ken Coleman on the radio, my all-time fave.
Sean McDonough was hilarious. I loved his dry humour. Although his monotone could be very grating.
ReplyDeleteI don't remember much more than that, because... well, you know. I was watching "other games" at the time.
last night Lowell hit a single to left and they showde Manny running to second..never had a shot of the hit.....
ReplyDeleteThat was truly bizarre! NESN does get some strange camera work sometimes.
Where does that money from Red Sox nation go?
ReplyDeleteWhere indeed.
I know the Red Sox raise a tremendous amount of money for worthwhile causes. But I might feel *a bit* better about all the "official" garbage if the money didn't go in the team's pocket. And in Remy's pocket! I assume everything he sells is for his own profit. Which is why it is truly an in-game commercial.
When Allan curses because we have a non-NESN feed on our cable package, I'm relieved because I won't have to hear updates on the latest "nation" gimmick.
ReplyDeleteThe downside is that you then do have to listen to other announcers doing their thing: mailing it in with 'Manny being Manny' anecdotes (Orioles announcers), annoying the crap out of us with stupid home-run calls (White Sox) or telling us that Varitek is basically the most dangerous hitter on the planet with the bases loaded, even though the on-screen stats show 2 career HR and a .224 BA (Devil Rays).
mailing it in with 'Manny being Manny' anecdotes (Orioles announcers)
ReplyDeleteDon't forget about "ManRam" (all 29 teams other announcers)
And almost all of the Manny stories are either wrong, exaggerated or outright lies.
ReplyDeleteAnother story the out-of-town guys like to tell is how Papelbon walked into Tito's office in spring training and demanded to be put back as the closer. That Pap basically forced/ordered Tito to do it.
ReplyDeleteTHANK YOU JOY OF SOX FOR THE MUCH APPRECIATED ENDORSEMENT... Steven "The Coma Guy" Manganello
ReplyDeleteOne thing I would like to clear up though, I am not self proclaimed "The Coma Guy" story was written by ESPN Magazine's Bill Simmons who coined the nickname and then it went out on Associated Press and everyone and their brother started to call me for interviews and the name just stuck in the media so I went with it!!!
Thanks again Joy Of Sox for your support.
Could you email me?
ReplyDeletejoyofsox@gmail.com
The downside is that you then do have to listen to other announcers doing their thing: mailing it in with 'Manny being Manny' anecdotes (Orioles announcers), annoying the crap out of us with stupid home-run calls (White Sox) or telling us that Varitek is basically the most dangerous hitter on the planet with the bases loaded, even though the on-screen stats show 2 career HR and a .224 BA (Devil Rays).
ReplyDeleteThis is very true. But amazingly, this bothers me less than Remy's commercials. I can tune this all out. Somehow I can't do that with him. I should work on that.