After months of heavy criticism from baseball and media
writers, The Baseball Network launches its regionalized playoff
coverage on NBC tonight at 8pm EDT.  ABC picks up divisional
playoff coverage on Friday.  The rundown of where each series
will be shown (USA TODAY, 10/3):
     NOTE:  States are listed by postal code.  States with symbol
(^) have some markets dedicated to other games.
     BOS-CLE (23%)  NYY-SEA (20%)  CIN-LA (27%)   COL-ATL (30%)
     New England    NJ, NY         Philadelphia   NC, TN
     Erie, PA       AK, HI, OR, WA Pittsburgh     Richmond
     Baltimore      Lancaster, PA  Johnstown, PA  Roanoke
     Wash., DC      Wilkes-Barre   KY, WV, OH^    AL, GA, MS, SC
     Norfolk, VA    C'ville, VA    IL^, IN^       KS^, FL^, NE,
     Fort Myers     Hagerstown, MD AZ^, CA, NV    Springfield, MO
     MI, WI, MN, ND Evansville     Waterloo, IA   Peoria, IL
     Kansas City    Davenport, IA  St. Louis      Des Moines
     Fort Wayne     Miami          Joplin, MO     Sioux City, IA
     Cleveland      Tampa                         CO, ID, MT, UT
     Columbus                                     WY, AR, NM, OK
     Stubenville                                  LA^, TX, SD
     Toledo                                       Phoenix
     Youngstown
     South Bend
     Baton Rouge
     Fort Worth
     Amarillo
     THE GOOD:  In Philadelphia, Mike Bruton writes, "On the eve
of this not-so-grand experiment, it looks as if things might not
be so terrible" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 10/3).  In Washington,
Tom Boswell writes, "Have pity on our fellow Americans.  If they
want MTV and Beverly Hills 90210, why not give them baseball in
quadravision?" (WASHINGTON POST, 10/3).  ESPN President Steve
Bornstein:  "Why don't we see the playoffs before they're
criticized?" (USA TODAY, 10/3).  In Atlanta, Prentis Rogers
writes, "It is worth noting that little of the criticism directed
at TBN has been aimed at the telecasts themselves" (ATLANTA
CONSTITUTION, 10/3).
     THE BAD:  In Tampa, Doug Carlson writes the new TV format
"likely will further tarnish the game's image" (TAMPA TRIBUNE,
10/3).  Astros Dir of Broadcasting Jamie Hildreth:  "The Baseball
Network was a good idea for the regular season but not so good
for the playoffs. ... Any time you get a jewel event like the
playoffs, it should be seen by the entire country" (Carlton
Thompson, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 10/3).
     AND THE UGLY:  NBC's Bob Costas:  "The whole wild-card idea
in concept and practice is so mindless it's best not to think
about it if you plan to enjoy the games that remain" (Rudy
martzke, USA TODAY, 10/3).
     THE WORD FROM TBN:  In New York, Richard Sandomir notes that
move toward regionalization "ignored such factors as the
expanding nationalization" of the NBA playoffs.  But TBN "must
play the denationalized hand it was dealt."  President Ken
Schanzer:  "We've been given a responsibility to broadcast the
games regionally and, within that context, we tried to come up
with a plan that makes it as exciting as possible" (N.Y. TIMES,
10/3).  Coordinating producer John Filipelli:  "Our goal is to
make these telecasts as seamless as possible" (Steve Nidetz,
CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 10/3).
     NO DISH VIEWING:  Restating his Monday report, Jim Baker
notes that officials from NBC and TBN insist the satellite feed
will remain scrambled on out-of-market games to protect
regionalization (BOSTON HERALD, 10/3).
     WILL O.J. PRE-EMPT?  The WASHINGTON POST reported this
morning that NBC was considering a prime-time O.J. special, but
NBC's Ed Markey tells THE DAILY that other than a special
"Dateline" at 11:35pm EDT, he knew of no such plans.
     WAIT 'TIL NEXT YEAR:  New MLB marketing exec Arlan Kantarian
is said to be pursuing sponsorship deals for next season, which
include MLB-based promos and time buys with the league's new
media partners, according to Jeff Jensen of ADVERTISING AGE.
Kantarian is said to be in the "critical stages" with Pizza Hut,
while Anheuser-Busch has requested a meeting.  A-B VP/Corporate
Media & Sports Marketing Tony Ponturo:  "From our standpoint, the
playoffs and World Series will be a test to see just where the
national appeal of baseball stands."  A-B will run spots during
ABC and NBC broadcasts, but nothing baseball-specific.  The same
goes for TBN sponsor Texaco.  But GM (TBN's biggest sponsor) will
air new Cal Ripken/Chevy Trucks ads (AD AGE, 10/2 issue).
     OVERNIGHTS ON AL WEST PLAYOFF:  According to preliminary
Nielsen overnight ratings for the Seattle and L.A. markets, the
Mariners-Angels AL West playoff game on ESPN yesterday afternoon
received a 2.8 in L.A. and a 4.5 in Seattle (Nielsen Sports
Marketing Service).
     ONE LAST SHOT:  David Letterman, on the NL playoff schedule:
"The Dodgers will be at home against the Reds, the Braves will be
at home playing the Rockies, and the Mets will be at home playing
Mortal Kombat" (CBS, 10/2).

     The Women's Basketball Association will begin its fourth
season with a three-year TV deal with Liberty Sports.  This year,
the WBA expands its schedule to 36 games, with Liberty carrying
80 regular season games, the All-Star Game and the playoffs on
its Prime Sports RSNs and the Women's Sports & Entertainment
Network (WBA)....The Broncos topped the Rockies in the ratings
Sunday.  Broncos-Seahawks drew a 25 rating/47 share, while the
Rockies wild card clincher drew a 17/33 (Colorado Springs GAZETTE
TELEGRAPH, 10/3).... The Big East Conference has launched a site
on the Web on ESPNET SportsZone (ESPN)....Int'l Skating Union
President Ottavio Cinquanta announced the completion of the ISU's
"multi-million dollar, worldwide" TV agreement yesterday, which
will extend through '99.  Networks involved include ABC (U.S.),
CTV (Canada), TF/1 (France), and most likely EBU (Europe).
Negotiations are ongoing in Japan, the Far East and Southeast
Asia.  The networks will have exclusive rights to the 11 ISU
Championships, including the World and European Figure Skating
Championships (ISU)....NESN has developed a site on the Web
featuring info on the Bruins and Red Sox (GOULD MEDIA,
10/3)....Fox Sports has announced it '95-96 NHL schedule, which
kicks off with the All-Star Game January 20.  The Bruins,
Blackhawks, Rangers, Flyers and Devils are the only teams to be
featured every week (Fox).

     NFL Dir of Communications Greg Aiello spoke to the ORLANDO
SENTINEL regarding NBC's switch on Sunday to Jaguars-Oilers
before the 1pm Dolphins-Bengals game had ended.  Aiello:  "Your
fans hit us pretty good.  The good news is that it won't happen
again."  Aiello was not referring to a change in policy -- only
that the Jaguars (who have designated Orlando as their secondary
market) will not follow the Dolphins for the rest of this season
(Jerry Greene, ORLANDO SENTINEL, 10/3).  Aiello and NBC's Ed
Markey also clarified the situation in L.A., where the same game
was abandoned for the Chargers.  Markey had cited league policy,
but said, "I stand corrected."  Aiello:  "It was, as we said at
first, a miscommunication problem, and it won't happen again"
(Larry Stewart, L.A. TIMES, 10/3).
     NFL FILES SUIT ON RENEGADE DISH USERS:  The league filed a
lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Buffalo Monday against 30 bars,
restaurants and bowling alleys charging that they showed games
that were blacked out.  The suit asks for $200,000 in damages
from each establishment.  Bills attorney Vincent Tobia believes
there is a direct correlation between non-sellouts this year and
illegal satellite broadcasts (AP/Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 10/3).

     The Bowe-Holyfield heavyweight fight will remain scheduled
for November 4 at Caesars Palace, according to an announcement
this morning by TVKO, Time Warner Sports, Caesars Palace, Spencer
Promotions and Main/Events Monitor. The live pay-per-view event
will begin at 9pm EST, with the main card scheduled to begin
around 11:30pm.  The event will go head-to-head with Fox's
broadcast of Mike Tyson's second fight since being released from
prison.  The Bowe/Holyfield PPV special will carry a suggested
retail price of $39.95.  Time Warner Sports President Seth
Abraham said they "were very pleased that our partners at
Caesars, Spencer Promotions, Main Events/Monitor and the cable
industry were able to re-affirm their commitment" (TVKO).