Network MLB telecasts will feature more technology, more conversation and more programming stunts this season.
ESPN and Fox telecasts will have not-so-subtle changes on their telecasts this year, from ESPN’s use of its K Zone graphic on virtually every pitch to Fox’s high-frame-rate cameras that can provide close-ups from far away.
“Every offseason we review our presentation, especially production enhancements since graphic and video technology evolves so quickly,” said Zac Fields, Fox Sports’ vice president of graphics and technology. “Our goal is to keep our MLB telecasts up to date, and we achieve that by maintaining a constant dialogue between production, tech and graphics.”
Here are three changes MLB viewers will notice this season.
■
More conversation: ESPN will have more people on-air talking about baseball, and in less structured ways.
The biggest changes will come from ESPN’s “Baseball Tonight” studio show, which Phil Orlins, ESPN’s senior coordinating producer for MLB, hopes will be a less predictable telecast. The show is shedding its dress code — coats and ties are not required anymore — and the hosts will spend more time standing than sitting. Orlins expects this will lead to less stilted dialogue and more hands-on demonstrations.
■
More technology: Fox Sports will put its “dirt-cam” in more places this season. During last year’s postseason, it had a small camera in front of home plate and by first base. The network is working with MLB to find other areas in the infield where it can be used. The cameras are wireless and so small that they can be placed almost anywhere on the field, Fields said.
■
More stunts: ESPN will have its “Sunday Night Baseball” announcers call four straight games from the crowd rather than the broadcast booth. One will be in Pittsburgh and another in Anaheim. The other two games have not been scheduled yet.
ESPN also plans to produce five games that focus on the cultural and international impact of the sport, such as an April 15 telecast on Jackie Robinson Day and a Sept. 16 telecast that celebrates Hispanic heritage.
