In Boston, Chad Finn writes it was "disappointing" when ESPN baseball analyst Terry Francona "backed down this week from comments he made about the Red Sox' decision to ban beer in the clubhouse." Francona on Monday called the ban a "PR move," but after Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine "offered a rebuttal/retort, Francona retreated." Francona said, "I need to be more careful when speaking about the Red Sox." Finn: "No, he doesn't. Francona is being paid to offer opinions, and while his departure from Boston was ugly, there is no team he knows better than the Red Sox." Part of his appeal during the two ALCS games he called for Fox last October was the "insight and humor" regarding Tigers C Victor Martinez and Rangers 3B Adrian Beltre, players he once managed. Finn writes, "It was refreshing. ... But here's hoping that during his time as analyst, however long it may be, he doesn't rely on the see-no-blunder approach of ["MNF" analyst Jon] Gruden to ensure that he doesn't alienate a future employer" (BOSTON GLOBE, 3/2).
MULTI-TASKING FOR THE JOB: In Boston, Bob Ryan wrote ESPN basketball analyst Doris Burke is the only person the net employs "with the sufficient knowledge, credibility, and performance skills to be a basketball analyst for the men’s college game, the women’s college game, the NBA, and, in years past, the WNBA." Celtics broadcaster Mike Gorman said, "She’s about substance. She stays in the game. It’s never, ‘So-and-so is one of nine children.’ It’s about the basketball. And she knows her basketball." Burke "routinely bounces from college men to college women to the NBA." She said, "They are three distinct sports. I try to immerse myself into the everyday, the ongoing story of each one, but it does get a little overwhelming at times." Ryan wrote Burke is "living proof that being a hoop junkie is not gender-specific" (BOSTON GLOBE, 3/1).
BEST IN THE BUSINESS: CHARLOTTE MAGAZINE's Frank Barrows writes college basketball analysts Jay Bilas and Mike Gminski are "not just insightful and articulate about the 1-4 high-stack offense or defensive positioning on a ball screen; they’re engaging personalities who project seriousness without getting overwrought, good humor without trivialization, warmth without fawning." Barrows: "To my ear, Bilas ranks by himself as the gold standard in college basketball commentary, and Gminski shares the top of the next tier with a handful of others." To "parse what distinguishes their work, you have to analyze why so many of their peers get it wrong, what it is about them that bugs us." Barrows: "Even murkier: Why do we like hanging out with certain people and not with others? That’s our relationship with basketball commentators: we’re hanging out" (CHARLOTTE MAGAZINE, 3/ '12 issue).
EXPANDING ROLE: The BOSTON GLOBE's Finn noted Dale Arnold's contract at WEEI expired Wednesday, though he will "remain at WEEI in a slightly expanded role." Under his new deal -- for which terms "have not been confirmed -- he will add some Saturday duties to his current weekend role as the host of the morning 'Sports Sunday' program." Arnold will also be the "primary fill-in for morning drive hosts John Dennis and Gerry Callahan and afternoon drive personalities Glenn Ordway and Michael Holley." Finn noted after leaving NESN in '07, Arnold returned in September as the studio host for Bruins telecasts, which "will remain his primary job" (BOSTON.com, 2/29).
NOTES: CBS announced that James Brown has been named Special Correspondent for CBS News. Brown will begin his CBS News assignment on Friday and will continue in his current role as host of "The NFL Today" (CBS)....Former U.S. men's national soccer team G Kasey Keller will join ESPN as an analyst. Keller, who retired last year from MLS, will serve primarily as a studio analyst for select MLS and U.S. men's national team matches, and will be part of ESPN's presentation of the UEFA European Football Championship from June 8-July 1 (ESPN).
