People & Personalities: McCarver Unsure About Return To FS Midwest
In St. Louis, Dan Caesar reports Tim McCarver "isn't sure if he'd return" to FS Midwest's Cardinals booth in '19 if he is so asked. McCarver's contract expired after this season, which saw him call 30 games. He will turn 77 on Tuesday and lives in Florida, meaning "every Cards game he broadcasts is a road contest." He said that if he is "invited back, his health will be a factor in determining if he will do it again." The '18 season was McCarver's fifth with the Cardinals after a "record-shattering 34-year run as an analyst at the network level" (STLTODAY.com, 10/12).
BRUCE ALMIGHTY: SI.com's Jacob Feldman noted CBS' Bruce Arians is the "only former coach regularly calling" NFL games this season, and what makes Arians "valuable to CBS is his wealth of experience." This is Arians' first season in the booth, and he needs to "work on projecting his voice and his enthusiasm, feedback he has also received in CBS' internal weekly progress reports." Arians works alongside Greg Gumbel and Trent Green, making them the "only three-man booth on air each Sunday." Based on "how they've done so far, that shouldn't be the case" (SI.com, 10/11).
THE LIFE OF BRIAN: In Boston, James Sullivan notes former NBAer Brian Scalabrine has "developed a post-career cult following as a rising TV star" on NBC Sports Boston, and he is being "groomed" as the successor to longtime Celtics analyst Tommy Heinsohn. Celtics play-by-play announcer Mike Gorman said Scalabrine is a "rare combination of being a natural and also a student." Heinsohn noted that a commentator should "make the game fun for casual fans as well as diehards," and "shouldn't try to be the 'Albert Einstein of basketball.'" He added that Scalabrine is "learning that lesson" (GLOBE MAGAZINE, 10/14 issue).
NOTES: In N.Y., Andrew Marchand cited sources as saying ESPN is hiring Yahoo Sports' Jeff Passan with the "plan for him to be its top breaking-news insider" on MLB. Passan is "not expected to be on game broadcasts" initially, and will begin "after the new year" (NYPOST.com, 10/11). FS Sun Rays reporter Michelle Margaux is leaving after one season and "heading to Houston" to become the in-game Rockets reporter for AT&T SportsNet Southwest. Margaux will "also have some hosting duties and work some Astros games as well." Her replacement at FS Sun will be the "fifth reporter on Rays broadcasts over the last six seasons" (TAMPABAY.com, 10/10).