T
HOSE SCHMUCKS that do the mass-advertising on
KCBS; the lawyers with the tacky music that tell us about their annoying family; they're beginning to make
Kars4Kids sound rather pleasurable.
*SFGate: more In and Out burger plugs than the Food Channel. Hearst needs the money, I guess.
*The
Giants not only went on the cheap with players, they low-balled
Bob Costas, who would have made a nice addition to both the TV
and radio booth. Now when
Miller, (Jon) and
Flemm (Dave) are
on assignment, you might as well be listening to
Daffy Duck.
*Susan Slusser, the alleged beat writer that covers the Giants for the Chronicle knows about the Costas story but refuses to write it because her close bud, Larry Baer, would be aghast. Don't mess with Lockstep.
*Yeah, that 9buck beer and the $50 parking is a relative bargain. Sure, and I'm George Clooney.
*The Giants used to have a ballpark that superceded their product on the field: It worked. They could round up all the dime-store guys, (plus a
Barry Bonds) and fill up the park. They can't now which is why they
HAD to get
Aaron Judge, had to. But they failed there too. Something Slusser also won't write: if they offered Judge $360M, why couldn't they just go for it all and blow him away with a "
10 and $400M" deal? Am I being unreasonable? Hell no.
Nobody goes to see the opening act for a Springsteen concert.
The Giants charge premium prices for a bunch of posers. They also have no respect for their radio product, hence, their crappy leftovers that KNBR allows to broadcast when the big boys are away.
You get what you pay for.
*Another inconvenient truth:
Duane Kuiper and
Mike Krukow don't want to retire anytime soon and who can blame 'em? They both make about a MILLION bucks. Only now Krukow only works home games (limited road games doing broadcast in SF studio) and Kuiper has a modified schedule. Which translate into the franchise having to hire mutts like
Shawn Estes and
George Kontos, who say nothing.
*YES, KQED is a gold mine of money and 28 pledge breaks every day. They seem to have a ton of cash and very little, wait, NO local programming other than Check Please.
What happened to the "Newsroom" they were planning last year? Beats me. A lone Friday night show doesn't count.
*I AM NOT KQED.
I don't do 28 pledge breaks every day.
Which is why I NEED YOUR SUPPORT.
Please go to the PayPal Donate button on the right and make a contribution to me/415 Media. I'll email you back and THANK YOU for donating.
And maybe I'll pitch in a coffee mug too.
If you want stupid lawyer commercials go to the ambulance chasing lawyer capitol of Wichita, Kansas. The TV stations there have one after the other. The top one for having a stupid commercial is this guy who calls himself "The Bull" who pontificates about his closet full of neck braces from the top of....you guessed it...a bull.
ReplyDeleteColorado is probably a close second. They have this pasty overweight white guy that calls himself "The Strong arm". His ads are on TV, Radio and billboards constantly. Then there is a father son team that is right behind him
DeleteGiants need to get Ted Robinson and FP Santangelo. That would be a dream team.
ReplyDeleteSeems like they're already grooming FP Santangelo...he's was doing some of the streaming games with Joe Ritzo. He'd be a lot better than Estes, Kontos, Lopez, Snow etc.
ReplyDeleteNot landing Judge was the best thing that could have happened to the Giants. They would have overpaid for a guy who is past his prime and taken a guy who overachieved hitting 62 home runs in a home run friendly ballpark and stuck him in a home run hostile ballpark. Sure it might have juiced ticket sales...for a while. But it would have hamstrung the Giants going forward with that ridiculous contract. You can't cheat this process. Even the Dodgers who bought a lot of their team still had home grown guys who were studs. That's how we won three world series in five years.
ReplyDeleteAgreed! I like what we have and who knows what surprises may emerge during the season? Just want to see some good baseball being played. Sound fundamentals. Always hated the "shift". Fair weather whiners, stay home!
DeleteKCBS
ReplyDeleteTHOSE SCHMUCKS that do the mass-advertising on KCBS; the lawyers with the tacky music that tell us about their annoying family; they're beginning to make Kars4Kids sound rather pleasurable.
You are 100% right Rich.
Also on the overnight shift they were doubling up on the same news stories in the same half hour...how does this happen???
What's the next step in finding the "missing DJ" JV ?
ReplyDeleteReward Money... ???
Fishy.... Scam alert.... Planned
They almost never get away with that. Having watched enough Forensic Files episodes and to paraphrase the late great George Carlin...'it never ceases to amaze me the stupidity of mankind'.
DeleteSo indeed...anything is possible, though. Just look at that Alex Murdaugh trial. Now that was a Forensic Files episode on steroids. And he thought he'd get away with it, too!! Sheez!!
Slusser is a breathless, non-questioning extension of the giants marketing arm. Angling for a job with the team?
ReplyDeleteSlusser is a total joke and she's been scamming to get a paycheck by the Comical for decades.
DeleteThe giants broadcast team is getting as old and tired as the “product” on the field and their shitty front office.
ReplyDeleteThe Saturday night 10 o clock news on KTVU reached Zero story count tonight.
ReplyDeleteFirst was a report from KTTV on snow in LA.
Then comes KCRA with more snow reports.
Then finally a report of snow in Napa.
For a big ZERO news reports.
Hello ...snow is not news.
What a waste of my time !
It's a snow job. There.
Yup, obsessed with snow
DeleteLove your columns, but FYI, Springsteen RARELY has an opening act...
ReplyDeleteKruk and Kuip, most overrated announcers in professional sports, and throw Miller in there also.
ReplyDeleteI disagree.
DeleteNo one forces anyone to watch or listen to public television and public radio pledge breaks on KQED. KQED always has those top ratings because it ( both) is the only source of well-researched, well-sourced reporting, serious journalism, and in depth examinations of global stories. Public broadcasting doesn't run advertising. It depends on public financial support. It doesn't choice news anchors for their cleavage, their outfits or their social media "influencer" status.
ReplyDeleteEstes is actually a very good analyst. Unfortunately for him, he’s honest and will criticize Giants players and Baer won’t stand for that.
ReplyDeleteI'm a suffering Detroit Tigers fan and I know the Giants passing on Judge was the right thing to do. The tigers are stuck with Miguel Cabrera's contract at millions per year. After he stopped the roids, he is has been average for years now
ReplyDeleteShawn Estes and George Kontos aren't great and could certainly use some reps. Javi Lopez and Hunter Pence are far more entertaining. That said, it's time for Kruk and Kuip to call it a day. I hear Kuiper make mistakes nearly every broadcast while Krukow has the same tired cliches and neither generally sound interested in calling the game. They had their day, no doubt, but it's time to move on.
ReplyDeleteI agree wholeheartedly about Kruk & Kuip. I’m a lifelong Giants fan and I have nothing but respect for the duo. They were there when the Giants were bottom dwellers and they were there when the Giants ruled the baseball world. For me, the 2010, 2012, and 2014 seasons were as much about listening to Kruk & Kuip broadcast games and do their knbr call in shows, as they were about the World Series championships.
DeleteBut as 3:42 said, it’s time for the Giants to bring in some new blood. They both have health issues which they acknowledge inhibits their ability to travel with the team. It's also sad to hear their cognitive decline, which has become more and more apparent.
They had an amazing run and earned three rings, but now it's time to pass the torch. I really like Hunter Pence behind the mic as kuip’s replacement. I'm not sure who’d be a good play by play guy but I really hope the Giants spend this season looking for someone to fill kruk’s big shoes.
I like Estes too. Good analysis from a pitcher's perspective and a lefty's thinking brain. Kontos is telegenic so he fits in the studio. I don't think I've ever seen him do play by play, though. Hunter Pence was a pleasant surprise in the booth. A keeper for sure.
DeleteKruk and Kuip are legends in my book. I enjoy Jon and Dave as well. With the exception of Fleming (who's always in demand with his network multi-sports broadcasting gigs) it seems like the rest of the crew are sort of easing into retirement and slowly but surely passing the torch as it should be. A credit to the Giants organization who treat their legends on the field and in the booth with respect like they should.
I like Bob Costas. But that's definitely not ushering in the youth movement behind the mic. Doesn't he have beef with Barry Bonds, too? The Giants always have has some of the best baseball announcers in the biz, either way.
Gonna be an interesting year with the new pitch and hitter clock in full force. No shift on the field either!!! All this could make or break MLB. Will definitely be tuning in in the beginning to see how it all plays out. (Where's Lou Pinella with a kick load of dirt to shovel on home plate when you need him?)
Lopez has gotten better and better same with Estes.
ReplyDeleteIf you don't like Duane Kuiper and Mike Krukow, you're not real Giants fan.
ReplyDeleteGiants may have lucked out not shelling out the $400M with all the regional sports networks around the country going bankrupt.
ReplyDelete