For a reason.
But Comcast is watching every penny these days and high compensation, even to a star talent like Papa, is suddenly not in the books, so to speak. Gone are the days, from Comcast's position, of paying premium coin for the Bay Area's sporting broadcast elite. And Papa is the latest, it appears, to be a victim of more financial belt-tightening.
According to a few of my sources, Comcast was hesitant to offer Papa a base salary for around 100-120 Giants games. A salary that was a high, six figure deal. Not a per-game arrangement that others receive, but an overall financial package, a deal that Papa has enjoyed in the past and made him the highest-paid personality on the channel.
In essence, Comcast wanted Papa to work a more thrifty, per-game, arrangement. To which Papa said, no deal.
Comcast has replaced Papa on the Giants' shows with an emerging presence on their platform, Laura Britt, a woman, (which isn't such a bad deal these days in a PC world), and significantly cheaper than Papa.
Nobody is talkinhg, including Comcast. Papa, even on his KNBR show, is mum's the word, but the situation is all about the money, it usually is.
Comcast Giants revenue is significantly down, quite a bit, and it began in 2019 when the team struggled and has continued the past couple of years with Covid-19-related economic purgatory. That certainly dictated the bottom line in its local sports coverage and high salaries, like Papa's, are no longer the norm. Could this be a trend? For now, yes.
Looks as if Britt will be a permanent hire the rest of the Giants season.
Britt is on for the year. No ifs, ands or buts.
Good riddance.
ReplyDeleteThey sure aren't cheap when it comes to charging you up the ass for your internet and cable TV.
ReplyDeleteBritt is undeniably cheaper than Papa and MORE LIKABLE -- absent the continuous puns and arrogant attitude of Papa. She probably also knows as much about baseball as Papa, who seems to be a poser on Giants shows.
ReplyDeleteArrogant little pr___. Does he really think viewers would rather watch and listen to him than Laura B? Hope COMCAST does not cave.
DeleteI agree. Laura Britt is likable and fun.
DeleteDoes this make room on Papa’s schedule to pick up another play-by-play gig? Basketball or baseball? He has said he has a lot of “overhead”.
ReplyDeleteThat's at least the fourth or fifth most punchable face on the internet.
ReplyDeleteThank god!! Must be a relief to not hear that voice!
ReplyDeleteGood for comcast....corporations like them have a monopoly and rule...
ReplyDeletePapa literally stinks to high heaven. Dump his arrogant rear end. Is there anyone that loves the sound of his own voice more? I doubt it.
ReplyDeleteKNBR needs to get rid of him on its mid-day show also. He is insufferable. Maybe that would convince him to leave the 49er's broadcasts.
ReplyDeleteI hope this is the beginning of the end for Papa. I'm tired of his arrogance. On top of that, he has way to much exposure. Giants, Niners, and Warriors. Besides, I would rather look at Laura instead. Fans tune in to listen to the guest, not the host. I'm sorry Rich, it had to be said!!!!
ReplyDeleteThat's kind of too bad about Greg Papa, but at the same time, it kind of felt like his role was diminishing on NBC Sports Bay Area anyway.
ReplyDeleteI remember at one time he was doing Giants and Warriors TV pre and postgame, called Raider games, did that Chronicle Live show which eventually became the Happy Hour show he did with Ray Ratto and Kelli Johnson, and still held down his weekday radio show on 95.7, and that was like 5-10 yrs ago. The past couple of years he was taken off Warriors TV pre and postgame, he did Giants TV pre and postgame only, and did some Niners stuff on NBC Sports Bay Area.
It probably might be a money thing, and yeah, sometimes Greg Papa can be long winded, but it will be weird not seeing him on NBC Sports Bay Area anymore, or seeing him on NBC Sports Bay Area on a semi regular basis.
I am just not a fan of Greg Papa. He really knows A LOT about sports but he has no sense of humor. It is just facts and analysis that prove again and again that no one can know the future. These idiots just spout off and guess about things but it never is right. This not only applies to Papa, but all sports people. I never watch any pre or post game anything any more. Stupid and boring. Players play, the rest just watch and criticize. Got better things to do with my time. Like read this blog.
ReplyDeleteI think Papa's high point might have been whenever it was that Al Davis speculated about making him GM -- or at least that's the way Papa describes it.
ReplyDeleteHis voice does not carry any sense of humility.
Yeah, I remember when Greg Papa mentioned that. Greg Papa did have a special relationship with Al Davis. You almost had to wonder how that would've looked like if Greg Papa would've been the Raiders GM back in those days.
DeleteAs far as Laura Britt being Greg Papa's replacement on the Giants TV pre and postgame show, she's been doing pretty well so far, even though yes, it's very early on the season.
ReplyDeleteI thought she does a good job on the Niners TV pre and postgame show, but she has shown she can do Giants TV pre and postgame when she would fill in from time to time. I will also miss her doing Niners stuff on NBC Sports Bay Area since it looks like she has been taken off Niners TV pre and postgame to do Giants TV pre and postgame. They may have big shoes to fill for Niners TV pre and postgame. They had a good mix this past Niners season with Laura Britt, Takeo Spikes, Dante Whitner, and Joe Staley. Not sure who they will replace her with on Niners TV pre and postgame. Maybe Bonta, but he's usually busy with his radio show and the Warriors TV pre and postgame show.
I've got the inside scoop: Greg was demanding two paychecks, one for himself and another for his toupee. Comcast couldn't decide which one they wanted to pay.
ReplyDeleteLaura Britt is watchable and she knows baseball. Papa is an arrogant anus.
ReplyDeleteWho cares about local pre/post game shows? Whether it's the Giants, A's, Warriors, or Sharks, it's all just state-run media, designed to pump the tires of the team they're selling and NEVER be critical or call out elephants in the room.
ReplyDeleteWhen a local team is struggling or is going through a losing streak, NBCS Bay Area personalities won't get into why the team is bad. They will waste 10 minutes remembering when they were good. Nothing by pollyannas and tire pumpers. It's a large part of why podcasts are destroying them. Fans are desperate for truth rather than having their intelligence insulted.
COMCAST is not cheap!!! Ever see their monthly fees???????
ReplyDeleteI like Laura, but she wears jeans too much. I can’t take anyone in that profession seriously if they’re wearing jeans.
ReplyDeleteGreg Papa is a pompous, smarmy, boring, uncomfortable, blubbering, blow hard. Bye!
ReplyDelete