Ok, I posted the coverage plans for the National League Championship Series on TBS. I might as well do so for the American League Championship Series on Fox.
It all begins tomorrow night. Joe Buck will call play-by-play of the series that will have the Detroit Tigers playing the Texas Rangers. He’ll be joined by former Red Sox manager Terry Francona for the first two games. Tim McCarver is undergoing a medical procedure and rejoin Joe for Game 3 in Detroit for the rest of the series. Ken Rosenthal and his bowties-for-a-cause will be on the field for various reports.
Chris Rose will be the pregame host and he’ll be joined by MLB on Fox analyst Eric Karros and Chicago White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski.
We have the Fox details and schedule for the ALCS.
FOX SPORTS NOTES, QUOTES & ANECDOTES
ALCS Begins Saturday Night on FOX
Francona & Buck in Booth for Games 1 & 2; Pierzynski Joins Pregame2011 AMERICAN LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES ON FOX BROADCAST SCHEDULE
ALCS Broadcasters: Play-by-Play – Joe Buck, Analyst – Terry Francona
Analyst – Tim McCarver (Games 3 – duration)
Field Reporter – Ken Rosenthal
Pregame Show: Host – Chris Rose, Analysts – Eric Karros, AJ Pierzynski
Schedule Subject to Change/All Times EasternSaturday, Oct. 8 — Game 1: Detroit at Texas, 7:30 PM ET
Sunday, Oct. 9 — Game 2: Detroit at Texas, 7:00 PM ET
Tuesday, Oct. 11 — Game 3: Texas at Detroit, 7:30 PM ET
Wednesday, Oct. 12 — Game 4: Texas at Detroit, 4:00 PM ET
*Thursday, Oct. 13 — Game 5: Texas at Detroit, 4:00 PM ET
*Saturday, Oct. 15 — Game 6: Detroit at Texas, 7:30 PM ET
*Sunday, Oct. 16 — Game 7: Detroit at Texas, 8:00 PM ET*If Necessary
FOX Sports’ coverage of Major League Baseball’s American League Championship Series begins this Saturday, Oct. 8 (7:30 PM ET) with the Texas Rangers hosting the Detroit Tigers.
FRANCONA PINCH HITS FOR McCARVER; CALLS ALCS GAMES 1 & 2 WITH BUCK – MLB ON FOX lead analyst Tim McCarver will be unable to work ALCS Games 1 and 2 this weekend due what is expected to be a short-term medical issue. McCarver is having a minor heart-related procedure performed late this week and is expected to return to the booth in time for ALCS Game 3 next Tuesday. Former Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona, who guided that team to World Championships in 2004 and 2007, will take McCarver’s place alongside MLB on FOX lead play-by play announcer Joe Buck.
NO CLIFF LEE = BIG PAYOFF FOR RANGERS WITH BELTRE – “Thank you, Cliff Lee, for signing somewhere else.” That is the thought FOX Sports National MLB Writer Jon Paul Morosi says crossed the minds of Rangers fans after the team clinched its second straight American League Championship Series berth. “After Lee chose Philadelphia over Texas and New York last December, the Rangers found themselves with some leftover cash. They used $80 million of it to sign Adrian Beltre to a five-year contract. Their payoff came Tuesday afternoon, in one of the greatest home-run hitting feats in postseason history,” writes Morosi. “Beltre would be firmly in the AL MVP discussion if he hadn’t missed 37 games in July and August because of a strained left hamstring. Despite his stay on the disabled list, Beltre finished among the league’s top 10 in OPS, home runs, and slugging percentage. And while Lee’s left arm can’t save runs for Texas anymore, Beltre’s Gold Glove defense at third base can. Not to be overlooked: The arrivals of Beltre and Mike Napoli shifted the role of perennial All-Star and captain Michael Young, who went from third baseman to a hybrid DH/utility role. The change could have torpedoed the team’s chemistry. It didn’t. Mutual respect and professionalism made it work. And now an entire organization can sip champagne and celebrate that Adrian Beltre signed a contract where Cliff Lee would not.
To read Morosi’s full analysis, visit: http://on-msn.com/rnvEih
That’s it.
