Fox’s main focus this weekend will be on baseball as the NASCAR race will be on Speed. So Fox won’t have to worry about another ratings dip for Saturday night. Instead, Fox will keep an eye on baseball. Joe Buck won’t calling any of the games. Here’s the release.
FOX SPORTS NOTES, QUOTES & ANECDOTES
MLB on FOX: Mets/Giants Square-Off in San Fran; Angels Get An Ace Back in Texas; Evan Longoria and the Rays Host the Indians
Rosenthal: Replacing Big Papi Might Be Unthinkable But It’s Not Impossible
METS GO WEST TO SAN FRAN ON THE FOX SATURDAY BASEBALL GAME OF THE WEEK After early season struggles, Carlos Beltran and the Mets travel West to face Randy Johnson and the Giants, Saturday, May 16 at 4:00 PM ET. In St. Pete, the AL champion Rays welcome Victor Martinez and the Indians. Tampa Bay looks to turn around its early season struggles behind the stellar play of 3B Evan Longoria, who leads the majors in RBI’s. Deep in the heart of Texas, AL West rivals meet up when Torii Hunter and the Angels visit the first-place Rangers. Los Angeles gets a major boost as ace John Lackey makes his first start of the season. Pregame originates live from AT&T Park with host Chris Rose. Once game action begins, Rose joins the game crew including Kenny Albert and Eric Karros as a field reporter. For instant updates during the week and games from the entire MLB on FOX crew, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/MLBONFOX.
ROSENTHAL: REPLACING BIG PAPI IS EASIER THAN YOU THINK – The Red Sox aren’t ready to give up on David Ortiz just yet but the major slump of their DH has to concern Boston. MLB on FOX’s Ken Rosenthal put himself in GM Theo Epstein’s shoes and learned replacing Big Papi in the Red Sox lineup is easier than most would think. “Ortiz, 33, has zero home runs in 116 at-bats and his .666 OPS is the 17th-lowest in the American League. If the Sox merely confined their search to left-handed hitters in the final years of contracts, they could choose from among the following: Rick Ankiel (Cardinals), Hank Blalock (Rangers), Jason Giambi (A’s), Brian Giles (Padres), Aubrey Huff (Orioles), Adam LaRoche (Pirates), Chad Tracy (Diamondbacks). Replacing Ortiz may seem unthinkable but as one Red Sox official told me, ‘If he’s not hitting in June, our record will not be very good.’”
New York Mets at San Francisco Giants, Kenny Albert & Eric Karros, Going to 66% of USA
AT&T Park – San Francisco, CA
MARKETS INCLUDE: Albuquerque, Atlanta, Baltimore, Birmingham, Buffalo, Charlotte, Chicago, Denver, Greensboro, Greenville, Hartford, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Knoxville, Las Vegas, Louisville, Memphis, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Nashville, New Orleans, New York, Norfolk, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Raleigh, Richmond, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, St. Louis, Washington, West Palm Beach
Los Angeles Angels at Texas Rangers, Josh Lewin & Mark Grace, Going to 18% of USA
Rangers Ballpark – Arlington, TX
MARKETS INCLUDE: Austin, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Oklahoma City, San Antonio, Seattle, Tulsa
Cleveland Indians at Tampa Bay Rays, Dick Stockton, Tim McCarver & Ken Rosenthal, Going to 15% of USA
Tropicana Field – St. Petersburg, FL
MARKETS INCLUDE: Boston, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Detroit, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Orlando, Providence, Tampa
MLB ON FOX LEAD ANALYST TIM MCCARVER HAS THE ANSWERS – In his 50 years of Major League Baseball experience, Tim McCarver doesn’t get a chance to record very many “firsts” anymore but this Thursday he adds something else to his remarkable resume. For the first time in his illustrious broadcasting career, McCarver will share his insights during a LIVE Interactive Q&A hosted by FOXSports.com beginning Thursday, May 14 @ 1:00 PM ET. Fans can submit their questions prior to the chat or by joining the McCarver LIVE tomorrow at 1:00 PM ET for an hour-long session.
Click here to submit your questions: http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/9556506/Chat-with-Tim-McCarver-on-Thursday
Here are the games ESPN will cover over the next few days.
Sunday Night Baseball (May 17)
New York Mets at San Francisco at 8 p.m. ET
(ESPN, ESPN HD, ESPN Radio, ESPN360.com)
Commentators: Jon Miller, Joe Morgan, Steve PhillipsMonday Night Baseball (May 18)
Minnesota* at New York Yankees at 7 p.m.
(ESPN, ESPN HD, ESPN360.com) *available locally in Minnesota
Commentators: Chris Berman, Orel HershiserWednesday Night Baseball (May 20)
Chicago at St. Louis at 8 p.m.
(ESPN, ESPN HD, ESPN360.com)
Commentators: Dave O’Brien, Rick Sutcliffe
I’ll have another press release post coming up.
