Fang's Bites

You Need Linkage On That Wall….

Yes you do. It’s overdue. I thought being on unemployment would give me more time for doing the site. Instead, I have less. I don’t know how that’s happened.

Anyway, here are some links for you.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand has soon-to-be NBC’s Michelle Beadle saying even she’s sick of the coverage on where she’s going next.

Michael takes a look at the Weekend TV ratings.

Nicole Auerbach of USA Today says Laurie Fine, wife of ex-Syracuse assistant basketball coach Bernie Fine, has officially filed her libel lawsuit against ESPN.

At Sports Business Journal, John Ourand and Michael Smith report that the Southeastern Conference, in the midst of restructuring its media rights deal with CBS and ESPN, could be resurrecting its plans to start an SEC Channel.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News goes over the “trade” between TBS and MLB Network giving the young network its first postseason action this season.

Tim Baysinger of Broadcasting & Cable says ESPN 3D will air the last five days of Wimbledon later this summer.

David Mercer of the Associated Press says citing low ratings, the Big Ten Network will drop academic non-sports programming in order to air higher rated sports.

Anthony Crupi of Adweek talks about GM pulling out of advertising in Super Bowl XLVII.

Brian Clapp at Sports TV Jobs tells aspiring sports TV anchors how to thrive in local markets despite the shrinking amount of time in newscasts.

Dan Fogarty from SportsGrid has video of TNT’s Charles Barkley admitting to America that he waxes his eyebrows.

Eric Goldschein of SportsGrid has this funny video of Saturday Night Live’s Jay Pharoah getting Stephen A. “A is for Acrimonious” Smith down pat.

From the New Haven Register, David Borges talks with long-time Red Sox radio voice and Connecticut native Joe Castiglione about his career and his new book.

Ken Schott at the Schenectady Gazette talks about CBS Sports sublicensing some college basketball games from ESPN.

Pete Dougherty in the Albany Times Union has the French Open TV schedule.

Pete says the overnight ratings for the Preakness Stakes dropped double digits from last year.

Jonathan Tannenwald of Philly.com says NBC Sports Network will tap some familiar names to call MLS action this weekend.

David Zurawik of the Baltimore Sun says NBC got the job done in its Preakness Stakes production.

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog says Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic is on the RGIII train.

The increasingly bitter Thomas Boswell of the WaPo feels MASN should pony up for the Washington Nationals media rights.

Jim Williams at the Washington Examiner writes that outgoing NFL Network insider Jason La Canfora is looking forward to working and writing for CBS.

Eric Deggans of the Tampa Bay Times says two writers from the newspaper including sports media writer Tom Jones will co-host a new morning show for the local sports radio station. Jones will now stop covering sports radio to avoid a conflict of interest.

Iliana Limón Romero of the Orlando Sentinel says the Big East is hopeful of finding a suitable TV suitor for the league.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle has some sports media observations.

Mel Bracht at The Oklahoman writes that TNT’s Charles Barkley is looking forward to visiting Oklahoma City for the NBA Western Conference Finals.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes that the Reds gave local radio station WLW a big ratings win last month.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel looks at the local weekend ratings.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says a technical glitch forced Cardinals fans to watch Fox Sports San Diego’s feed of last night’s Redbirds-Padres game and listen to Dick Enberg which is not a bad thing at all.

Bryce Miller of the Des Moines Reigster says Iowan and Olympics hurdler Lolo Jones is on a media blitz.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News says the Dodgers will honor long-time Spanish radio voice Jaime Jarrin next month.

Timothy Burke at Deadspin has video of NBC Sports Network’s Doc Emrick ripping diving in soccer.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media says ratings for the NHL Conference Finals on the NBC Sports Group are down.

Matt Yoder of Awful Announcing has some of Pam Ward’s “Greatest” hits over her years calling college football.

That will do it for now.

Wringing Out Some Friday Megalinks

Let’s do your media megalinks since last week you did not get any.

Hard to believe that college baseball, college lacrosse and NASCAR seasons are starting up, but they are and they’re included in the Weekend Viewing Picks along with the regular Golf, NBA, NHL, Skiing, Soccer, Tennis and Entertainment recommendations.

To your links now.

National

Michael Hiestand of USA Today says Jeremy Lin will make his nationwide broadcast network debut this weekend.

Tim Baysinger from Broadcasting & Cable notes that Floyd Mayweather’s next pay per view fight has been set by HBO for the spring.

Mike Reynolds at Multichannel News writes that Jeremy Lin continues to drive the MSG Network ratings engine.

Mike Shields of Adweek looks at CBS/Turner Sports’ plans to charge to view the NCAA Tournament online.

Ted Johnson of Variety talks with Ken Solomon of Tennis Channel on his ongoing battle to get a better footing with Comcast.

Michael Bradley at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center says the Jeremy Lin media coverage is over the top.

Sports Media Watch notes the increased viewership for the NHL on NBC Sports Network.

SMW says Pardon the Interruption’s Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon have lent their voices to a Disney XD cartoon series.

Andy Hall at ESPN Front Row PR blog celebrates the 5th anniversary of NASCAR’s return to the network.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell speaks with Jeremy Lin’s agent.

Andrew Bucholtz writing his first article for Awful Announcing looks at the reaction to Jeremy Lin in Canada.

Mat Yoder at AA says the ratings for last weekend’s Pebble Beach National Pro-Am show fans are still interested in Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.

Joe Favorito explores the steady growth of college lacrosse.

Mark J. Miller of Brandchannel says NASCAR fans don’t like it when drivers juggle sponsor logos throughout the Sprint Cup season.

The Big Lead has ESPN’s Erin Andrews out and about during New York’s Fashion Week.

Chris Chase at Yahoo’s Shutdown Corner notes that ESPN has been coaching Jon Gruden to use his words judiciously.

Harrison Mooney of Yahoo’s Puck Daddy says Jeremy Lin’s drawing power might indirectly benefit the New York Rangers, Islanders, Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils which have been missing from Time Warner Cable systems in addition to the Knicks.

David B. Wilkerson at MarketWatch wonders if the MSG/Time Warner Cable feud will eventually push sports into a premium tier.

East and Mid-Atlantic

The Boston Globe’s Chad Finn gets some advice for new NESN Red Sox field reporter Jenny Dell from MSG’s Tina Cervasio.

At SB Nation Boston, Bruce Allen of Boston Sports Media Watch pays tribute to Boston Globe columnist Bob Ryan who announced he’s retiring after the London Olympics.

Surviving Grady has a podcast with Jen Royle.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times looks at the new charge for viewing the NCAA Tournament online.

Richard writes about the increased ratings for Knicks games since Jeremy Lin arrived on the scene.

Phil Mushnick at the New York Post is in rare form today even for him.

Brett Cyrgalis of the Post has five questions for CBS college basketball analyst Bill Raftery.

The Post’s David Seifman reports that the New York City Council is pressuring MSG Network and Time Warner Cable to work out a deal.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News writes that ESPN bumped tonight’s Hornets-Knicks game not realizing it would be another opportunity to showcase Jeremy Lin.

Jerry Barmash from Fishbowl NY has reaction from various NYC sports anchors to the death of former Mets catcher Gary Carter.

Mike Silva at the Sports Media Watchdog feels hockey coverage in New York is woefully inadequate.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union writes that a local sports TV reporter received a New York Emmy nomination.

Pete lists his top studio analysts.

DCRTV’s Dave Hughes has the latest in Baltimore-Washington DC sports media news in Press Box.

Dan Steinberg at the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog has a clip of Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon as cartoon characters.

Jim Williams at the Washington Examiner says talks with sports business writer Evan Weiner about the NFL’s antiquated blackout rules.

South

Barry Jackson at the Miami Herald has some thoughts on Shaquille O’Neal’s rookie season at TNT and ESPN’s decision to remove Ron Jaworski from Monday Night Football.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says the Astros plan to bring in former players to their radio booth to celebrate the team’s 50th season.

Mel Bracht at the Daily Oklahoman notes the first network appearance of Jeremy Lin is this Sunday.

Midwest

The Detroit Free Press notes that all of the Tigers games will be on TV this season.

Bob Wolfey of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Dick Enberg told a captive audience at Marquette University about the art of the pause and when to use it in broadcasting.

Ed Sherman at Crain’s Chicago Business has his weekly winners and losers in sports business and media.

To the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin where Paul Christian writes that Fox Sports North will be all over the Minnesota Twins this season.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Cardinals have mostly put the kybosh on late afternoon games at Busch Stadium this season.

Dan says a local sports radio host is recovering after undergoing heart bypass surgery.

West

Jay Posner at the San Diego Union-Tribune writes that the new Fox Sports San Diego is set to launch next month.

Jay writes the San Diego Padres stand to double their rights fees from Fox as compared to Cox a year ago.

John Maffei at the North County Times says the official announcement between Fox Sports San Diego carrying the Padres is due any time now.

At the Ventura County Star, Jim Carlisle says NBC and the NHL have become very good partners.

Jim feels ESPN should not have jettisoned Ron Jaworski from Monday Night Football.

Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times notes that ESPN college football analyst Ed Cunningham is up for a Best Documentary Oscar.

Bill Shakin of the Times says Frank McCourt’s legal problems are holding up Fox’s announcement with the Padres.

Tom Hoffarth from the Los Angeles Daily News recaps a lecture from three noted network broadcasters discussing TV coverage of the Olympics.

And that’s going to conclude the megalinks for today.

Dick Enberg To Be Honored By International Tennis Hall of Fame

Coming up in September, legendary announcer Dick Enberg will receive the Eugene L. Scott Award by the International Tennis Hall of Fame. As this is Enberg’s last year for calling both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, Enberg will be honored for his contributions to tennis and his suport for the game. Enberg began calling tennis in 1980 and has continuously called Grand Slam events since then. He called his last Wimbledon for ESPN2 in June and will call his final U.S. Open for CBS in September. After this year, Dick will focus on calling the San Diego Padres as the team moves to Fox Sports West in 2012.

We have the press release from the International Tennis Hall of Fame and CBS Sports.

Sportscaster Dick Enberg to be honored for commitment to tennis at The Legends Ball

Enberg, a 13-time Emmy award winning broadcaster, will be presented with the Eugene L. Scott Award. The award will be presented at The Legends Ball, a gala social event during the US Open for the benefit of the International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum.

NEWPORT, R.I. — On Friday, September 9, the International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum will gather hundreds of tennis enthusiasts and industry leaders at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City for The Legends Ball, an annual social event that celebrates tennis and honors some of the sport’s greatest champions and contributors. In addition to paying tribute to the International Tennis Hall of Fame Class of 2011 inductees – Andre Agassi and Peachy Kellmeyer, who received the highest honor in the game on July 9 – the event will salute a great contributor and long time supporter of tennis, Dick Enberg.

Enberg will be presented with Eugene L. Scott Award which honors an individual who embodies Scott’s commitment to communicating honestly and critically about the game, and who has had a significant impact on the tennis world. Scott founded Tennis Week magazine and wrote the most widely read and well-respected column about the sport, “Vantage Point” until his death in 2005.  Previous recipients of the award have been: John McEnroe (2006); Andre Agassi (2007); Billie Jean King (2008); Arthur Ashe and his wife Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe (2009); and Martina Navratilova (2010).

“The International Tennis Hall of Fame’s Legends Ball is an opportunity to pay tribute to the outstanding contributors to the sport of tennis who have played an instrumental role in its growth, and Dick Enberg is at the very top of that list. We are pleased to be able to say thank you at this very special event, and invite the tennis community to join us in doing so,” said Christopher E. Clouser, chairman of the International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum.

Thirteen-time Emmy award winning sportscaster Dick Enberg is widely regarded as one of the most versatile, engaging sportscasters on the national level. In his 50-year career, Enberg has called sports ranging from all four Grand Slam tennis tournaments to NCAA basketball, NBA, NFL, MLB and PGA TOUR events. Enberg’s poignant delivery has brought a vivid impression of the energy and emotion of some of the biggest events in sports from courts, fields, and courses around the world to living rooms across the nation. He has been the voice of four Summer Olympics, Super Bowls, The Masters, The PGA Championship, the Breeders Cup and the four tennis Grand Slams— the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open. In addition to his Emmy awards, Enberg has been named National Sportscaster of the Year nine times by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, and was inducted to that organization’s Hall of Fame. He was also recognized as Sportscaster of the Year five times by the American Sportscasters Association. He is one of just four sportscasters to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 1989, Enberg was named Tennis Play-by-Play Man of the Year by Tennis Magazine. Enberg is retiring from the Grand Slam tournaments this year, after more than two decades of broadcasting the world’s most exciting tennis events. He will be focusing his energy on the San Diego Padres MLB team, where he is the play-by-play announcer. In September, Enberg will deliver his final US Open broadcast on CBS.

Former WTA Tour Pro and Emmy award winning broadcaster Mary Carillo will serve as master of ceremonies for The Legends Ball. A legendary line-up of tennis greats will be in attendance, including current players, Hall of Famers, officials from the ATP World Tour, WTA, ITF and Grand Slam tournaments and tennis fans from around the world. In celebration of their Hall of Fame induction, which occurred in July, speaking programs and video presentations will pay tribute to the one-and-only Andre Agassi, former world No. 1 and eight-time grand slam tournament champion, and Peachy Kellmeyer, an influential tennis executive whose vision, dedication and hard work has been a driving force behind the growth of women’s pro tennis since the 1970s. The evening will also feature a very special tribute presentation honoring the remarkable life and career of Hall of Famer and humanitarian Arthur Ashe, in recognition of the 25^th anniversary of his Hall of Fame induction.

Always a highlight of the evening, The Legends Ball auction will feature an array of exclusive experiences and luxury items that will excite tennis fans and non-tennis fans alike. In the past, auction items have included hit sessions with tennis luminaries Pete Sampras, Jim Courier and Monica Seles; ticket and travel packages to Grand Slam events; golf at legendary courses like Winged Foot; autographed tennis memorabilia from Roger Federer and Andre Agassi; exotic vacation packages; and golf, baseball, hockey, basketball and football tickets and memorabilia.

Proceeds of The Legends Ball, which has been held annually since 1980, will benefit the International Tennis Hall of Fame & Museum and support the mission of preserving the history of the game, honoring the legends and inspiring the future.

That is all.

Quick Saturday Links

I keep getting interrupted at work. I wrote a post earlier today on Brent Musburger’s night in Las Vegas, but I kept being recruited to the leave the office and something that should have taken 20 minutes to write ended up being three hours. And now I’m trying to do some linkage and keep getting interrupted as well. Who said Saturday’s are easy? Who said weekends are for relaxing? Who said you’re not supposed to work on weekends?

Anyway, you don’t want to read my complaints. Let’s do some linkage.

This won’t be as big as the recent news of the deaths in Norway or the just reported death of Amy Winehouse, but legendary boxing promoter Butch Lewis passed away today at the age of 65. He was a prolific promoter of fights in the 1980′s and had his signature tux with no shirt look. Lewis also produced movies and TV shows. He will be missed.

Michael Hiestand and Mike McCarthy of USA Today debate whether US coverage of global sporting events should be neutral or American-centric.

Rebeca Ford of the Hollywood Reporter says comedian Artie Lange is getting closer to co-hosting a Fox Sports Radio show with fellow comic Nick DiPaolo.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News says the NBA released its national TV schedules this week to a lot of fanfare, but little buzz.

Andy Lewis at the Hollywood Reporter reports that Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt has been ordered to negotiate a new bankrupcty loan with MLB after a judge ruled voided one negotiated with another party.

To Sports Grid where Dan Fogarty notes that Jim Rome decided to dredge up some old street slang that people thought was dead for several years.

Glen Davis at SportsGrid says Fox Sports Detroit MLB analyst Rod Allen tried to make a joke about the Tigers’ large Latino contingent, but it came out very wrong.

James Jahnke of the Detroit Free Press had Allen trying to clarify that remark.

Cam Martin of SportsNewser writes that legendary announcer Dick Enberg will be honored by the Rhode Island-based International Tennis Hall of Fame for 50 years in broadcasting.

Newsday’s Neil Best looks at NBC/Versus getting into summer horse racing at Saratoga starting today.

Neil says athletes will miss getting their 15 minutes on HBO’s Entourage as the last season airs starting tomorrow.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes that Rupert Murdoch’s UK newspapers could lose special access to the London 2012 Olympics due to the News of the World phone hacking scandal.

To Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette who reports that Versus may be interested in airing college hockey games to supplement its NHL schedule.

Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review notes that Fox has selected the Pirates for its Saturday Baseball package for the first time since last decade.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner writes that MASN gives Mid-Atlantic baseball fans a show to watch.

Jeff Weiner in the Orlando Sentinel says ESPN is pulling out its ESPN the Weekend event out of Walt Disney World.

Jon Solomon of the Birmingham (AL) News writes that the SEC Media Days event has outgrown Birmingham.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News looks at some of the developments that occurred in sports media over the week.

Mac Engel of the Fort Worth Star Telegram notes that TCU is now keeping a watchful eye the Longhorn Network.

Eric Bailey of the Tulsa World says the Tulsa Golden Hurricanes are looking forward to increased TV exposure this football season.

To the St. Louis Post-Dispatch where Dan Caesar writes that you need a scorecard to keep up with the Cardinals’ TV and radio broadcast teams.

The Salt Lake Tribune reports a local TV station will air selected University of Utah football games starting this season.

Richard Ruelas of the Arizona Republic chronicles how the Fiesta Bowl made it to TV.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog looks at the announcers CTV could employ for the London 2012 Olympics.

The CSM also looks back at the week in Canadian sports media.

Sports Media Watch says Fox got off to a fast start of the second half of the MLB season last Saturday.

The Business Insider Sports Page lists the 10 worst sportscasters on the planet.

Brady Green at Awful Announcing has audio of Yankees voice John Sterling singing crazily about “The Grandy Man.”

That’s going to do it for today. Lots of links for a Saturday.

Some Thursday Linkage

Being out of the office certainly kills any momentum for blogging and I’ve been out for most of the morning and trying to catch up ever since. Let’s get some linkage in as tonight will be busy for me as I do the Friday morning features the night before.

The big story for today, Hall of Fame hockey voice Mike “Doc” Emrick announcing he’s leaving the New Jersey Devils and focusing on calling national NHL games for NBC/Versus. We have several links.

First, Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo’s Puck Daddy gives his thoughts on Doc’s departure from the Devils.

Joe Yerdon of Pro Hockey Talk writes that Doc will work full-time for NBC/Versus in hopes of cutting down his travel schedule.

Ken Schott of the Schenectady Gazette says Doc is a true friend of hockey.

Pete Dougherty from the Albany Times Union notes that NBC/Versus now has two full-time play-by-play announcers for the NHL.

On to other links. Stuart Levine of Variety speaks with ESPN Executive Vice President of Content John Skipper who says the Alleged Worldwide Leader is in a buying mode for events.

To Ben Kercheval of College Football Talk who says ESPN’s Longhorn Network may have committed an NCAA violation.

In the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Dave Kindred says sports newsrooms are usually the last to break down racial and gender barriers.

Marcus Vanderberg says the NBA 2K12 video game has gone massively retro for its covers.

Dave Levy of SportsGrid says an academic study of bloggers vs. sports journalism was published with plenty of hidden agendas.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell notes that Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick has scored another endorsement deal.

From ESPN Front Row, Taylor Henriques looks at the very first intern hired at ESPN who’s now working in the network’s public relations department.

Also at Front Row, Bill Hofheimer goes behind-the-scenes at the shoot for this season’s Monday Night Football open once again featuring Hank Williams, Jr.

At Deadspin, Tommy Craggs got his hands on the ESPN Editorial and Advertising Guidelines. Quite interesting.

To Tech Crunch and Leena Rao who tells us that there’s a new mobile app that allows anyone to become a sports reporter.

Over to the Boston Globe and character assassin Dan Shaughnessy who thinks after five years, Twitter is just a fad (scroll down to the paragraph starting with “Pardon me if I sound like Larry King ….”). Shaughnessy or as all of New England calls him, “CHB” is a hack. Thanks to Tony Manfred of the Business Insider Sports Page for the link.

To Richard Sandomir of the New York Times who writes that the Open Championship’s ratings fell for the third year in a row.

Richard goes over the ESPN Ombudsman’s critique of how ESPN handled the Bruce Feldman affair.

Ken McMillan from the Middletown (NY) Times Herald-Record says NHL fans will have to wait until next month to find out the national TV schedules.

At the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog, Dan Steinberg notes that ESPN’s Michael Wilbon has fired back at Wizards star JaVale McGee in round 2 of their Twitter fashion feud.

The Houston Chronicle reports that the planned high school football broadcasts on Longhorn Network are off for now pending talks with the NCAA and the Big 12 Conference.

Mac Engel of the Fort Worth Star Telegram suggests that Texas A&M launch its own sports channel instead of whine about the Longhorn Network.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business says there’s no need to cancel the NFL Hall of Fame Game just yet.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News is angry at San Diego Padres fans who want Dick Enberg out from calling their games because he’s not a homer.

Jeff Blair of the Toronto Globe and Mail writes that Dave Van Horne may be known as the voice of the Florida Marlins, but he was Voice of the Montreal Expos long before that. Dave is going to be inducted into the Broadcasters Wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame this weekend.

Ed Tait of the Winnipeg Free Press reports that TSN has won the rights to air the Jets games this coming season. Thanks to Steve Lepore at Puck The Media for the link.

The Canadian Sports Media Blog notes that TSN will air coverage of the Rugby World Cup later this year.

Sports Media Watch has some ratings news and notes.

Awful Announcing continues its Joe Morgan Memorial Tournament and today’s matchup is Colin Cowherd vs. Skip Bayless. Oh that’s a tough one.

I’ll end it there.

ESPN2′s Brief History With Wimbledon

ESPN2 began airing Wimbledon in 2003 and starting in 2012, will be the exclusive US television rightsholder taking the entire tournament after sharing the matches with NBC. Here’s a brief timeline of its history with the tournament.

2003 — Begins airing coverage of Wimbledon.

2004 — Hires Dick Enberg to call matches ending a four year absence from SW19 after leaving NBC in 2000.

2008 — Sublicenses cable rights to Tennis Channel so it can air matches in primetime.

2011 — Dick Enberg announces this year will be his last Wimbledon. ESPN 3D begins airing Wimbledon. ESPN also announces it will take over the rights for the entire tournament starting in 2012.

NBC’s 43 Year History With Wimbledon

The following is a brief timeline featuring highlights of NBC’s history of covering The Championpships, Wimbledon.

1969 — NBC gains the rights to air The Championships, Wimbledon.

1979 — Airs the first “Breakfast at Wimbledon”, the men’s final live between Bjorn Borg and Roscoe Tanner. All women’s and men’s final had been aired on tape delay. It also marks the first year for Dick Enberg, an association of 28 years that ends with this year’s tournament on ESPN2.

1980 — Airs the Bjorn Borg-John McEnroe final that lasts five sets and 4th set tiebreaker that ends 18-16 in McEnroe’s favor.

1982 — Dick Enberg begins calling matches for NBC with Bud Collins.

1991 — NBC hires Jimmy Connors and Chris Evert to join their coverage.

1996 — NBC hires John McEnroe as its main tennis analyst.

1999 — Dick Enberg calls his final Wimbledon for NBC.

2000 — Ted Robinson is hired to replace Dick Enberg to call the French Open and Wimbledon.

2003 — Mary Carillo joins NBC Sports as a co-analyst with McEnroe.

2008 — Draws its highest ratings since 2000 for the epic Rafael Nadal-Roger Federer five set final.

2011 — NBC’s final Breakfasts at Wimbledon are Maria Sharapova vs. Petra Kvitova and Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic as ESPN wrests the rights away in negotiations.

ESPN2′s Wimbledon Schedule For The Rest Of This Week

If you’re a tennis fan, then you know that ESPN2′s Wimbledon schedule has to air around NBC’s tape delayed shenanigans this week. ESPN2 begins its coverage at 7 a.m. through Friday, then stop at 10 a.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday, then resumes at 1 p.m. and then on Thursday and Friday, ESPN2 will be on at 7 a.m., but may not get to air live tennis depending on which women’s and men’s semifinal NBC chooses to air. So the semifinals may be all-delayed on Thursday and Friday which angers fans to no end.

To help temper the anger, ESPN2 will continue to air Dick Enberg’s Wimbledon Reflections as he ends his 28th and final Fortnight at SW19 in London. These will air throughout the Wimbledon coverage.

Here’s the schedule.

Wimbledon Continues on ESPN2 HD, ESPN3.com & ESPN 3D; “Enberg’s Reflections” of 28 Fortnights

The action continues for a second week at The Championships, Wimbledon, with matches on ESPN2 and ESPN3.com, capped by a Ladies’ semifinal and a Gentlemen’s semifinal Thursday, June 30, and Friday, July 1, respectively.  The finals will be available on ESPN3.com as of late Sunday, July 3, at midnight and ESPN 3D will show its first tennis starting Friday, July 1, with replays of the Gentlemen’s semifinals; on Monday, July 4, the network will show both finals.

Dick Enberg

Legendary sportscaster Dick Enberg is working his 28th and final Wimbledon, and his fondest memories of 28 fortnights are recounted in daily “Enberg’s Reflections” vignettes.

The remaining Wimbledon schedule is as follows:

Date	Time (ET)	Telecast		Network
Tues, June 28	7 – 10 a.m. 1 – 5 p.m. – * 7 a.m. – 4 p.m.	Ladies’ Quarterfinals	Live Live Live	ESPN2 ESPN2 ESPN3.com
Wed, June 29	7 – 10 a.m.	Gentlemen’s Quarterfinals	Live	ESPN2 &ESPN3.com
	1 – 5 p.m. – *		Live	ESPN2 &ESPN3.com
Thur, June 30	7 a.m. – Noon 7 a.m. – 4 p.m.	Ladies’ Semifinal	Live Live	ESPN2 ESPN3.com
	8 – 10 p.m.	Ladies’ Semifinals Highlights	Same day	ESPN2
Fri, July 1	7 a.m. – Noon 7 a.m. – 4 p.m. 8 – 11 p.m. 8 – 11 p.m. 1 – 4 a.m.	Gentlemen’s Semifinal Gentlemen’s Semifinals Highlights Gentlemen’s Semifinal #1 Gentlemen’s Semifinal #2	Live Live Same day Same day Same day	ESPN2 ESPN3.com ESPN2 ESPN 3D ESPN 3D
Sat, July 2	2 – 3 p.m	SportsCenter at Wimbledon	Same day	ESPN2
Sun, July 3	3 – 4 p.m. Midnight	SportsCenter at Wimbledon Ladies’ & Gentlemen’s Finals	Sameday Taped	ESPN2 ESPN3.com
Mon, July 4	7 – 9 a.m. – # 9 a.m. – Noon# Noon – 3 p.m.# 3 – 6 p.m. – # 6 – 8 p.m. – # 8 – 11 p.m. – #	Ladies’ Final Gentlemen’s Final Gentlemen’s Semifinal #1 Gentlemen’s Semifinal #2 Ladies’ Final Gentlemen’s Final	Taped Taped Reair Reair Reair Reair	ESPN 3D ESPN 3D ESPN 3D ESPN 3D ESPN 3D ESPN 3D

* – Alternate programming from 1 – 4 p.m. ET in Pacific Time Zone (10 a.m. – 1 p.m. PT)
# – All time slots on ESPN 3D on July 4 will expand as needed.

And we have three of Dick Enberg’s Wimbledon Reflections for you.

Very nicely done. And Dick’s a good writer to boot so these are produced very well.

Let’s Do Some Wednesday Linkage

On this rainy Wednesday in Southern New England, let me do some links. I hope the weather where you are is dry and sunny.

I’ll start today off with John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal who says Comcast may have appeared to have overbid for the Olympics, but it may pay off in the long run.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand talks with Dick Enberg who’s calling his final Wimbledon this year.

Dan Fogarty at SportsGrid has video of Dick Enberg discussing “bloody blue balls” at Wimbledon and his on-air partner, Chris Evert making the perfect response.

SportsGrid also has the HBO Real Sports segment with Tiki Barber that was quite compelling TV.

Patrick Rishe of Forbes says Mark Cuban owning the Los Angeles Dodgers needs to happen soon.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Eric Deggans from the St. Petersburg Times writes that Barber is on a media redemption tour while David Feherty is learning the ropes in another manner.

Kirk Honeycutt of Reuters reviews the ESPN Films documentary on transsexual tennis player Renee Richards. The film was shown at the Los Angeles Film Festival and will premiere on ESPN in the fall.

Lacey Rose at the Hollywood Reporter writes that HBO has assembled some All-Star production talent to develop a new drama based on the early life of Mike Tyson.

Andrea Morabito of Broadcasting & Cable says CBS Sports Network has signed a multiyear deal with the Patriot League for various sports.

Anthony Crupi of Adweek says the NFL’s TV partners are hopeful after hearing negotiations to end the league’s lockout are making substantial progress.

One thing to come out of the talks between the NFL and the Players Association is a full 16 week Thursday Night Football schedule that could begin in 2012. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk explains what that means for the players and fans.

Jeff Fedotin at the National Football Post claims this guy, Jon Gruden of ESPN’s Monday Night Football, has the potential to be this generation’s John Madden. That remains to be seen.

Eric Spanberg of the Christian Science Monitor reviews the ESPN book.

The Lost Letterman blog has video of ESPN’s Erin Andrews confronting a fan at last year’s College World Series. I like Erin’s spirit in this and the guy was being an asshole.

Congratulations to ESPN.com baseball writer Jonah Keri who will be writing the quintessential history of the Montreal Expos.

Richard Sandomir from the New York Times says there are plenty of marketing opportunities surrounding the 3,000th hit of Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter.

Jack Bell of the Times talks about legendary women’s soccer star Mia Hamm joining espnW to provide analysis on the Women’s World Cup.

At the New York Observer, Kat Stoeffel talks with ESPN Radio New York’s Jared Max about his decision to come out.

Matthew Margolis from the East Hampton (NY) Patch writes that a young actor got to do some voiceover work for ESPN’s Little League World Series coverage.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union writes that Jimmer Fredette’s YouTube channel has a big following.

Mark Wogenrich at the Allentown (PA) Morning Call explores the new deal between CBS Sports Network and the Patriot League for four sports.

Jack Bogaczyk of the Charleston (WV) Daily Mail feels it was smart of the Big East to turn down ESPN’s $1 billion offer to get a feel for the marketplace.

The Naples (FL) Daily News reports that locally, the U.S. Open scored well in the ratings.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel notes that a local sports radio morning drive host has been let go.

Doug Moe at the Wisconsin State Journal speaks with Randall Mell of the Golf Channel.

Sandra Guy in the Chicago Sun-Times looks at the new street-level studios for ESPN Radio Chicago.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News talks about Dick Enberg’s final fortnight at Wimbledon.

Matthew Fleischer of Fishbowl LA writes that ESPN WNBA analyst Rebecca Lobo tweeted about her plane’s emergency landing while heading to SoCal this week.

Bruce Dowbiggin at the Toronto Globe and Mail notes that Americans will get a nice dose of the CFL on the NFL Network.

George Dickie of zap2it talks with David Feherty about his new Golf Channel show.

Sports Media Watch says the CONCACAF Gold Cup has been a ratings hit for Univision and its sister network, Galavision.

SMW says the NHL Winter Classic goes back to primetime on January 2.

The Big Lead says Friend of Friend’s Bites Michelle Beadle is single once again. Sorry, Michelle, I had to put this one in.

The Sports Tube has an appreciation of Dick Enberg who’s making his final rounds at Wimbledon and the US Open this year.

That will do it.

Time For Monday Linkage

I’m at home today waiting for workers to finish doing some renovations at the office so I’ll take the opportunity to do some blogging. Wasn’t able to do the megalinks on Friday or do what I wanted to do over the weekend so while I have the chance, I’ll bring you linkage.

Michael Hiestand of USA Today writes that while NBC is hoping for big ratings from the U.S. Open, evidence suggests otherwise.

Austin Karp of Sports Business Journal tweets the overnight ratings for the U.S. Open’s final round coverage on NBC were down significantly from last year.

At Sports Business Journal, Tripp Mickle and John Ourand report that Fox is looking to put some of its 13 NASCAR Sprint Cup schedule on Speed in its next contract.

The Associated Press previews an HBO Real Sports story on Tiki Barber’s battle with depression after losing his NBC job and his marriage.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News says Wimbledon is back today with plenty of coverage for the tennis fan.

Marcus Vanderberg at SportsNewser notes that NBC had to apologize for omitting “Under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance that aired at the beginning of its U.S. Open coverage on Sunday.

Cam Martin of SportsNewser says someone forgot to renew Grantland.com’s domain name yesterday.

Awful Announcing has the video of Joe Buck forgetting the score during Saturday’s Yankees-Cubs game.

The Big Lead has video of the Washington Wizards’ John Wall showing off his horrible baseball skills throwing out the first pitch at a Nationals game.

Ryan Ballengee at Pro Golf Talk says the Chicago Daily Herald messed up a headline on Rory McIlroy in this morning’s edition.

We know about the picture of the kissing couple at the Vancouver riots after the Bruins clinched the Stanley Cup last week. CBC News found them and we now know that it was not a sudden moment of passion.

Over to ESPN Front Row, Carrie Kreiswirth speaks with ESPN the Magazine editor Chad Millman about moving operations to Bristol, CT with the rest of ESPN.

Ken Kerschbaumer at Sports Video Group looks at ESPN’s operations at the U.S. Open at Congressional.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times says tonight, MSG Network will air rare footage of a brutal hockey fight involving the Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers from 1958.

The New York Post’s Phil Mushnick got sick of hearing how NBC kept harping on Rory McIlroy’s collapse at The Masters back in April.

Phil also trashes CBS Sports Network for hiring former Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez blaming him for everything wrong with college football dating back to the 1960′s.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner talks with NBC Sports’ Jimmy Roberts.

Tom Jones of the St. Petersburg Times writes about the incredible shrinking sports reports on TV newscasts.

Tom says NBC stirred up an unnecessary controversy over the Pledge of Allegiance during the U.S. Open yesterday.

Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean writes that satellite radio subscribers will finally be able to hear the Titans radio feed of the team’s games. Thanks to Sports Business Digest for the link.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has a couple of ESPN analysts’ takes on the Bucks draft plans.

Ed Sherman at Crain’s Chicago Business says BP is back to sponsoring the Cubs-White Sox series after dropping out last year due to the Gulf of Mexico disaster.

David Haugh of the Chicago Tribune says the untimely death of local sportscaster Daryl Hawks left a huge void with his family on Father’s day.

Dusty Saunders of the Denver Post writes that ESPN’s Jay Bilas gets to show off his inner Mel Kiper, Jr. during the NBA Draft.

Jay Posner of the San Diego Union-Tribune has Dick Enberg announcing that this year will be his last Wimbledon ever.

Joe Flint of the Los Angeles Times visits Dan Patrick and the Danettes at their Milford, CT studios.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has this week’s SoCal sports calendar.

Bruce Dowbiggin with the Toronto Globe and Mail explores the launch of a new Canadian sports magazine.

And I’m heading to the office now. I’ll do more links later.

Some Monday Linkage

As I continue to be in a holding pattern on whether this site will stay on its current server or have to make another move, I’ll keep doing what I do and that’s provide the best in sports media information to you. Let’s do your links while I can.

Starting with USA Today’s Michael Hiestand, he says despite some sloppy football, the NFL Conference Championship Games did lead to some good television.

Some stories from Sports Business Journal now.

Michael Smith and John Ourand report that Time Warner Cable is looking to get a stake in the new ESPN/Longhorn network.

John writes that Verizon’s 2008 deal to carry NFL Network may be hurting the channel’s chances of gaining access on three of cable’s biggest providers.

Daniel Kaplan says thanks to its marketing arm, the NFL Players Association has quietly built up a revenue war chest in case of a lockout later this year.

Now that we know who’s playing in the Super Bowl in two weeks, we now focus on coverage of The Big Game and the ads you’ll be seeing. Mediaweek provides a timeline on the evolution of Super Bowl ads from I through XLIV.

Marcus Vanderberg of SportsNewser says CBS/Showtime has apparently acquired the rights to the anticipated Manny Pacquaio-”Sugar” Shane Mosley fight, surprising HBO.

David Cohen of WebNewser notes that ESPN and Microsoft’s Bing search engine are teaming up to produce online content and TV segments geared for the Super Bowl.

Dan Fogarty of SportsGrid has the video of NFL GameDay’s prognostications where analysts sucked helium. Literally sucked helium.

At MediaPost, David Goetzl laments the disappearance of the local sports anchor.

Russell Adams of the Wall Street Journal notes that the New York Times is about to build a dreaded paywall to its site, leaving some areas free to all.

From the Daily Mail in the UK, there’s controversy surrounding English Premier League announcers Andy Gray (who’s done work on ESPN and Fox Soccer Channel here) and Richard Keys over some off-air sexist remarks regarding a female linesperson and a female EPL executive.

All Access says a Bay Area sports radio host is leaving his weekend show to focus solely on TV.

Jim Wolfe from the Greenwich (CT) Citizen says a Golf Channel host returns home this week.

At the New York Post, Phil Mushnick gets on Fox while praising CBS for their Conference Game coverage.

David Templeton of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says while Steelers fans were celebrating yesterday’s AFC Championship, they also took time to remember late radio announcer Myron Cope who died two years ago.

Tom Jones from the St. Petersburg Times shares his thoughts on the weekend on TV.

Matt Murschel of the Orlando Sentinel wonders if the ESPN/University of Texas deal is bad for college sports.

Pete Alfano of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram notes that ESPN has begun building its Super Bowl set in town.

David Barron in the Houston Chronicle shares an e-mail he received from Dick Enberg in regards to the historic UCLA-Houston college basketball game.

Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer says the Indians have announced their TV and radio plans for the 2011 season.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reviews Fox’s efforts for the NFC Championship Game.

Bob says Packers-Bears received an astounding local overnight rating.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has the local NFC Championship ratings (scroll down) and says the Windy City lost a bunch of great opportunities with the Bears losing yesterday.

Dusty Saunders of the Denver Post feels Fox’s Troy Aikman got the job done during the NFC Championship.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has the Southern California sports calendar for this week.

Bruce Dowbiggin in the Toronto Globe and Mail writes that the NHL TV partners are hypocritical when it comes to denouncing head shots.

Toronto Sports Media takes a look at the recent changes in local sports reporting.

John Daly from the Daly Planet has a NASCAR TV Bill of Rights for the sport’s TV partners.

From Puck The Media, Steve Lepore feels NBC should break up the silliness between Pierre McGuire and Mike Milbury in between the periods of its NHL broadcasts.

Steve shows us how Chicago goalie Marty Turco mocked Pierre McGuire yesterday.

And Steve summarizes two weeks of comparing NHL Network’s NHL on the Fly to Versus’ NHL Overtime.

Bob’s Blitz has Ashley Madison’s Super Bowl spot that was allegedly rejected by Fox.

Deadspin (through CNBC’s Darren Rovell) notes an error by a Louisville TV station in regards to New York.

I think that’s where we’ll end it for today.

Giving You The Friday Megalinks

Ok, let’s do the Friday megalinks. Getting a late start as I’ve been all over the place today, but better late than never.

Check out the Weekend Viewing Picks for information on the sports and entertainment programs for the first weekend in October.

Now to the links.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand talks about ESPN creating a new brand that will target women and could eventually become a dedicated TV channel. This was already scoffed at on Twitter. We’ll see how this evolves. Asides from ESPN Mobile, the Alleged Worldwide Leader’s ill-fated cell phone brand, when the network commits to an idea, it will usually work so we’ll see.

Eleanor Barkhorn from The Atlantic shares her thoughts, pro and con, on the new ESPN women’s brand. 

A Girl’s Perspective on a Boy’s Game blog has some thoughts on ESPNW.

Dylan Stableford at The Wrap notes there are many women who aren’t in love with ESPNW.

Marcus Vanderberg at SportsNewser has more on the new ESPN venture.

Joe Posanaski of Sports Illustrated has a very good tribute to Los Angeles Dodgers voice Vin Scully.

Noah Davis of SportsNewser says the Boston Globe will put all of its web content content except sports and breaking news behind a pay wall. 

Dave Kindred at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center looks into the history of one of his favorite leads and finds it doesn’t quite measure up to its legend.

Milton Kent of Fanhouse notes that weather delays at the Ryder Cup will force NBC to go live with its coverage on Saturday instead of planned taped coverage.

Fanhouse’s Brett McMurphy has a facetious look at the first televised college football game.

Martin Rogers of Yahoo! Sports says the Ryder Cup has to move to an earlier date to avoid inclement weather.

Spencer E. Ante of the Wall Street Journal notes NFL games are about to be seen on tablets.

Georg Szalai of the Hollywood Reporter notes that Fox has pulled 19 of its channels including several sports regional networks off Dish Network over, what else? A carriage dispute.

Andrea Morabito from Broadcasting & Cable says in addition, MSG Network and MSG Plus were pulled from Dish over a pricing dispute.

John Consoli of Mediaweek looks at Fox making Game 3 of this year’s World Series an extra early start.

Mike Freeman of CBS Sports says LeBron James can’t call racism over criticism over “The Decision” when he’s never taken a stand in his life.

The Huffington Post has TNT’s Charles Barkley ripping James for his comments. 

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says US Ryder Cup team outfitter Sun Mountain Sports is getting heat over its non-waterproof raincoats.

And we have more in this video featuring Darren on CNBC.

Mixing Up A Few Saturday Links

Slept in this morning so I’m getting a late start on things.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News talks about ESPN hiring Ian Darke to be its Voice of Soccer.

John Eggerton of Multichannel writes that WWE’s Smackdown moves from broadcast to cable next Friday.

Adam Hochberg of the Poynter Institute says the NHL is considering pulling back access to bloggers hearing complaints from mainstream media members last season.

Marcus Vandenberg of SportsNewser says Univision and the NFL are teaming up to launch a new website geared towards the Hispanic market. 

CNBC’s Darren Rovell asks if it will be worth the time for ESPN to shadow LeBron James during the NBA preseason.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times talks with director Ken Burns about his “10th Inning” sequel to his PBS “Baseball” documentary.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union has the ESPN MLB schedule for the rest of the season.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette two local broadcasters share a milestone today.

Greg Connors of the Buffalo News reports that Cablevision is once again playing hardball with HD feeds of MSG Network to its competitors.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner writes that mobile TV provider FLO TV will distribute 200 college football games to its subscribers.

Tom Jones at the St. Petersburg Times notes that Rays-Yankees delivered knockout ratings to Sun Sports once again.

Barry Horn from the Dallas Morning News says a potentially 0-3 Cowboys team is drawing interest from the networks.

John Kiesewetter from the Cincinnati Enquirer says Bengals linebacker Dhani Jones (who has been doing a lot of TV work) joins a local TV station. 

John says Fox Sports Ohio will be live from the Reds clubhouse when they clinch a playoff spot. 

Chadd Cripe of the Idaho Statesman says College Gameday’s producer is raving about Boise as a location for the pregame show.

Katy Moeller of the Statesman live blogged the College Gameday atmosphere from Bronco Stadium.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has more with San Diego Padres TV voice Dick Enberg that didn’t make his Friday column.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail writes that it’s been a bad year for golf on TV.

Sports Media Watch has a story that bears watching. CBS’ NFL Today beat Fox NFL Sunday for the second week in a row.

SMW has its weekend ratings predictions. 

SMW has other ratings news and notes.

SMW says ABC has seen its college football ratings go down in the young season.

SMW notes that CBS’ SEC football debut was down from a year ago.

Dan Levy at Press Coverage raves about ESPN’s signing of Ian Darke. 

Joe Favorito says despite being out of the pennant race, the Detroit Tigers are finding ways to branch out into the community and extend their brand.

Awful Announcing notes the debut of the new ESPN show called “Audibles” and the debut of Herman Edwards’ crazy Argyle socks.

And we’ll end it there for today. Look for the College Football Game of the Day highlights later.

Doing Your Friday Megalinks

Let’s do your megalinks today. Lots to get to.

There’s the Weekend Viewing Picks which contains the sports and entertainment choices for Saturday and Sunday.

Now let’s get to the linkage. Lots of of it today.

National

From USA Today’s Game On blog, Mike McCarthy talks with the producer of new Lombardi Broadway play on the ten things we did not know about the late Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi.

Michael Hiestand from USA Today talks about HBO’s foray into the NHL for the latest edition of its critically acclaimed “24/7″ series.

Completing a USA Today trifecta, NHL writer Kevin Allen says bringing HBO into the fold is a big feather in the NHL’s cap.

Richard Deitsch of Sports Illustrated breaks news on Twitter that ESPN has hired World Cup announcer Ian Darke to be its signature voice for soccer replacing JP Dellacamera. That will include English Premier Games as well as MLS.

Stephen Wilson of the Associated Press writes that the International Olympic Committee expects to begin the bidding process for the US TV rights to the 2014/2016 Games early next year.

Forbes Magazine says ESPN is driving the Disney engine to profits. 

Noah Davis at SportsNewser talk about NASCAR.com launching a new daily show.

Etan Vlesing at the Hollywood Reporter also has a story on the HBO 24/7 NHL series.

R. Thomas Umstead of Multichannel News says NBA TV will cover the league’s first-ever “Midnight Madness” preseason practice next week.

John Consoli of Mediaweek says it’s hoped that the new HBO series on the NHL will bring new fans to the league.

Stuart Levine of Variety writes that the 24/7 series deal was done as the NHL looks ahead to signing a new TV rights deal.

All Access says a former producer with the Mike & Mike in the Morning radio show has been named program director at ESPN Radio in New York. 

Kelly Dwyer at Yahoo’s Ball Don’t Lie blog profiles TNT’s Marv Albert.

Milton Kent of Fanhouse tells Ines Sainz to be a little more grateful.

CNBC’s Sports business producer Tom Rotunno lists the Top 5 Best Selling Playoff Gimmicks.

Sports Media Watch says the Philadelphia Phillies continue to set ratings records for Comcast SportsNet.

At Puck The Media, Steve Lepore provides his thoughts on HBO’s entrance into the NHL.

To Yahoo’s Puck Daddy and Greg Wyshynski who looks at what the Washington Capitals can expect to get from the HBO 24/7 series.

Yahoo’s Big League Stew blog talks with “Baseball” director Ken Burns in the latest edition of its podcast. 

Maury Brown at the Biz of Baseball is intrigued by MLB’s At Bat mobile app upgrade which now allows you to order food at the ballpark.

East and Mid-Atlantic

The Boston Globe’s Chad Finn says NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman could not hide his glee after signing with HBO.

At the Springfield (MA) Republican, Amanda Bruno gets on NESN for not airing Wednesday’s Bruins debut of rookie Tyler Seguin (scroll down).

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times has a fascinating article on the discovery of long lost TV footage of the 1960 World Series Game 7 between the New York Yankees and Pittsburgh Pirates. Expect MLB Network to air during the offseason.

Newsday’s Neil Best notes that New York Knicks star Amar’e Stoudamire becomes the first team member to be featured in a new ESPN NBA promo.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News says the Jets will be under NBC’s scrutiny on Sunday night. Whatever, Bob. Make more stuff up.

Phil Mushnick at the New York Post isn’t a fan of the standard press release apology.

Pete Doughety at the Albany Times Union has the MLB Network schedule through Saturday.

Laura Nachman says the Phillies are cleaning up in Philadelphia.

Shelly Anderson of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes that the Penguins are happy to be on HBO.

Bob Smizik of the Post-Gazette says rumors are swirling about the demise of the ESPN Radio affiliate in the Steel City.  

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog looks at the HBO 24/7 NHL series from the Capitals point of view.

Dan has video of a new NFL apparel ad featuring DC NFL team owner Daniel Snyder and actress Alyssa Milano.

Jim Williams from the Washington Examiner talks about the new HBO series on the Penguins and Capitals.

Jim says the Wizards will be the focus of NBA TV’s coverage of the first practices of the season.

Jim says the NFL is trying to enhance the fan experience at games.

South

Tom Jones from the St. Petersburg Times has NBC’s Tony Dungy listing his three favorite TV shows.

Sarah Talalay of the South Florida Sun Sentinel writes that the Miami Dolphins are going all out to attract fans to come to the game.

Sarah says Miami Heat game tickets go on sale next week.

Shannon Owens of the Orlando Sentinel wonders if Ines Sainz should have brought up her issue with the Jets to begin with.

Dave Williams of the Atlanta Business Journal says Chik-fil-A has signed an extension with ESPN keeping its football games on the Alleged Worldwide Leader. 

Dave Walker of the New Orleans Times-Picayune says ESPN will catch up with a former Saints special teams player for Sunday NFL Countdown.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle has Fox’s Joe Buck waxing poetic on the old Oilers.

In the Daily Oklahoman, Mel Bracht says the Oklahoma City Thunder will be featured NBA TV’s training camp coverage.

Midwest

The Cincinnati Enquirer’s John Kiesewetter has info for those who want to watch the World Equestrian Games being held in Lexington, KY.

Michael Rothstein of AnnArbor.com chronicles the visit of ESPN2′s SportsNation to the University of Michigan this week. 

The Muncie (IN) Star Press says Ball State students will be producing content for Fox College Sports.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has his weekly winners and losers in sports business and media.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has a closer look at ESPN’s high powered goal line cameras that will be used in Monday’s Packers-Bears game.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says Jack Clark will not work for Fox Sports Midwest for the rest of the Cardinals season.

Dan also looks at the new addition to Ken Burns’ PBS Baseball documentary.

West

Chadd Cripe of the Idaho Statesman talks with ESPN/ABC’s Brent Musburger about the Oregon State-Boise State matchup which he will call on Saturday.

The Statesman is excited about College Gameday’s visit to Boise on Saturday. 

John Maffei from the North County Times says with local blackout looming in San Diego, it might be wise to invest in NFL Network’s RedZone.

Helene Elliot of the Los Angeles Times notes that long-time Kings announcer Bob Miller is looking forward to his 38th season with the team.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News has Dick Enberg being excited over his first season calling the San Diego Padres.

Tom has his news and notes in his blog. 

And that will conclude the megalinks for today.

CBS Sports Goes For An Ace On The Middle Sunday of the US Open

As the US Open will wrap up its first week on Sunday, CBS Sports will be there for all of the action during the day session starting at 11 a.m. ET.

CBS SPORTS’ 2010 U.S. OPEN TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS COVERAGE HIGHLIGHTED BY DEFENDING CHAMPION KIM CLIJSTERS, VENUS WILLIAMS AND RAFAEL NADAL ON SUNDAY, SEPT. 5

CBS Sports continues its 43^rd year covering the U.S. OPEN TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS on Sunday, Sept. 5 (11:00 AM-6:00 PM, ET) with men’s third-round and women’s fourth-round action. 

Headlining CBS Sports’ coverage is the defending women’s champion and  No. 2-seed Kim Clijsters playing Ana Ivanovic; the women’s No. 3-seed and two-time champion American Venus Williams taking on No. 16-seeded Shahar Peer and the men’s No. 1-seed Rafael Nadal against Gilles Simon.

Other matches scheduled include men’s No. 4-seed Andy Murray against No. 25-seed Stanislas Wawrinka and the men’s No. 20-seed American Sam Querrey versus No. 14-seed Nicolas Almagro.

 Lead play-by-play announcer Dick Enberg is joined by expert analysts Mary Carillo and John McEnroe in the booth for the 11^th consecutive year.  CBS Sports’ Bill Macatee also will call action alongside Jim Courier as analyst.  Mary Joe Fernandez serves as reporter and Ian Eagle as contributor.

Bob Mansbach serves as coordinating producer of CBS Sports’ live coverage of tennis’ final grand slam of the year. Mansbach, David Winner and Ken Mack produce. Lead director Bob Fishman directs along with Jim Cornell.  Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

CBS Sports will cover live U.S. Open Tennis action as follows:

Sunday, Sept. 5 – 11:00 AM-6:00 PM, ET (men’s third round/women’s fourth round)

Monday, Sept. 6 – 11:00 AM-6:00 PM, ET (men’s/women’s fourth round singles)

Friday, Sept. 10 – 12:30-6:00 PM, ET (men’s doubles final/women’s semi-finals)

Saturday, Sept. 11 – 12:00 Noon-6:00 PM ET (men’s semi-finals)

                     8:00-10:00 PM, ET (women’s singles final)      

Sunday, Sept. 12 – 4:00-7:00 PM, ET (men’s singles final)

* * * * *

LUCKY CHARM?

CBS Sports’ Dick Enberg taking time off from calling the San Diego Padres in the National League West pennant race has seen the Padres lose their eighth straight game during the days he has been away from the team.  The Padres last won when Enberg called the August 25 game against Arizona, 9-3.

MANAGER ENBERG’S U.S. OPEN LINE UP

CBS Sports’ Dick Enberg hasn’t been able to stray too far from thinking about his other job calling games for the Padres.  When asked how he would fill out his line-up card with tennis players, Manager Enberg said, “Leading off and playing shortstop would be Roger Federer.  Batting second and playing second base would be the left-handed Rafael Nadal.  With her great range, Venus Williams would be my first baseman and hitting third.  And with her power, Serena would be my clean-up hitter playing third base.”

DOUBLEHEADER EXPERIENCE

CBS Sports’ Dick Enberg also spoke of what would be some of his favorite doubleheader experiences (in no order):

• Saturday day game at Fenway Park – the Boston Pops on Saturday night
• The Rose Bowl Parade in the morning – the Rose Bowl game in the night
• The NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Final Four Semi-Finals – “two for the price of one.”
• Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Olympics
• Wimbledon; second Monday, all 16 men and women play
• Super Saturday at the U.S. Open – men’s semi’s in the afternoon, women’s final in prime time.

Good stuff.

CBS Sports Begins Three Consecutive Days of US Open Coverage

It seems as if the US Open has been running for seven weeks. Maybe it’s me. CBS begins its coverage in earnest starting today and running through Labor Day, then again on Friday with the women’s singles semifinals to the women’s and men’s finals.

Dick Enberg returns to CBS to call the tennis and he’ll be joined by Mary Carillo and John McEnroe in the booth. Ian Eagle, Bill Macatee, Jim Courier and Mary Jo Fernandez join them. Here’s the CBS release.

CBS SPORTS SERVES UP COVERAGE OF 2010 U.S. OPEN TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS ON SATURDAY, SEPT. 4

Roger Federer, Maria Sharapova, Caroline Wozniacki and Mardy Fish Highlight Network’s Coverage

     CBS Sports’ begins its coverage of the 2010 U.S. Open Tennis Championships on Saturday, Sept. 4 (11:00-6:00 PM, ET) highlighted by men’s and women’s third-round action.

     Coverage features No. 2-seeded Roger Federer against Paul-Henri Mathieu,  women’s No. 1-seeded Caroline Wozniacki taking on Yung-Jan Chan, No. 14-seeded Maria Sharapova playing American upstart Beatrice Capra and men’s No. 19-seeded American Mardy Fish versus Arnaud Clement.

     Other matches scheduled include No. 4-seeded Jelena Jankovic against No. 31-seeded Kaia Kanepi and the men’s No. 5-seeded Robin Soderling versus Theimo de Bakker.

     Lead play-by-play announcer Dick Enberg will be joined by expert analysts Mary Carillo and John McEnroe in the booth for their 11th consecutive year. Bill Macatee also will call tennis action for CBS Sports, along with Jim Courier as analyst. Mary Joe Fernandez serves as reporter and Ian Eagle as contributor.

     Bob Mansbach is the coordinating producer of CBS Sports’ live coverage of tennis’ final grand slam of the year. Mansbach, David Winner and Ken Mack produce. Lead director Bob Fishman directs, along with Jim Cornell.  Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

That is it.

CBS Sports Presents US Open For 43rd Consecutive Year

CBS Sports will air coverage of the US Open from Flushing Meadow in New York over the next two weekends. It marks 43 consecutive tournaments for the Tiffany Network and it according to John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal, CBS will be back for another round of coverage starting next year. I hope to be able to link to that story sometime this week.

Dick Enberg returns to call the tennis for CBS and he’ll be joined by John McEnroe and Mary Carillo in the booth. Ian Eagle, Bill Macatee, Jim Courier and Mary Jo Fernandez will also be involved in CBS’ coverage. Take a look.

CBS SPORTS SERVES UP 2010 U.S. OPEN TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS FOR 43^rd CONSECUTIVE YEAR

Men’s and Women’s Finals Highlight CBS Sports’ Coverage

CBS Sports presents the U.S. OPEN TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS, tennis’ final grand slam of the year and the only one played in the United States, for the 43^rd consecutive year. Coverage begins on Saturday, Sept. 4 (11:00 AM–6:00 PM, ET) with men’s and women’s third-round action and concludes with the men’s singles final on Sunday, Sept. 12 (4:00 PM, ET). CBS Sports will broadcast over 37 hours of the 2010 U.S. Open from the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, N.Y.

Lead play-by-play announcer Dick Enberg will be joined by expert analysts Mary Carillo and John McEnroe in the booth for the 11th consecutive year. Jim Courier returns for his second year as analyst and will call the action alongside Bill Macatee. Mary Joe Fernandez serves as reporter. Ian Eagle serves as contributor.

CBS Sports will provide live comprehensive coverage during both weekends of the event and on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 6 (11:00 AM-6:00 PM, ET) and on Friday, Sept. 10 (12:30-6:00 PM, ET). The 2010 women’s final live in prime time highlights the Network’s “Super Saturday” coverage on Saturday, Sept. 11 (8:00-10:00 PM, ET). All the action during CBS Sports’ coverage of the 2010 U.S. Open will be broadcast in HDTV.  

CBS Sports’ schedule of live U.S. Open Tennis action as follows:

Saturday, Sept. 4 – 11:00 AM-6:00 PM, ET (men’s and women’s third round singles)

Sunday, Sept. 5 – 11:00 AM-6:00 PM, ET (men’s third round/women’s fourth round)

Monday, Sept. 6 – 11:00 AM-6:00 PM, ET (men’s/women’s fourth round singles)

Friday, Sept. 10 – 12:30-6:00 PM, ET (men’s doubles final/women’s semi-finals)

Saturday, Sept. 11 – 12:00 NOON-6:00 PM ET (men’s semi-finals)

                                8:00-10:00 PM, ET (women’s singles final)      

Sunday, Sept. 12 – 4:00-7:00 PM, ET (men’s singles final)

Working his 30^th U.S. Open, Bob Mansbach will serve as coordinating producer of CBS Sports’ live coverage of tennis’ final major of the year.  Mansbach and David Winner will produce, and lead director Bob Fishman and Jim Cornell will direct. Mansbach and Ken Mack will produce ARTHUR ASHE KIDS’ DAY, and Suzanne Smith will direct. Harold Bryant is Vice President, Production, CBS Sports.

And we’re done here.

Friday Night Megalinks

After playing chauffeur all day today, it’s time to do some linkage for you.

As usual, we have the Weekend Viewing Picks. And now to our links.

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand and Mike McCarthy debate the Jim Gray/Corey Pavin dispute.

Fanhouse’s John Walters was able to go inside ESPN’s college football meetings this week.

John writes that ESPN’s College Gameday is a rolling ambassador for college football.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News writes that ESPN2 and Fox Soccer Channel will be all over the English Premier League for the next three seasons.

Mike says this past Wednesday’s Yankees-Rangers game set a ratings record for Fox Sports Southwest.

Katy Bachman of Mediaweek writes about ESPN the Gas Station continuing for a few more years. I actually wrote about this three years ago.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Dave Kindred goes after the Miami Herald’s Dan LeBatard. Just a mere few weeks since going after the Detroit Free Press’ Mitch Albom.

Bill Krueger at the Poynter Institute feels Deadspin betrayed Jenn Sterger by not waiting for her to confirm the Brett Favre sexting story.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell talks with Nike’s president about two of its most embattled clients.

Darren says Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano is beginning to reap the benefits of being a star in New York.

Mike Florio at Pro Football Talk says he’s no longer writing for the Sporting News. 

Mike says HBO’s Hard Knocks’ season premiere featuring the New York Jets had a higher viewership than last year’s premiere with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Florio says Green Day will perform at halftime of the opening Monday Night Football game at the new Meadowlands Stadium.

Joe Favorito notes that bloggers are writing better and gaining more notoriety.

Sports Media Watch notices that last Saturday’s Red Sox-Yankees game on Fox actually drew a lower rating than Braves-Reds the week before.

SMW says last weekend’s Pro Football Hall of Fame Inductions received a huge ratings bump from last year thanks to some star power.

SMW says ratings dropped for ESPN’s NFL preseason opener.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media feels NHL Network should remember some of the league’s teams that no longer exist.

My Twitter trophy wife, Amanda Rykoff, a.k.a. The OCD Chick, has a roundup of reaction to sexist remarks made by MASN’s Rob Dibble earlier in the week.

The always awesome Rebecca Glass in This Purist Bleeds Pinstripes (well, except for the Pinstripes part, but she’s still awesome) tells Dibble to shut up. 

Dave Kohl at the Major League Programs blog notes that baseball local radio ratings don’t often match the local TV numbers.

Emmitt Jones at the Sports Business Digest likes the idea of the University of Oregon soccer scarves doubling as season tickets.

Susan Shan covers a pick-up basketball game between two social media companies. 

Proud Canadian and unabashed Montreal Expos fan Jonah Keri asks us to watch MLB Network’s special on the 1994 Expos on Sunday.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn from the Boston Globe says there will be plenty of media outlets for new Celtics backup center Shaquille O’Neal to play with this upcoming season.

Jessica Heslam of the Boston Herald writes that NESN is branching out from sports and will carry a program hosted by a former Massachusetts Lt. Governor.

Boston Sports Radio Watch says the local sports radio war is getting even tighter in the ratings.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes on the return of Bob Uecker to the Milwaukee Brewers radio booth after heart surgery.

Neil Best sighting! Neil Best sighting! Neil Best of Newsday talks about seeing ads for New York Football Giants tickets, something he never thought would never happen in his lifetime.

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News likes how SNY’s Bob Ojeda doesn’t mince words after another clubhouse incident involving the Mets.

Phil Mushnick at the New York Post wonders if WFAN’s Craig Carton, a noted critic of MSG head James Dolan, will be willing to still criticize now that his radio show will be simulcast on MSG Network.

Mark Cannizzaro of the Post says the Jets give themselves high marks after seeing themselves on HBO’s Hard Knocks.

The Post’s Justin Terranova has five questions for MLB Network’s Jim Kaat.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union catches up with New York Giants left tackle David Diehl who took part in the NFL Broadcasting Boot Camp earlier this summer.

At the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog, Dan Steinberg notes that the Orioles are beginning to make a ratings dent in the nation’s capital.

Dan recaps DC NFL team owner Dan Snyder’s appearance on Friday night’s preseason game telecast.

Jim Williams at the Washington Examiner talks about the DC NFL team’s broadcast teams ready and rarin’ to go for the season.

Dave McKenna of the Washington City Paper profiles sportscaster Grant Paulsen who had to restart his broadcast career after it stalled after high school.

South

Bob Molinaro of the Virginian-Pilot says a local TV station values carrying the DC NFL team, but still isn’t showing the games in HD.

Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel writes that Florida coach Urban Meyer has a Twitter coordinator.

Jeff Shain of the Sentinel says the Jim Gray/Corey Pavin tiff is another in a line of Golf Channel strife. 

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Ray Buck talks football and baseball with former Fox Sports NFL announcer Pat Summerall.

Mike Graham of the Dallas Morning News says Texas Tech is trying to reach more recruits by producing its own reality show and syndicating it to various cable systems in the South. 

To David Barron at the Houston Chronicle who talks with ESPN Radio hack (my words, not his) Colin Cowherd.

Richard Connelly of the Houston Press notes that ESPN Deportes Radio has arrived in town. 

This story is from last month, but I somehow missed it. From the Daily Oklahoman, Mel Bracht talks with ESPN legendary play-by-play man Ron Franklin about his return to the Alleged Worldwide Leader after originally deciding to retire in February.

Midwest

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer isn’t too happy with the Fox Sports Radio hiring of Pat O’Brien when a perfectly good candidate is working in the local area.

Jeff Bell of Business First of Columbus (OH) says the dispute between Time Warner and Disney which could take ESPN off cable systems follows a familiar pattern. 

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes that CBS News and Sports President Sean McManus isn’t too concerned over Tiger Woods’ finish in the PGA Championship.

Duane Dudek of the Journal Sentinel is puzzled over three local TV stations focusing on Tiger Woods’ personal life instead of golf.

Tim Cuprisin in OnMilwaukee looks at the off and on coverage of the Brett Favre sexting story.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has his weekly winners and losers.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has Fox’s Joe Buck still refusing to take responsibility for getting the Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez hurt last Saturday.

Dan says the Gateway City’s top-rated sports radio station is forming a partnership with the market’s CBS affiliate to provide content and reports.

West

Scott D. Pierce of the Deseret (UT) News says when Utah heads to the Pac 10/12, finding their games could be just as big an issue as it is currently.

Dick Enberg answered readers’ e-mails for the Denver Post. 

John Maffei at the North County Times writes that even though Fox is picking up the San Diego Padres on Saturday, just the West Coast will see them.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News writes about how Lakers owner Jerry Buss had the vision to realize how forming a cable channel would only help his team expand its fanbase.

Tom has his extensive sports news and notes in his blog (plus a link back to Fang’s Bites, thanks Tom).

Canada

Bruce Dowbiggin at the Toronto Globe and Mail says the whole Jim Gray/Corey Pavin story is a “he said, she said” affair.

The Toronto Star’s Chris Zelkovich warns Blue Jays fans about another potential dispute over a new cable sports channel.

That will conclude the megalinks. We’re done.

A Few Sunday Links

For some reason, Saturday ended up being a very busy day as I was out of the house all day. Not what I had planned, but I’m hoping to get some linkage done today so let’s get to it.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News talks about HBO Sports being very excited about this season’s edition of “Hard Knocks”

John Eggerton of Multichannel writes that the National Association of Broadcasters is asking member stations to help the USA’s bid to get the 2018 or 2022 World Cup.

Dave Kindred at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center says writers who go the extra mile are rewarded. 

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says a mustard company wants Amar’e Stoudamire to put his money where is mouth is.

Billy Witz of the New York Times talks with Dick Enberg about his first season as the full-time San Diego Padres TV voice.

Bob Raissman in the New York Daily News feels MSG’s announcers overgushed on the Knick’s Amar’e Stoudamire’s trip to Israel.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union gets a video tour of Adam Schefter’s bus that he’s using to tour NFL training camps for ESPN.

Jim Williams from the Washington Examiner talks with Sirius XM’s head of sports programming about the recent launch of a 24/7 Fantasy Sports channel on the satellite radio service.

Michael Casagrande in the Times Daily (AL) says an ESPNU program and a movie on Alabama coach Nick Saban shed an inside look on the Crimson Tide football team. 

Artie Gigantino in the San Francisco Examiner opines on the sad Albert Haynesworth debacle.

The Sports Media Watch has its weekly ratings predictions.

SMW says the X Games’ ratings were down.

SMW also has some ratings news and notes.

That’s it for now. I hope to do some more linkage and post some press releases later on.

Our Thursday Linkage

Let’s do some links here. I had a late night monitoring the Texas Rangers auction and reading the live blog that CBS 11 in Dallas conducted throughout the entire process. The great Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball also provided coverage on his site and on Twitter. In addition, Daniel Kaplan of the Sports Business Journal tweeted the latest developments throughout the day and night. But the CBS11 crew did a great job providing the live blog and it’s still going strong today. Tremendous coverage of what was truly a one-of-a-kind story.

Now to the links.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News wishes NBA TV would have announced the entire regular season schedule earlier this week instead of just a partial release.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell notes that fans spent more than a million dollars to see Alex Rodriguez not hit his 600th homer until yesterday.

Darren wonders if the pricetag to purchase the Texas Rangers is too high.

Here’s Erin Andrews debut on Good Morning America today.

Michael Whitmer of the Boston Globe says the future of the PGA Tour’s Deutsche Bank Championship depends on the amount and length of new TV deals. 

Desmond Connor of the Hartford Courant reports that SNY will now be the exclusive home of University of Connecticut sports.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times recaps a busy night in the Texas Rangers ownership auction.

Michael O’Keefe in the New York Daily News picks up the Deadspin post on Brett Favre allegedly sexting Versus’ Jenn Sterger when she was a gameday host for the New York Jets.

Sulaman Abdur-Rahman of the Trentonian (NJ) News reports that an ESPN computer technician, reported missing last week, has been found safe and sound in Idaho. 

Jen Wielgus of PhillyBurbs calls Jen Sterger a role model for women for refusing Favre’s advances. I wonder what Susan Shan would think of that. 

Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post’s DC Sports Bog notes that Pardon the Interruption hosts Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon gave grades to DC NFL team coach Mike Shanahan on his handling of the Albert Haynesworth affair.

Todd Shanesy of the Spartansburg (SC) Herald Journal takes ESPN to task for overblowing the Brett Favre retirement story.

Barry Shlachter and Pete Alfano from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram report on the Texas Rangers ownership auction.

Michael Lindenberger of the Dallas Morning News has ESPN’s explanation as to why it chose to place its Super Bowl headquarters in Fort Worth instead of Dallas proper.

Kelly Bostian of the Tulsa (OK) World says the sale of BASS LLC. by ESPN is getting praise.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer mentions that Fox Sports Ohio is picking up one Reds game after losing one to the Fox Sports mothership.

John writes that Fox Sports Ohio is airing a slate of local high school football games this season.

A Cleveland TV sports anchor has been indicted on rape and kidnapping charges.

Don Walker of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel speculates on whether the Big East Conference will create its own television network.

Jeff Fellenzer in the Los Angeles Times talks with San Diego Padres TV voice Dick Enberg about his return to baseball this year.

Tom Hoffarth in the Los Angeles Daily News looks at the Wikipedia bios of various play-by-play men.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail writes a new sports radio talk show host isn’t afraid to go outside the box, if necessary.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star notes that Tennis Canada is relaunching its website.

AJ Daulerio of Deadspin recaps the reaction to his Brett Favre sexting Jenn Sterger story.

Mary Elizabeth Williams of Salon says Deadspin betrayed Sterger by publishing the story without her consent.

Lou Clinton at 38 Cliches reviews the performance of Lou Merloni in his one-time replacement stint for the Red Sox Radio Network.

Sports Media Watch says Sun Sports received record ratings for the New York Yankees-Tampa Bay Rays weekend series.

My esteemed blogging colleague, Steve Lepore of Puck The Media has the NHL’s press release detailing the 2011 NHL Heritage Classic in Calgary.

The MLS Talk blog notes that the ratings for Major League Soccer on ESPN2 have fallen below the WNBA.

That’s all for now.

HBO Pays Tribute To John Wooden

Upon John Wooden’s passing last week, HBO2 will re-air a documentary on the UCLA college basketball championship-winning team that garnered eight NCAA titles over a nine year span. “The UCLA Dynasty” will be shown on Friday at 7:30 p.m. East/West. The documentary originally aired in 2007. Among the people interviewed for the program were Wooden himself, Bill Walton and Dick Enberg.

Here’s the HBO press release:

HBO SPORTS^®  DOCUMENTARY THE UCLA DYNASTY, TELLING THE STORY OF THE BRUINS’ COLLEGE BASKETBALL DOMINANCE FROM 1964 TO 1975 UNDER JOHN WOODEN  RETURNS FRIDAY, JUNE 11, EXCLUSIVELY ON HBO2

A reminder of the great achievements of legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden is captured in the HBO Sports special THE UCLA DYNASTY, a 2007 documentary that traces the incredible success of the UCLA men’s basketball program, which captured an astounding ten national titles during a 12-year run. The HBO2 service will air an encore presentation of the one-hour documentary on FRIDAY, JUNE 11 (7:30-8:30 p.m. ET/PT).

While the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement and political scandal were consuming the nation, a basketball legacy grew in southern California. Led by coach John Wooden, the UCLA Bruins amassed an unprecedented ten NCAA titles in the 12 seasons from 1964-1975, setting a standard of excellence and consistency in a volatile era. To this day, the Wooden legacy and the Bruins’ record-breaking 88-game winning streak remain unparalleled in collegiate sports.

96 years old at the time of his interview for the film, Coach Wooden leads a high-profile list of interviewees that includes former Bruins stars Bill Walton, Lucius Allen, Gail Goodrich, Sidney Wicks, Jamaal Wilkes, John Vallely, Henry Bibby, Marques Johnson, Andy Hill, Peter Trgovich, Gary Cunningham, Kenny Heitz, Jim Nielsen and Larry Farmer; sports executive Eddie Einhorn; legendary broadcaster Dick Enberg; former Houston Cougars stars Elvin Hayes and Don Chaney; actor and former UCLA quarterback Mark Harmon; Doors keyboardist and former UCLA student Ray Manzarek; actor and former UCLA student Beau Bridges; former UCLA Chancellor Charles Young; and former Notre Dame coach Digger Phelps.

Executive producers of THE UCLA DYNASTY are Ross Greenburg and Rick Bernstein; produced by George Roy; music by Brian Keane; narrated by Liev Schreiber.

Program highlights:

TV pioneer Eddie Einhorn:  “Dynasties promote your sport.  There’s the Yankees, the Cowboys.  When you’re lucky enough to have it, you’ve got to take advantage of it.”

Legendary Bruins star Bill Walton: “I never shot a single basket with my dad. I saw him run one time at the church picnic. But my parents were very involved in all the social issues of the day. So they taught us, think for ourselves, question authority, and be involved. I wrecked Coach Wooden’s life. He’s 65 years old from Martinsville and I’m 17 years old from San Diego, and this is the age of Nixon and Vietnam and rock’n’roll, and I was always arguing with him about every topic: politics, religion, dress codes, hair length. You name it, I was on him. It crossed the line the day I got arrested at a peace rally and Coach Wooden had to come down and bail me out of jail.”

Coach Wooden recalled, “[Walton] told me that after his player of the year, and his national championship team went undefeated, that I didn’t have the right to tell him he had to wear his hair a little shorter and couldn’t wear facial hair. And I said, ‘You’re correct, Bill. I don’t have that right. I just have the right to determine who is going to play and we’re going to miss you. And in about 15 minutes I’m not going to have you unless you go upstairs and get it taken care of right away.’ And he stood and looked at me. Finally, I said, ‘Fourteen minutes.’ ”

John Wooden’s attention to detail was reminiscent of an army sergeant. Jamaal Wilkes recalls, “It’s the first day of practice and here’s the ‘Wizard of Westwood’ and it’s so quiet you can hear a pin drop in there.” Actor and former UCLA student Beau Bridges recalls that Wooden would then say, “We will begin by learning how to tie our shoes.”

Pete Trgovich adds: “I was an Indiana all-star. We won a state championship. I had scored more field goals than Oscar Robertson in the state finals. Now you’re gonna tell me how to put my socks on?”

Bill Walton:  “When you’re part of something like that, it changes your life forever. It was the fans. It was the players that we had. It was the times. What it really was, was John Wooden.”

During UCLA’s decade of dominance, the Bruins won 335 games, and lost just 22. 

I saw this when it originally aired. I recommend you watch or TiVo when it returns this Friday.

Let’s Do Some Linkage

Yesterday, I just wasn’t in the mood to blog after putting up a few press releases. It’s time to do some blogging now because it’s important that you get linkage and fresh material as much as possible. Don’t want to be dormant for too long. By the way, whatever happened to Awful Announcing? It’s like Brian Powell suddenly disappeared.

Anyway, some big things tonight for your sports viewing including the Major League debut of Stephen Strasburg for the Washington Nationals. It’s so big that MLB Network will air what would have been a meaningless game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. And MLB Network is sending the big guns, Bob Costas, John Smoltz and Jim Kaat to call the game. While Strasburg has had plenty of hype going into this game, he’s been living up to it thus far. Locally, Pittsburgh will have the game on FSN Pittsburgh and DC will see it on MASN2. Game time is 7 p.m. East/4 p.m. West.

And there’s Game 3 of the NBA Finals. Change of venue as the series shifts East to the TD Garden in Boston as the Lakers and Celtics square off. The series is tied at 1 apiece. ABC has the game starting at 9 p.m. East and 6 p.m. West. There is a pregame show starting at 8:30 p.m., but Stuart Scott is hosting so watch at your own risk.

Let’s do your links.

Sports Business Daily says ABC received a final rating of 9.2 for NBA Finals Game 2 and over 15 and a half million viewers.

The SBD says Yahoo! has signed soccer star David Beckham as an international spokesman.

Michael Smith of Sports Business Journal says NASCAR has given up on creating a “NASCAR Wives” reality show. 

Michael Hiestand from USA Today has the ratings from various weekend events.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell says the TV math doesn’t add up for expansion by either the Big 10 or Pac 10.

Darren says tonight’s debut for Stephen Strasburg is worth a lot of money for the Washington Nationals.

Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch has his Sports Media Power Rankings for May.

At the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Eric Deggans of the St. Petersburg Times notices there’s media apathy towards women’s sports.

Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports has a great column on how the Big 12 by teaming up with the Big 10 and Pac 10 to reject a college football playoff in 2008, is now on the verge of being cannibalized by both conferences. 

Rick Kissel of Variety notes that sports performed well in the TV ratings on Sunday.

Jon Lafayette from Broadcasting & Cable says the NHL is getting hot on TV at the right time.

Jon talks with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman about his TV partners, NHL Network and his league’s TV ratings.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel News writes that Univision has scored various platform deals just as the World Cup is set to get underway.

Lucia Moses of Mediaweek says Sports Illustrated has lured away a once-rising star at Conde Nast publications to become the first woman to head sales at the magazine.

Katy Bachman also of Mediaweek writes that Nielsen is planning to launch a new service during the World Cup using BlackBerry devices as mobile diaries.

Toni Fitzgerald from Media Life Magazine says the NHL’s ratings surge continues into the Stanley Cup Final.

The New York Post’s Michael Starr breaks news that SNY is in talks with 2 TV stations to take over their nightly sports reports.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times writes that ESPN and Univision are hoping to tap into increased interest in the World Cup.

Richard adds last Saturday’s Belmont Stakes garnered some its lowest ratings ever.

Over to Bob Raissman at the New York Daily News who enjoys former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy’s commentary on ESPN/ABC.

Ken McMillan of the Hudson Valley Times Herald-Record reports that a New York-Penn League minor league baseball team will get a new radio announcer when its season begins later this month.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner says MASN2 will expand its Nationals pregame show to an hour tonight for the Stephen Strasburg debut.

Ed Sherman from Crain’s Chicago Business writes that Chicago is helping to drive the NHL’s increased ratings.

Ed adds the White Sox will honor Hawk Harrelson for his 25 years of service as a broadcaster.

The Chicago Tribune notes that after a window was damaged at its facilities, WGN Radio decided to re-do it with a Blackhawks logo.

Phil Rosenthal of the Tribune writes that Stanley Cup Final Game 5 was not only a win for the Blackhawks, but also for the local ratings.

Chris Jenkins from the San Diego Union-Tribune talks with former UCLA voice Dick Enberg about his friend, John Wooden.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News says Wooden’s final book is being moved to a July publication date.

Diane Pucin of the Los Angeles Times notes that ratings for live sports events continue to rise.

William Houston at Truth & Rumours says a Toronto sports radio reporter was suspended for doing his job.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail also writes about the reporter’s suspension. 

The Sports Media Watch notes that despite not having big names in the French Open women’s final, NBC still garnered decent ratings.

SMW says the ratings for the final round of the Memorial Tournament on CBS were down from last year, but still decent.

SMW has various ratings news and notes.

And SMW says Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final on Versus actually fell from last year.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media says NBC and CBC’s ratings are up for the Stanley Cup Final from last year.

Greg Wyshynski at Yahoo’s Puck Daddy has found the Stanley Cup Champions winning gear.

And we’re done. Back later.

Time For The Friday Not-so-Mega Links

Let’s give you the Friday megalinks while I can. Not as many links as the usual Friday, but the Memorial Day weekend has a lot to do with that. I’ll give you what I can.

Getting ready for the three day weekend and you can find the sports and the entertainment viewing for Saturday and Sunday right here.

On to the links.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand and Michael McCarthy debate the pros and cons of holding Super Bowl XLVIII in New Jersey.

William Cooper of Sports Business Daily says the first ad promoting the US World Cup bid for the 2018 or 2022 games will air Saturday. 

Neil Hayes writing for NBC Sports.com says the Stanley Cup Finals could be a ratings boon for the NHL. Don’t forget NBC is a rightsholder for the NHL.

Michael Lombardi of the National Football Post announces that he’s leaving to join NFL Network and NFL.com full-time.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell writes that sports apparel brand Crons is entering the nutrition game.

Milton Kent of Fanhouse says Danica Patrick may have lost some fans in IndyCar.

The Sports Media Watch says Thursday’s thrilling Game 5 between the Lakers and Suns got its highest ratings of the NBA Western Conference Finals, but they’re still down from last year.

SMW also has news and notes on various sports TV personalities.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media discovers that Dan Patrick will not host NBC’s coverage of the NHL Stanley Cup Finals from the beginning.

Steve also has NHL Network’s coverage plans for the Stanley Cup Finals.

Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo’s Puck Daddy tells NHL fans what they can do to help increase the ratings for the Stanley Cup Finals. 

World Cup Buzz critiques ESPN’s practice run for the World Cup.

World Cup Buzz shows us ESPN’s World Cup murals.

Deadspin has the video of YES reporter Kimberly Jones having her pork chop eaten by an overzealous and extremely creepy Yankees fan in Minnesota.

Emmett Jones at Sports Business Digest asks if an outdoors cold weather Super Bowl makes sense.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe profiles ESPN/ABC main NBA analyst Jeff Van Gundy.

Bob Raissman in the New York Daily News wants the New Jersey Super Bowl talk to stop now.

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post puts his vitriol aside for one day and remembers a former New York Football Giant who fought bravely for his country in Iwo Jima during World War II.

Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times Union wonders if ESPN/ABC should focus on Danica Patrick during this Sunday’s Indianapolis 500.

Peter Van Allen of the Philadelphia Business Journal says the Flyers have brought record ratings to the local Comcast SportsNet affiliate.  

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner says Nationals fans as well as baseball fans across the country will have their eyes focused on the Junior College World Series and potential 1st round draft pick Bryce Harper tonight.

Jim notes that it will be a hockey weekend on NBC.

South

Adam Fisher of the Naples (FL) Daily News says Dick Vitale was a big hit as the keynote speaker for a local event.

David Barron of the Houston Chronicle says all signs point to the Astros and Rockets leaving Fox Sports and signing with Comcast or another entity for their TV rights.

Midwest

Michael Zuidema of the Grand Rapids (MI) Press writes that soccer games can draw ratings as the numbers show us.

Curt Cavin of the Indianapolis Star wonders when the local blackouts of the Indianapolis 500 will end. 

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Fox Sports is putting out an all points bulletin for younger male viewers for NASCAR.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has CBC’s Don Cherry being bullish on the Flyers-Blackhawks Stanley Cup Finals.

Ed says the Blackhawks are the big winners in sports business this week.

Paul Christian of the Rochester Post-Bulletin looks at ESPN/ABC’s coverage of this Sunday’s Indianapolis 500.

Dan Caesar in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Cardinals might be making changes to their TV and radio deals for next season.

West

Scott D. Pierce of the Deseret (UT) News writes that BYU fans will be able to watch the women’s softball team in action this weekend on the ESPN family of networks.

Jay Posner of the San Diego Union-Tribune tells Padres fans that Dick Enberg prefers to call games straight down the middle.

To John Maffei of the North County Times who tells us that the Padres, Cox 4 and a local sports radio station have agreed to pull a spot that depended on bathroom humor.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star writes that Danica Patrick may be losing her status as IndyCar sweetheart.

And Jim has some sports media news and notes today.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News speculates on where Erin Andrews may land after her ESPN contract expires later this year.

Tom also has his extensive media news and notes in his blog.

Canada

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail wonders if CBC will broach the subject of match fixing during the World Cup. Dowbiggin apparently thinks every soccer game is fixed based on this extremely biased column.

TSN announces that TSN2 will carry an early afternoon NFL game during the regular season.

As mentioned, not as many links on this Friday as many writers took the weekend off. Can’t say I blame them.

Friday Megalink Action

I haven’t been able to provide links since last Thursday so it’s time you get some linkge. I’ve been busy with end of April/beginning of May stuff so it’s cut back on my blogging, but I think I’ll be back to a normal schedule after the weekend.

As usual, you can plan your sports and entertainment viewing with the Weekend Viewing Picks. Now to your links.

Ernie Harwell

Phil Mushnick of the New York Post remembers a story involving the late Ernie Harwell and the late Howard Cosell.

Tim Lemke talks about Ernie Harwell and the legacy that he and other great broadcasters have left behind.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner also pays tribute to Ernie Harwell.

David Mayo in the Grand Rapids Press writes that the love for Ernie Harwell cannot be measured in words.

Lynn Henning of the Detroit News says the Tigers became consolers to fans as they said their goodbyes to Harwell at Comerica Park.

Lynn says thousands of mourners passed Harwell’s body as it lay in repose at Comerica.

Jim Lynch of the News talks with Tigers fans about Ernie Harwell.

The Detroit News has a complete section devoted to Harwell on his life, career and personal tributes.

The Detroit Free Press says Fox Sports will pay tribute to Harwell during its MLB coverage on Saturday.

Drew Sharp from the Free Press says Ernie would have liked seeing the people who came to pay their respects.

And the Free Press also has a special section on Harwell as well.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Harwell was beloved by his fellow broadcasters as well.

Bob Mayhall from the St. Louis Globe-Democrat says the Cardinals broadcasters have fond memories of Harwell. 

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star says there was more to Ernie Harwell than baseball. 

Diane Pucin of the Los Angeles Times gets area broadcasters to talk about Harwell.

National

Starting with USA Today, sports media reporters Michael Hiestand and Michael McCarthy debate whether politics has a place on sports television. You can weigh in on the topic right here.

Tripp Mickle of the Sports Business Daily writes that cable TV fees helped to bring Madison Square Garden into the black in the first quarter of this year.

Stuart Levine of Variety writes that Fox Sports is preparing to make a concerted bid for the 2014/2016 Olympics, contradicting earlier reports to the contrary. Thanks to Steve Dittmore for the link.

Bill Cromwell of Media Life Magazine handicaps the Olympics US TV bidding, although I disagree with his frontrunners. 

Paul J. Gough at the Hollywood Reporter says ESPN and Univision are hoping for big ratings for the World Cup.

Claire Atkinson of Broadcasting & Cable writes thanks to the Super Bowl, CBS is seeing an ad revenue bump.

Mike Reynolds from Multichannel News reports that Comcast SportsNet Chicago scored with Game 3 of the Vancouver-Blackhawks series on Wednesday.

Dave Kindred at the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center tells us that the best stories sometimes come when it appears there are none.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell doesn’t understand the NFL’s new endorsement deal with Bud Light displacing Coors as its official beer.

Darren notes that Nutrisystem has dropped former New York Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor from its roster in the wake of the story that he allegedly raped and beat up an underaged prostitute.

Joe Favorito says a Bubblewrap PR stunt involving Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter could bring the company some mentions on Fox and ESPN this weekend.

Steve Lepore at Puck The Media notes that Versus continues to rake in the ratings this week.

The Sports Media Watch says this week’s Magic blowout of the Atlanta Hawks failed to draw viewers.

SMW says Suns-Spurs isn’t popular with viewers either.

SMW has local NBA and NHL playoff ratings news.

And SMW has more NHL and NBA ratings news and notes.

Good news from Maury Brown at the Biz of Baseball. Milwaukee Brewers announcer Bob Uecker has been released from the hospital after undergoing heart surgery.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn at the Boston Globe says Bruins fans are comfortable having NESN analyst Andy Brickley calling the B’s-Flyers series on Versus.

Sox & Dawgs has video of NESN’s Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy comparing hair brush sizes during last night’s Angels-Red Sox broadcast.

The New York Times’ Richard Sandomir is dreading this weekend’s Yankees-Red Sox series and the length of games.

Richard compares the 1978 playoff game between the Yankees and Red Sox to this day and age.

Howard Beck of the Times catches up with Bill Walton who had to retire from broadcasting due to a bad back. 

Bob Raissman of the New York Daily News contends that an early elimination of the Red Sox from playoff contention is bad for the Yankees and the YES Network.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union goes after Versus for showing highlights of last night’s Montreal-Pittsburgh game that it had just aired, but for me, it worked because I did not see the game, so the highlights were what the doctor ordered.
Pete talks with an HBO Sports staffer who won an Emmy for the 24/7 Mayweather/Marquez series.

Jim Williams of the Washington Examiner tells us to get ready for 3-D in sports.

South

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald talks with colleague Dan LeBatard about the success of his sports radio show.

At the St. Petersburg Times, Tom Jones says the Tampa Bay Rays could throw a wrench into the MLB’s TV partners postseason plans if the team keeps winning.

David Paschall of the Chattanooga Times Free Press speculates on this fall’s SEC on CBS football schedule. Thanks to Matt Sarz of Matt’s College Sports on TV for the link.

Ray Buck at the Fort Worth Star Telegram says a group of former Cowboys got together this week to shoot a promo for Super Bowl XLV which will be held in Cowboys Stadium in 2011.

David Barron from the Houston Chronicle says it’s never easy for sports talk show hosts to mix politics and sports.

Midwest

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has his winners and losers in sports business and media.

Jim O’Donnell of the Chicago Sun-Times says former Cub Doug Glanville is branching out by becoming an author.

Phil Rosenthal of the Chicago Tribune talks with Versus President Jamie Davis about increasing its reach and appeasing the Blackhawks.

Speaking of the Blackhawks, Phil says the team continues to rake in the viewers.

Paul Christian of the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin says the TPC at Sawgrass course will look spectacular in high definition during the Players Championship this weekend.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that the Cardinals’ TV ratings are tops among local MLB teams.

Dan adds that there could be some upheaval in one or two of the city’s sports radio stations.

West

Scott D. Pierce of the Deseret (UT) News tells Utah Jazz fans not to get angry at TNT’s announcers for sounding “pro-Lakers”.

Jay Posner of the San Diego Union-Tribune says Dick Enberg knows he’s been rusty during his Padres broadcasts, but he knows he’ll get better during the season.

John Maffei of the North County Times looks forward to tonight’s premiere of “Friday Night Lights”. I’ve never seen it nor do I intend to.

Jim Carlisle of the Ventura County Star has Johnny Miller’s thoughts on what Tiger Woods needs to do to win this weekend’s Players Championship on NBC.

As Mother’s Day approaches, Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News speaks with ESPN’s Colleen Dominguez who balances her job as West Coast reporter with being a single mom of two grown children.

Tom has more on Colleen plus his extensive news and notes in his blog.

Canada

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star looks into possible on-air changes with CBC Sports and Rogers Sportsnet.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail isn’t a fan of watching the national anthems on TV.

And William Houston in Truth & Rumours takes a minor shot at Chris Zelkovich, but not as bad as he did last month.

And that will do it for today.

Some Saturday Linkage

Let’s do a few links on this lazy Saturday. Beautiful in the Northeast. We deserve this after the floods, but I said this Friday so I won’t repeat myself again. Here are some links for you.

Tim Gardner and Thomas O’Toole of USA Today’s Campus Rivalry blog looks at the mini-controversy over some artwork of Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski on the cover of the Indianapolis Star.

The Nielsen ratings Wire blog notes that Duke gets the most buzz of all of the teams in this year’s Final Four.

A very distressing story, ESPN’s Erin Andrews has been receiving death threats e-mailed to the Dan Patrick show. And apparently the e-mails have been getting progressively violent. Leave the woman alone, please. 

In the New York Times, Richard Sandomir notes several big anomalies in the Boston Red Sox-New York Yankees season series this year.

To the Buffalo News where Jerry Pergament writes about ESPN debuting a new two hour block on ABC today.

In the Washington Examiner, Jim Williams talks about MASN having not one, but two dedicated HD channels.

Mel Bracht of the Daily Oklahoman has a few news and notes in his blog.

Mike Haag in the San Antonio Express-News says ESPN is publishing a new book which pays tribute to the late Dale Earnhardt.

Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune talks with new Padres TV voice Dick Enberg, who’s about to embark on the new phase of his career.

The Sports Media Watch notes that the NCAA Tournament’s ratings are up slightly from 2009.

SMW says rain did not help NBC’s ratings for the PGA Tour’s Arnold Palmer Invitational.

And SMW writes that rain delay coverage of last week’s NASCAR event actually outrated the NBA last weekend.

As we enter the 2010 MLB regular reason, Maury Brown at the Biz of Baseball reviews the archaic TV blackout rules. 

This weekend, MLB.TV is offering a free preview with plenty of exhibition games this weekend. Check out the story from Mark Newman of MLB.com featuring a quote from my Twitter sweetheart, Megan Marshall.

Sox & Dawgs has the 2010 Red Sox radio network.

Chris Byrne at the Eye on Sports Media has the list of theaters where you can catch the Final Four in 3-D.

And that will do it for the links for today.

Doing the Friday Megalinks

Let’s do the megalinks for you. Time to give them to you now.

As always, you get the Weekend Viewing Picks which this weekend has the skinny on the college basketball conference tournaments and other sports.

Now to your links.

National

USA Today’s Michael Hiestand looks at ESPN providing ABC with some sports programming starting in April.

Writing for SI.com, Kevin Armstrong profiles popular ESPN/CBS college basketball analyst Bill Raftery.

The Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center recognizes the winners of the Associated Press Sports Editors Awards.

Todd Spangler of Multichannel News says the ESPN Mobile TV service is being picked up by Sprint cell phones.

Multichannel News looks at Speed’s changes to its Formula 1 announcing crew. 

The Sports Media Watch notes that last Sunday’s NHL Game of the Week did not get a post-Olympics bump, but still did well for NBC.

SMW says last week’s NASCAR ratings dropped yet again.

SMW informs us that TNT’s Inside the NBA crew will be heading courtside to call its first game since 2001.

Joe Favorito can’t wait to see the new movie on Vince Lombardi which would star Robert De Niro.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media says HBO Sports will focus its next documentary on the Philadelphia Flyers of the 1970′s.

East and Mid-Atlantic

Chad Finn of the Boston Globe talks with long-time WBZ-TV sports reporter Alice Cook who was given the pink slip last week.

Bill Doyle of the Worcester Telegram interviews local native J.P. Ricciardi who goes from being Blue Jays General Manger to ESPN analyst.

Joe Haggerty from Comcast SportsNet New England writes about a new ESPN ad starring Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz and Yankees outfielder Nick Swisher.

A rare Neil Best sighting! The Boston Herald picks up a story from Newsday which continues to hide behind pay wall. In this story, Neil writes about CBS being poised to keep the NCAA Tournament. 

From the New York Daily News, Bob Raissman looks at the possibility of the NCAA opting out of its current contract with CBS.

Phil Mushnick in the New York Post is nitpicking over a dunk highlight.

Pete Dougherty of the Albany Times Union talks with CBS/Sports Illustrated’s Seth Davis about Siena’s experience as an NCAA player.

Ken McMillan of the Hudson Valley Times Herald-Record has an appreciation of the late Merlin Olsen.

Tim Lemke explains why he is now a fan of the college basketball conference tournaments.

Jim Williams in the Washington Examiner says NBC begins its Paralympics coverage this weekend.

Jim transcribes an interview Billy Packer did with Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Jim talks about a Baltimore radio host who’s conducting a contest to give Orioles Opening Day tickets to several families.

South

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald talks with sports radio host Sid Rosenberg about his new book.

Sarah Talalay from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel says JetBlue will unveil a Florida Panthers tailfin on Tuesday.

Ray Buck in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram notes that HBO has some big plans for tomorrow’s Manny Pacquaio-Joshua Clottey championship fight at Dallas Cowboys Stadium.

To David Barron of the Houston Chronicle who discusses the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary on Reggie Miller’s rivalry with the New York Knicks.

David catches up on some ratings news and notes since returning home from the Olympics.

Midwest

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer remembers an interesting story regarding the late Merlin Olsen and former NBC NFL analyst Bob Trumpy.

Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times writes that the White Sox have shot down manager Ozzie Guillen’s request for a website.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has his usual Friday winners and losers.

Bob Wolfley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Time Warner Cable gave subscribers frozen pictures that hampered fans from viewing of the Big East Tournament.

Paul Christian of the Rochester Post-Bulletin writes that hockey fans in the Gopher State will have plenty of action to watch this weekend.

Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says not everyone in the Gateway City will be able to see the Atlantic 10 Tournament this weekend.

West

Scott D. Pierce in the Deseret (UT) News says DirecTV subscribers won’t be able to see the Mountain West Conference men’s and women’s basketball championship games as they will be carried on Versus.

Jay Posner of the San Diego Union-Tribune speaks with Padres voice Dick Enberg who won’t be calling his first game until the season opener in April.

John Maffei in the North County Times says the San Diego State men’s basketball team might get some national love if they keep winning in the Mountain West Tournament.

Over to the Ventura County Star where Jim Carlisle says Hall of Fame defensive lineman Merlin Olsen was also a great broadcaster.

Jim is not a fan of the NCAA Tournament expanding to 96 teams.

Diane Pucin in the Los Angeles Times says both CBS and ESPN will be all over the NCAA Tournament selections.

In the Los Angeles Daily News, Kevin Modesti with help from Tom Hoffarth, has a remembrance of Merlin Olsen.

Tom has his usual media notes.

Tom has Dick Enberg’s thoughts on his former broadcast partner, Olsen.

Tom also looks back at the week in sports media.

Canada

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says the NHL knocking out head shots was the right thing to do.

The Toronto Star says CTV has relented and will show the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympics live, but only in British Columbia.

Chris Zelkovich of the Star says the Paralympics are not a huge money maker, but are worthy of TV coverage for the Canadian Olympics Broadcast Media Consortium.

William Houston in Truth & Rumours says the head of the Media Consortium may be leaving.

And that will do it for the Megalinks. 

Thursday’s Stuff

I have links for you today. Trying to finish these early so I can some work done.

The Associated Press has the top 15 cable programs for last week which includes some programming from ESPN.

Anthony Crupi of Mediaweek writes that ESPN will finish third in the yearly cable primetime ratings.

Anthony says Monday Night Football scored for ESPN this week.

Romanesko reports that Editor & Publisher, the organization that covers the newspaper industry is now ceasing publication. Very sad.

Carolyn Giardina of the Hollywood Reporter looks at the 3-D test being conducted at Cowboys Stadium for the San Diego-Dallas game.

John Eggerton of Multichannel News says hearings will be held on Capitol Hill later this month on pirating sports broadcasts over the internet.

Mike Reynolds of Multichannel writes that the Sportsman Channel is being upgraded on Comcast systems in Chicago.

Sports Illustrated’s Dan McGrath says Cubs TV analyst Bob Brenly is ready to get back into managing.

Alden Gonzalez from MLB.com writes about Dick Enberg being inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame next week.

Sean Gregory of Time looks at how the PGA Tour’s TV partners are treating Tiger Woods.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell looks at how the Tiger Woods story is affecting sports marketing.

Paul Baker from the Ridgefield (CT) Press writes about Monday Night Football director Chip Dean receiving an honor from Arizona State University.

Richard Sandomir of the New York Times says since the Tiger Woods Slam into a fire hydrant the day after Thanksgiving, his website has seen increased traffic.

Tim Lemke of the Washington Times has some thoughts on why Peter Gammons left ESPN in favor of MLB Network.

Dustin Long of the Virginian-Pilot says NASCAR might be putting more of its races online (scroll down). Thanks to Jay Busbee of Yahoo’s From the Marbles blog for the link.

The Orlando Business Journal says the St. Petersburg Bowl now has a sponsor.

Tom Jicha of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel talks about a West Palm Beach TV station outsourcing its sports reports to the local ESPN Radio station.

Barry Horn from the Dallas Morning News is amused by Michael Strahan’s comments on the Cowboys’ Flozell Adams.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business wonders if the sluggish economy is responsible for the excellent TV ratings for sports programming.

Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says NBC’s Rodney Harrison is on the Packers’ Super Bowl express.

Riverside County (CA) Press-Enterprise looks at the Lakers’ Luke Walton taking the mic for a couple of games.

Peter Hadekel of the Montreal Gazette talks with International Olympic Committee member and director of the Vancouver Organizing Committee Richard Pound on the business and economic impact of the 2010 Olympic Games.

Bruce Dowbiggin of the Toronto Globe and Mail says the Tiger Woods story is leaving sponsors, the PGA Tour and others wondering what’s in the golfer’s future.

Chris Zelkovich from the Toronto Star looks at a civilian who won a one year contract to broadcast sports.

Writing for Pro Football Weekly, Barry Jackson from the Miami Herald says NFL Network’s game productions has a ways to improve.

Sports Media Watch says the Big 12 Championship did well for ABC on Saturday.

SMW says college football on the ESPN family networks was the most viewed in over a decade.

SMW has some ratings news and notes.

SMW says the Tiger Woods story is good business for Yahoo, but not for Tiger’s sponsors.

And the SMW speaks with TNT Inside the NBA producer Tim Kiely.

John Daly’s Daly Planet blog looks at whether NASCAR fans are willing to watch a new one hour weekly highlights show on Showtime.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media wonders where Mike Milbury is on NBC’s coverage of the NHL Winter Classic.

We conclude with Kristine Leahy doing The Five on WEEI.com.

That’s going to do it for now.

Oh, My! Dick Enberg Becomes TV Voice of the Padres

We found out about this last night and it becomes official today. Dick Enberg leaves CBS at the end of the season to become the lead TV announcer for the San Diego Padres.

We now have the official announcement from the Padres:

DICK ENBERG NAMED PADRES TELEVISION PLAY-BY-PLAY ANNOUNCER

San Diego, CA – The San Diego Padres today announced they have named Dick Enberg as their television play-by-play announcer. Padres Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer Jeff Moorad made the announcement.

Enberg is expected to join the Padres in Spring Training this February and will call action for the majority of regular-season games on Cox-owned Channel 4 San Diego while continuing his tennis coverage of Wimbledon and the U.S. Open.

“Dick is a legendary figure in sports and we’re honored to have him as the newest member of the Padres,” said Moorad. “He is also a long-time San Diegan and dedicated follower of Padres baseball, making this even more special for all Padres fans.”

Renowned as one of the great sports broadcasters of all-time, Enberg, who has worked for CBS Sports for the past 10 years, is currently serving as a play-by-play voice for their coverage of the NFL, college basketball and the U.S. Open Tennis Championships as well as ESPN’s coverage of Wimbledon. He has also contributed to coverage of the Masters® and PGA Championship broadcasts on CBS Sports.

“Over my many years behind the microphone, my love for baseball has never waned,” said Enberg. “As a San Diego resident for 26 years, I have followed the Padres with keen interest and sincerely thank Jeff Moorad and Tom Garfinkel for the opportunity to broadcast for my hometown Major League team. I treasure the time I’ve spent calling baseball and find that it is the most demanding and yet most intimate sport to broadcast. Baseball is made for good story telling and I think that is what I’ve always done best.”

“We’re delighted to have Dick Enberg as part of our award-winning team at Channel 4 San Diego,” said Bill Geppert, Senior Vice President and General Manager for Cox Communications. “Dick is an iconic TV sports personality who will bring an exciting dimension to our high-definition Padres telecasts.”

Enberg began his full-time broadcasting career in 1965 in Los Angeles as the radio and television voice of the California Angels, UCLA basketball and the Los Angeles Rams and was named California Sportscaster of the Year on four occasions.

“Throughout his storied broadcasting career, including the past 10 years with CBS Sports, Dick Enberg has been the ultimate gentleman and consummate professional. He remains a true legend in every sense of the word,” said Sean McManus, President, CBS News and Sports. “It is with a touch of sadness from his family at CBS Sports, but mostly great joy for Dick that he will be returning to broadcasting one of his great passions, baseball, with the San Diego Padres. All of us realize that this truly is an opportunity that he could not pass up and look forward to finding ways to continue working with Dick.”

One of the most versatile play-by-play announcers in sports broadcasting history, his résumé includes coverage of 42 NFL seasons, 10 Super Bowls, nine Rose Bowls, six Orange Bowls, four Olympic Games, six Australian Opens, 23 French Opens, 26 Wimbledons, 10 U.S. Open Tennis Championships, three Ryder Cups, three MLB playoffs, the World Series, three heavyweight boxing championships, 14 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championships, the NBA playoffs and the NBA All-Star Game. In addition to football, baseball, tennis, golf, basketball and boxing, Enberg has all called the action for gymnastics, figure skating, Breeder’s Cup horse racing and track-and-field.

Among his numerous awards and honors, Enberg is the recipient of 14 Emmy Awards, nine Sportscaster of the Year Awards, the Ronald Reagan Media Award and the Victor Award, recognizing the top sportscaster of the past 40 years. He is the only person to win National Emmy Awards as a sportscaster, writer and producer. In February 1998, he became just the fourth sportscaster to be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

A native of Armada, Mich., and resident of San Diego, Enberg began his broadcasting career as a student at Central Michigan University, where he graduated in 1957. He earned a master’s degree (1958) and doctorate at Indiana University (1962) and has been named a Distinguished Alumnus by both institutions.

Dick has had a distinguished career having called Super Bowls, NCAA men’s basketball championships, Olympics, golf, tennis as well as the then-Los Angeles Rams and California Angels. He’ll still be seen on network TV every year during coverage of Wimbledon and the U.S. Open for ESPN2, but his days of calling the NFL and NCAA basketball for CBS are over. At least he left CBS on his own terms and will have a nice cap to his career in calling the Padres.

Doing Some Thursday Links

Let’s give you the links on this Thursday.

We have some more details of Dick Enberg’s new job with the San Diego Padres. John Maffei of the North County Times reports that La Jolla, CA native Enberg will leave CBS at the end of this NFL season so he can work with the Padres. He’ll continue to call tennis for ESPN2.

Writing for the Indiana University National Sports Journalism Center, Dave Kindred says the best storytelling in sports goes to ESPN.

Michael Hiestand of USA Today writes that a Comcast ownership could help NBC Sports.

Tim Arango of the New York Times says the Comcast purchase of NBC will definitely reshape TV as we know it.

Comcast has launched a microsite devoted to the new NBC Universal.

Ken Schott from the Schenectady Gazette says NBA TV is adding Denver-Philadelphia on Monday to air Allen Iverson’s return to the 76ers.

Ken McMillan of the Hudson Valley Times Herald-Record bids Chip Caray adieu.

Alan Pergament of the Buffalo News looks forward to hearing what NFL Network’s Bob Papa and Matt Millen have to say about Bills interim coach Perry Fewell during tonight’s Jets-Bills game in Toronto.

Barry Horn from the Dallas Morning News has the Metroplex sports radio ratings for November.

Evan Grant of the Morning News writes that Texas Rangers owner Tom Hicks is in a bit of trouble with MLB over his proposed TV contract extension with Fox Sports Southwest.

John Kiesewetter of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes that the local Fox affiliate will pre-empt Fox NFL Sunday in favor of a local Bengals pregame show.

Ed Sherman in Crain’s Chicago Business has some more thoughts on the Tiger Woods story.

Bob Wolfley from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says Fox’s Brian Billick is ranking the Packers high in a list he created.

Robert Gagliardi of the Wyoming Tribune Eagle writes that the University of Wyoming won’t make or lose money if it goes to a bowl game whether it’s on ESPN or another network.

Mark Heisler of the Los Angeles Times says our obsession with celebrities fueled the coverage of the Tiger Woods story. So basically we’re part of the problem, which I somewhat agree.

Matt Vasgersian of MLB Network has an interesting look at some of the best mustaches in baseball.

Steve Lepore of Puck The Media has 6 predictions for a combined Comcast/NBC Sports entity.

Kristine Leahy has The Five on WEEI.com.

That’s it for the links for now.

Late Night Links … Again

After getting a late start to blogging today and not being able to provide links during the day, I thought maybe I can take the night off from blogging. WRONG! Things are breaking tonight. It’s hard to decide where to begin, but let’s go with the New York Times.

Andrew Ross Sorkin and Tim Arango chronicle how the Comcast/NBC deal was made and how it all began back in July.

To the West Coast where we discover that legendary broadcaster Dick Enberg is going back to baseball to San Diego Padres games in 2010.

Jay Posner of the San Diego Union-Tribune breaks the news that Enberg will be the main TV voice for the team.

John Maffei from the North County Times says Enberg will call as many as 125 games for the Padres.

This means that Enberg will cut the French Open from his schedule for next year while keeping Wimbledon and the U.S. Open which he calls for ESPN2 and CBS respectively.

To Chicago where WBBM-TV, the Windy City’s CBS affiliate is doing something rather radical for its low-rated morning daypart. Phil Rosenthal of the Tribune reports that the station is picking up Mike North and Dan Jiggetts from Comcast SportsNet and placing their show in the timeslot where the morning news is currently.

Lewis Lazare of the Chicago Sun-Times also writes about WBBM’s move to bring North and Jiggetts over from Comcast SportsNet.

And Ed Sherman from Crain’s Chicago Business chimes in with a story of his own on North moving from cable to over the air TV.

To Washington, DC and our nation’s capital, Jennifer Harper of the Washington Times writes that the paper is reorganizing and laying off 40% of its workforce.

Times’ sports business writer Tim Lemke tweets that this likely means the entire sports department will be cut.

CNBC’s Darren Rovell talks with a former Nike insider about the Tiger Woods apology.

Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News tries to make sense of the mainstream media’s reporting of the Tiger Woods apology.

Pete Dougherty from the Albany Times Union looks at the ratings for ESPN’s Monday Night Football.

And Pete updates this week’s college football schedule.

Laura Nachman says a former Philly TV and radio personality is disbanding his Tiger Woods fansite.

Barry Horn of the Dallas Morning News crunches some of the NFL ratings numbers from Week 12.

Mel Bracht from the Daily Oklahoman says ESPN The Magazine is giving love to Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant.

The Los Angeles Times has a special section devoted to the work of the late Mike Penner.

Chris Zelkovich of the Toronto Star writes that the long-time head of a city sports radio station moves to the TV side.

William Houston at Truth & Rumours also writes about the TV/radio shakeup and the Tiger Woods story.

Rick Kissell from Variety looks at ESPN’s ratings for Monday Night Football.

Anthony Crupi of Mediaweek says football gave ESPN the monthly cable win for November.

Lucia Moses of Mediaweek says Sports Illustrated is set to unveil in 2010 an electronic reader that can expand on its magazine.

The Sports Media Watch has the weekend overnight ratings.

SMW says Monday’s Patriots-Saints game just barely missed breaking a cable ratings record.

And SMW notes that the UFL Championship Game didn’t do all that well on Versus.

Chris Byrne of the Eye on Sports Media has decided to leave a blog network.

Chris adds that Tiger Woods should have learned a lesson on privacy.

The Cycle blog says it’s time to leave Tiger alone.

Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball writes that MLB.com is looking for stats stringers for 2010.

Dave Kohl of the Major League Programs blog looks at radio and TV media rights.

That’s going to be it for us tonight. I will post two press releases and go to bed.