How will we bear in mind the 12 months in sports activities?
Let’s permit Chicago White Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf to do the honors:
“It was absolutely the worst season I’ve ever been through. It was a nightmare. It’s still a nightmare. It’s embarrassing. It’s disgusting. All the bad words you can think of is the way I feel about the 2023 season. It absolutely was just awful.”
Reinsdorf clearly was referring to the White Sox, however there have been sufficient nightmares to go round for followers of each staff to complain about, together with one other misplaced season of the Bears rebuild and an epic Cubs collapse.
Still, we watched and listened, groused and groaned and typically managed to giggle, as a result of that’s what being a fan is all about.
With the 12 months about to finish, listed here are a few of the greatest and worst issues we noticed and heard in 2023.
Ozzie and Chuck Show
Nothing labored higher after a White Sox loss than washing it down with some vitriol from analyst Ozzie Guillen on the NBC Chicago Sports postgame present, co-starring Chuck Garfien. Guillen’s takedowns of the staff and supervisor Pedro Grifol sounded just like the man sitting on the following bar stool.
“This is my job,” he instructed me. “Do I have an easy job? No. But the reason I have it, the reason they picked me to do this job is because the fans know I will tell the truth. If someone (from the White Sox) doesn’t like what I say, well, I’m here. I hope they (say something). I can’t wait for them.”
Honorable point out goes to Will Perdue and Kendall Gill, whose biting feedback on the Chicago Bulls postgame exhibits are at all times heading in the right direction.
The Sut Scale
After Marquee Network analyst Rick Sutcliffe’s excessively glowing commentary on the Cubs’ play throughout a West Coast journey in April, we invented the Sut Scale to guage the staff’s postseason goals.
Five Suts: “I’m telling you, this team has championship vibes.”
Four Suts: “My goodness, they look like they’ll be playing in October.”
Three Suts: “Never underestimate a David Ross-managed team.”
Two Suts: “It doesn’t happen overnight, but watch out, people, for those 2024 Cubbies.”
One Sut: “These guys really care.”
At the tip of a roller-coaster season wherein Ross was fired, the ultimate verdict on 2023: Two Suts.
Worst name
During the Cubs’ journey to London, ESPN inexplicably assigned play-by-play man Michael Kay, greatest identified for his New York Yankees job. Key mispronounced the identify of Cubs nearer Adbert Alzolay a number of occasions and gave the impression to be watching his first Cubs recreation.
At least do some homework earlier than taking the project.
Juiciest scoop
WMVP-AM 1000 host Peggy Kusinski seemingly solved the largest thriller of the summer season when she reported on air that one of many two victims of a capturing within the bleachers at White Sox Park “reportedly snuck the gun in past metal detectors hiding it in the folds of her belly fat.” No sources had been cited, and the Sox’s flagship radio station by no means adopted up on her report.
Reinsdorf mentioned in September that “based upon the information available to us, I see virtually no possibility that the gunshots came from within the ballpark.” He didn’t cite his supply both.
Months later, the Chicago Police Department has but to resolve the thriller of the gunshots, and so the “belly fat” concept has but to be disproved.
Taylor Swift watch
Watching Swift watch soccer was simply probably the most overhyped sports activities media story of the 12 months. God forbid the Kansas City Chiefs make the Super Bowl once more.
Lip-readers even famous that Swift uttered a profanity Sunday in the course of the Chiefs-Patriots recreation. Can you think about somebody swearing at a sports activities occasion?
Down and out
The viral clip of the 12 months belonged to Cleveland Guardians third baseman José Ramirez’s knockdown of Sox shortstop Tim Anderson.
Guardians radio voice Tom Hamilton proved to be prepared for the second: “José and Anderson square off. They’re fighting, they’re swinging, down goes Anderson. Down goes Anderson!”
After the season, the Sox unceremoniously minimize ties with Anderson, previously referred to by the Sox as “the face of baseball.”
The greater they’re …
Heavyset Sox starter Lance Lynn lasted solely six innings as soon as in his first 5 begins and appeared flummoxed by the brand new pitch-clock guidelines.
“Maybe a couple salads would help,” Sox analyst Steve Stone instructed WSCR-AM 670 in a dialog about Lynn. Stone later apologized to Lynn.
But Lynn’s downfall continued, finally resulting in a commerce deadline dump to the Los Angeles Dodgers, with whom he continued serving up dwelling runs with out consuming sufficient salads.
The fact hurts
When Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokić was ejected from a Dec. 12 recreation in opposition to the Chicago Bulls simply earlier than halftime, radio announcer Chuck Swirsky mentioned there was “no excuse” for the Bulls to lose with Jokic and Jamal Murray out.
“I could think of some,” Bulls analyst Bill Wennington sarcastically responded. The Bulls went on to lose 114-106.
Multitasking fail
Marquee mic’d up Cody Bellinger for a recreation in September and caught some flak when he didn’t catch a line shot that hit the bottom of the outfield wall.
Bellinger was conversing with Jon Sciambi simply earlier than the ball was hit to him. He in all probability wouldn’t have caught it anyway, however some followers had been upset he was pressured to multitask throughout an essential recreation in a pennant race.
Marquee normal supervisor Mike McCarthy mentioned it was “an experiment” that might not be repeated the remainder of the season. “We’re trying to understand some of the implications of it and we won’t be pursuing it again,” he mentioned.
Look for extra in 2024, although possibly with out Bellinger, who’s but unsigned.
Mr. Bombastic
It was one other massive 12 months for bombastic yakkers on TV and radio.
The cut up of Fox Sports’ Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharp as their disagreements grew to become private was unhealthy TV at its most interesting. Pat McAfee continued his assault on our intelligence on ESPN, on which he’s made a profession from being Aaron Rodger’s valet.
But the honour of Mr. Bombastic 2023 goes to ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, who mentioned on Paul Finebaum’s radio present “if enough people came to me and said to me, ‘Stephen A., you have a legitimate shot to win the presidency of the United States of America,’ I would strongly, strongly consider running.”
President Stephen A.? Remember, as unhealthy as 2023 appears proper now, it at all times may worsen.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com