When ESPN announced the KayRod Cast before the MLB season began, many had low expectations. Would it be just a knockoff of the more popular ManningCast? Could Alex Rodriguez do enough to carry a more free-flowing conversation?
Now at the All-Star break, ARod is reflecting on the show and enjoying plenty of acclaim for his partnership with Michael Kay.
“I think the KayRod is an example of where baseball and sports could move — especially baseball, because you have sometimes up to four hours to fill,” he told Michael McCarthy of Front Office Sports.
Alex Rodriguez faced plenty of criticism during his time in the more traditional booth for Sunday Night Baseball. He told McCarthy that doesn’t mean he is incapable of being part of a more traditional broadcast. He pointed to his work on FOX’s studio coverage of the playoffs, where he says it is more comfortable and roles are more defined.
The KayRod Cast is more conversational. That is more comfortable for Rodriguez because it is more conversational. He says it should be more comfortable for anyone, because it allows the people talking about the game to do more.
“It’s almost like Baseball Watch meets podcast meets Good Morning America. You get a little bit of everything. We get to see the board. We get to present. We get to have really interesting conversations. And by the way, here’s the 2-1 pitch.”
ESPN2 debuted the KayRod Cast in April on the season’s opening weekend. There have been six editions thus far. Two more are scheduled to air in August and September respectively, with the matchups to this point undecided.
