During the Sunday Night Baseball matchup between the San Francisco Giants and New York Mets, viewers tuned in to Karl Ravech, David Cone and Eduardo Perez’s call of the game on ESPN. As the primary home of the broadcast property, the network brings viewers a prime-time Sunday night game each week featuring a compelling matchup. For select weeks though, an alternate broadcast, titled Sunday Night Baseball with KayRod, takes place on ESPN2 featuring Michael Kay and Álex Rodríguez. The issue some viewers have, however, is being informed that the broadcast is scheduled or taking place – let alone existing altogether.
Last night’s KayRod Cast featured a star-studded guest list, including Darryl Strawberry, Kevin Mitchell and Scott Boras, urging people to view the proceedings. Others were content to stick with the traditional game call, either disinterested or incredulous towards the alternate broadcast. Throughout the course of the regular broadcast, Ravech made mention of Kay and Rodríguez’s presentation of the game, confounding some media pundits. Filling in for Boomer Esiason and Gregg Giannotti on WFAN’s Boomer & Gio, Jerry Recco and Sal Licata discussed the Mets’ victory over the Giants and then turned their attention to the presentation of the game.
“The promotion they were giving for the KayRod thing last night during the ESPN regular broadcast,” Reccco referenced. “They actually put up live video of them doing it when they had Kevin Mitchell on. You’re basically telling your audience, ‘Hey guys, go here.’”
Licata, a die-hard Mets fan, did not want to watch a broadcast featuring a former New York Yankees infielder and the team’s play-by-play announcer on YES Network. Kay also hosts an afternoon radio show on ESPN New York 98.7, which primarily battles with WFAN for its share of the ratings. Licata, moving into the midday time slot on WFAN with Brandon Tierney starting on July 24, did not even know Kay’s alternate broadcast existed.
“I can’t think of two people I’d rather watch less,” Licata said of Kay and Rodríguez.
Christopher “Mad Dog” Russo was an additional guest on the KayRod Cast, who also makes a weekly appearance on the top-rated morning show, First Take. Licata wishes Russo’s guest appearance would have been better promoted by ESPN, affirming that it would have urged him to watch the alternate broadcast. Instead, he focused on the traditional broadcast and the essential victory of his hometown team.
“Does the rest of the country care?,” Recco replied. “….I think to the rest of the country, it’s A-Rod and Michael Kay is just the announcer.”
Aside from his role on Sunday Night Baseball, Rodríguez also serves as a studio analyst for FOX Sports on its program, Baseball Night in America. Kay and Rodríguez usually work the broadcast together from ESPN’s Seaport District studios in New York, N.Y.; however, this iteration was executed remotely. There were several moments where Kay’s internet connection was lagging, along with moments where Rodríguez spoke simultaneously because of the remote style of the broadcast.
Rodríguez was recently across the pond for the MLB London Series and on the desk with David Ortiz and Kevin Burkhardt for the broadcast debut of Derek Jeter. Recco and Licata expressed some level of envy towards Burkhardt, who used to spend time with them when he was primarily based in the New York metropolitan area.
“He gets to hang out with Jeter,” Licata expressed. “Jerry, he used to hang out with us, and now he’s hanging out with Jeter, A-Rod and Ortiz.”
In addition to his role as the host of baseball studio coverage, Burkhardt was elevated to the role of lead play-by-play announcer for the NFL on FOX. He is expected to work alongside Tom Brady in the lead broadcast booth beginning in the 2024 regular season. While Brady will be on one game per week with FOX Sports, Jeter is only on the desk for marquee events, including the aforementioned London Series and MLB All-Star Game.
“Jeter is working a couple of days,” Chris LoPresti said. “When it was like, ‘Jeter’s joining the crew,’ yeah, for a couple [of things].”
