As postseason play in Major League Baseball continues, fans are gearing up for the start of the divisional series, which will help dwindle the playing field for teams with a chance to compete for a World Series championship. There is no dearth of young, dynamic talent within the four matchups, featuring superstars including Corbin Carroll, Yordan Álvarez and Adley Rutschman among others. All will aim to leave their mark as the battle for baseball prosperity begins on Saturday. Broadcasts of the divisional round will be split between FOX Sports (FOX/FS1) and Warner Bros. Discovery Sports (TBS) with trusted insights, analysis and expertise from deft studio lineups with accomplished veterans, Hall of Famers and astute thinkers of the game.
Pedro Martínez has been working as an analyst for postseason coverage on TBS for the last decade and also contributes to MLB Network over the course of the year. The 2015 National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee is considered by many fans to be one of the greatest pitchers of the modern era, winning three Cy Young Awards and a World Series championship throughout his 18-year career.
In reviewing the postseason landscape, he feels that the play on the field will permeate through the studio walls and create new memories and experiences on the set. Specifically referencing Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr.’s historic 2023 statline of 41 home runs and 73 stolen bases, he hopes for new records to be set as the “Fall Classic” approaches.
“Stuff like that, I’m expecting to see in the postseason,” Martínez said. “I’m looking forward to really seeing the different things that happen and getting some new experiences.”
When the network starts its coverage of the divisional series on Saturday, Oct. 7 at 5:30 p.m. EST/2:30 p.m. PST, the earlier slate of American League games is expected to be at or near their conclusion. As a result, the studio team will have a binary responsibility of reacting to these matchups and preparing fans for the first game of a broadcast doubleheader. Once the games begin, the crew will gather in the green room to watch the action and prepare for their next live hit, eliciting informed opinions, apropos criticism and fruitful discussion.
“We’re excited and intrigued for Game 1 for both of our DS matchups,” said Curtis Granderson, MLB on TBS studio analyst and former MLB outfielder. “….Then when we’re sitting there watching the games together, just the number of conversations we have whether it’s baseball-related [or] non-baseball-related… plus the food that we will be enjoying because we will be there for an extended period of time. We’re going to definitely enjoy ourselves. It’s going to be like being at the ballpark.”
Granderson and Martínez will welcome former Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins to the panel, which will provide firsthand perspective on what it is like to compete for a championship in the “City of Brotherly Love.” Rollins never thought he would work in sports media while he was playing, but his mindset began to change towards the latter stages of his career. Once he changed his mind, he flew to the network’s studios in Atlanta, Ga. to audition and has been on the air ever since. Rollins contributes to Warner Bros. Discovery Sports and NBC Sports Philadelphia, the latter for which he serves as a color commentator on select matchups.
“It’s completely different,” Rollins said of his broadcasting roles. “You’re in the moment when you’re calling games, but [for] the postgame and the pregame, you get to say what you think is going to happen, talk about pitchers making adjustments and really share your knowledge.”
All three studio analysts will be situated alongside Ernie Johnson, a venerable network studio host and Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame inductee. Johnson has worked in the industry since 1979 and brings professionalism, poise and relatability to the air for every broadcast, as viewed by his colleagues. Martínez appreciates how Johnson makes his analysts feel comfortable and has their back if things go awry on the air.
“To me, it’s more of a privilege to be on his side than it is work,” Martínez said. “What I know about the game comes naturally, but the way he makes me feel when I’m about to say something about a certain situation [is] even better. If I mess up, I have Ernie to pick me up and the rest of the guys.”
Rollins is cognizant of the fact that Johnson engages in an immense amount of preparation before the program and makes suggestions to the producers throughout the program on how to improve the on-air product. Every time the camera turns on, he sees a sense of confidence wash over the host, which, in turn, grants his analysts the ability to do their jobs with added aplomb.
“I think when we first get out of baseball, we don’t want to go too hard on the guys because we don’t want to make the game seem easy because it’s not,” Rollins said. “I think we’ve seen that in a lot of places as former players given how difficult it is to play their respective sport. We have a guy like Ernie who has respect for the game, [and] you’ll never forget how difficult it is.”
Johnson is seamlessly able to “control the temperature of the stage,” according to Rollins, while also being able to effectively cover a story. The chemistry he exhibits with his on-air analysts and how he positions them for success, both on baseball coverage and on Inside the NBA, has rendered him adept at his job and a versatile industry professional.
“What you see is exactly what you get,” Granderson added, who played in the World Series as a member of the New York Mets in 2015. “Ernie is cool; he’s prepared; he’s smart [and a] historian all wrapped into one amazing package.”
This postseason, MLB on TBS will be implemented within the new B/R Sports Add-On within the Max streaming service. The new membership tier, which is being offered at no additional charge for existing subscribers through Thursday, Feb. 29, will grant users the ability to watch Warner Bros. Discovery presentations of live game broadcasts and other ancillary content. In targeting a younger demographic, the panel intends to blend tradition and innovation into their coverage and, in turn, augment the reach of the game at a global scale.
“It’s a great platform for us to teach what we know just like we do on TV, but with a younger audience,” Martínez said. “I’m so looking forward to finding a way to [have] conversations with a younger audience than the one we are accustomed to on television.”
Rule changes meant to hasten the pace of play and augment offensive output have had their intended effects, demonstrated through a 9.6% bump in attendance and 24-minute decrease in average game time. Aside from a more succinct on-field product, viewing alternate broadcasts across the sports media landscape indicate to other personalities that it is critical to amalgamate comprehensive esoterica with lighthearted banter and confabulation. The postseason is no exception.
“I think that’s what the younger audience really connects with,” Rollins said. “They understand sports goes on, but they like the cool things; they like the fun things…. We have the freedom to do things, but yet still, we have to stay on point.”
Warner Bros. Discovery’s broadcasts of the Major League Baseball postseason begin on Saturday night with MLB on TBS Leadoff at 5:30 p.m. EST/2:30 p.m. PST followed by the first of two NLDS matchups. The Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves commence action in the “Senior Circuit” starting at 6 p.m. EST/3 p.m. PST with Brian Anderson, Jeff Francoeur and Matt Winer on the call. Later on, the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers close out the first day of the round at 9 p.m. EST/6 p.m. PST with broadcasters Bob Costas, Ron Darling and Lauren Shehadi.
Derek Futterman is an associate editor and sports media reporter for Barrett Media. Additionally, he has worked in a broad array of roles in multimedia production – including on live game broadcasts and audiovisual platforms – and in digital content development and management. He previously interned for Paramount within Showtime Networks, wrote for the Long Island Herald and served as lead sports producer at NY2C. To get in touch, find him on X @derekfutterman.
