Boston Red Sox fans have something new to look forward to this upcoming season as NESN announced today that Lou Merloni will be promoted to the new primary color analyst on the network alongside play-by-play commentator Dave O’Brien. The network has been in flux with how to replace former television analyst Jerry Remy, who passed away in 2021, and the retirement of Dennis Eckersley in 2022.
Merloni is expected to work about 100 game broadcasts this season, with Will Middlebrooks and Kevin Millar working a limited number of games to fill the season slate. Former Red Sox player Kevin Youkilis, however, will not be included in the rotation of analysts on the network. The two-time World Series champion began working Red Sox games on NESN in 2022.
According to the network, the studio team will remain very similar to what it was in 2024. Tom Caron will once again serve as primary host, with Adam Pellerin contributing to host duties. Analyst duties will also include Jim Rice, Jonathan Papelbon, Deven Marrero, and Lenny DiNardo. Middlebrooks is also expected to contribute to pregame and postgame coverage.
Jahmai Webster will serve as sideline reporter for the broadcasts on NESN for the eighth season after joining the network in October 2016, while Mike Monaco will fill in as play-by-play man on occasion for O’Brien.
Merloni’s increased workload comes in his third season calling games on NESN as a color analyst. He also worked nine years with Red Sox radio flagship WEEI in the radio booth while serving fifteen years as a host on the station’s midday and afternoon drive programs. As the longtime voice of the Red Sox, Dave O’Brien enters his 35th season of MLB broadcasting and tenth season as NESN’s play-by-play announcer after nine years with the Red Sox radio network.
NESN is co-owned by the Boston Red Sox and Boston Bruins and serves as the broadcast home for regional coverage of both teams. The outlet reaches four million homes across nine designated market areas and is distributed on various cable and over-the-top media platforms. NESN launched a direct-to-consumer platform in June 2022, allowing fans to purchase subscriptions to view content from the network without a traditional cable television subscription through a multichannel video programming distributor (MVPD).
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