Ryan Dempster thinks the Cubs can win the division. (Cards 93 wins, 24 over .500 last year). He realized what he had said. Then started talking panic gibberish.

There's no reason why they can't go out and compete for the division... When you have a coach like Mike Napoli. And have the respect of your players to go out there and teach them a lot of those same things it won't be a matter of time before they're playing for a chance to win a World Series again sometime soon. That talented of a lineup. You know these guys that are putting the work in and and Justin Kelly the new hitting coach and then led by a guy like David Ross who knows first hand on multiple occasions what it takes and what it looks like.

https://www.bleachernation.com/cubs/202 ... roadcasts/


I Want to Talk About Cubs TV Broadcasts
May 10, 2023, by Michael Cerami Chicago Cubs



Back in 2019, I did a Cubs postgame show called “Outside the Ivy” with Luis Medina and Danny Rocket on NBC Sports Chicago. Immediately after our first show, Phil Rosenthal absolutely TORCHED us in The Chicago Tribune with an article titled “20 Questions After the Debut of Outside the Ivy.” Spoiler alert, the “questions” were, uh, not about when and where he could get more of us.

None of the criticism was unfair, mind you. That’s just part of the privilege of being put in front of a camera. But, I mean … I can’t say it didn’t suck to experience. We worked hard on our show and thought we did a good job. We weren’t owed a positive review, but it definitely took the wind out of our sails from the jump. We’re all still people, after all. And I wanted everyone to like us.

I bring all of this up today, because I have a few thoughts on the Chicago Cubs broadcast hosted primarily by Jon “Boog” Sciambi and Jim Deshaies, two guys I absolutely adore on a personal and professional level. I am not here to rip them — or Marquee, in general — for what they put together. I don’t think there’s any value in doing that.

I am here, however, to offer some constructive criticism as a Cubs fan who watches every single game and listens to every single broadcast Marquee puts together.

I understand the very fact of doing a post like this is going to come across negatively. And the timing of a post like this — following an absolutely brutal two weeks of baseball, capped off with two horrible losses to the Cardinals — is necessarily going to invite even more ire. But it’s a subject that has been on my mind lately, maybe just because we’re deep enough into the season to have some thoughts crystalizing.

OK. Enough throat-clearing. Here are some comments on the Chicago Cubs in-game broadcast put together by Marquee Sports Network.
Baseball Is Regional, It’s OK to Act Like It

Unlike the NFL – or even the NBA, to a lesser extent – Major League Baseball is an extremely regional sport. By that I mean the people watching a Marquee Sports Network broadcast of a Chicago Cubs game are going to be overwhelmingly Cubs fans. I don’t think it’s too much to ask for 10% more homerism in the broadcast.

Personally, I want my broadcasters to get a little mad when things go wrong. And I want them to be ecstatic when the Cubs come up in a big moment. I do not need them to be unbiased mediators of balance and cool 100% of the time. Who didn’t love hearing Len Kasper’s voice crack with excitement when he’d shout about a huge Cubs home run? I know I did.

Certainly, I understand that the pendulum can swing too far in the other direction, and I’m not looking for that!

I don’t want inauthenticity, and I REALLY don’t want Hawk Harrelson-level stuff. But I also often feel complete detachment to the broadcast when, for example, the Cubs blow a game against the Cardinals in the 9th inning after losing to the Cardinals the day before after losing in extra innings the day before that and there’s no audible disappointment or frustration in the broadcaster’s delivery or message (let alone any questioning of the decisions being made on a game-to-game basis).

Maybe I wouldn’t want to listen to Rick Sutcliffe call every single Cubs game, but I do enjoy the way he actually gets into the game when he joins the booth for those West Coast games. His exasperation is cathartic and his joy is palpable for fans that feel the same way he does in those big moments. More of that.
A Little Less Production, Please

Maybe this will confuse more than help, because the in-game stories and packages are often really interesting and well-produced in isolation. I like many of them and want them to stay.

But there’s just way too many.

I know baseball is trying to reach a broader audience, and maybe this is the only way to get non-hardcore baseball fans engaged, but I’m sorry … I’m trying to watch a baseball game. And we’re just constantly being interrupted by pre-planned anecdotes and interviews, sometimes even about players on THE OTHER TEAM.

And with the new rules, games are already shortened by ~30 minutes, so the same volume of any “non-game” feature is actually gobbling up a higher proportion of the overall broadcast.

This all goes, I suspect, to the network’s desire to deliver what they consider “national-level” broadcast quality, but it’s just not working in its current form.
Actually, Less is More

As a matter of fact, there’s just too much going on in general.

I don’t mind the rotating cast of broadcasters – everyone has a little something different to offer, and that can be fun. But when there’s three voices in the booth at the same time *PLUS* contributions from Taylor McGregor and/or Elise Menaker from the field (also great individually), it is overwhelming and distracting. Sometimes, the crowding is visual in addition to auditory.

There is definitely an argument to be made that less might just be more when it come to the Marquee broadcast.
… But More Play-by-Play

I know TV isn’t radio, so this isn’t to say Sciambi needs to call a game the same way Pat Hughes does on 670 The Score, nor should he. Television is a combined medium, and the pictures are indeed there on the screen for folks to see. But if you were to close your eyes and just listen to the Marquee broadcast, you’d often have absolutely no idea what’s going on. Basically, I think I want more play-by-play. I want to know more about what’s going on RIGHT NOW, in that very moment. Heck, I want to be able to walk into the kitchen for a second and still be tuned into the actual game.

You can still tell a story if it applies, but maybe fewer of the anecdotes that are just kind of generally about the guy at the plate or pitcher on the mound. I’m sure his path to the majors, the cleats he’s wearing, or that time he played in the WBC is fascinating. But you have an entire network and website (loaded with talented content creators) to dive deeper on that stuff for the people that want it as a complement to the TV broadcast, rather than a core element.

Oh, and you also have two brilliant baseball minds — Jim Deshaies and Jon Sciambi — available to analyze the game, itself. LET THEM COOK. I’d greatly prefer to hear them opine on the play/managerial decisions at hand than their favorite walk-up songs or which Marvel character each Cubs player represents (okay, that one is an exaggeration, but that’s the vibe it often gives). Sometimes — not all the time, but sometimes — the broadcast plays like a podcast occurring simultaneously to a Cubs game.
We Need HD Broadcasts

The Marquee Sports app does not stream in 1080p, let alone 4K like the Apple TV+ broadcast. So if you’re like me, someone who has a cable subscription, but prefers to stream the broadcast on their AppleTV using the official Marquee Sports Network app, you’re watching the game in what (I’ve confirmed to be) 720p. You know, like it’s 2008.

What’s even more frustrating is that if you are out of the market streaming the same exact Marquee broadcast through your MLB.TV subscription, you’re getting the game in full HD. Why, then, are these being broadcast in such low quality over streaming devices in 2023?*

*I’ve been informed that Marquee is, in fact, streaming in 720p and that they are aware that it is less than ideal. They are working on upgrading that streaming quality to 1080p and are optimistic about that change occurring soon.
We Need a Standalone Marquee Streaming Service

And finally, but perhaps most importantly: we need a standalone Marquee Streaming service available to the ever-increasing number of fans that want to cut ties with their cable company. Right now, there are thousands of people paying ridiculous cable bills ONLY for the ability to watch the Cubs.

That’s just not the way it should be nowadays, and it’s potentially doing long-term damage to the franchise.

I have had SO MANY people (multiple just in the last week!) tell me they have never felt more disconnected to the Cubs than they do right now, because they’re not willing to pay an extra $70-$80/month to Xfinity or RCN (or whomever) just to watch the Cubs. I understand that this is a complicated endeavor, weaving in the league and massive cable service providers contracts, that could cost the Cubs millions in short-term dollars. But the long-term impact of alienating large sections of your fanbase by not letting them watch the Cubs has to be worse.

Create a streaming product, charge a monthly subscription fee, and give people the option to watch your product the way everyone watches everything else in 2023. I know there have been a lot of public statements about this kind of product being worked on, but it is badly needed sooner rather than later.

* * *

Final Note: To be perfectly clear, these are all merely suggestions based on my personal preferences. There are a lot of different types of Cubs fans out there who may disagree with some or all of what I said above. Totally acknowledged. Furthermore, calling a Cubs game – and producing a network – is hard work with challenges most of us will never understand. I could not do what any of these very talented people do and this is not a shot at any one of them, individually. I mean that.

I haven’t watched a game broadcast locally since Marquee rolled out, but listen to many more games than I have since I was a kid. Baseball is absolutely a game that can be enjoyed at very least equally on the radio as it is visually on tv. I used to investigate the different options to get marquee, but now I really couldn’t care less.

...

33% more than an Amazon Prime membership and all the benefits for the honor to hear Boog praise a near .500 team and see Score trash on "The Reporters".

Quite honestly, I think we're going to say more of this. I don't have an issue with paying $120 for a season of watching my team play baseball. It looks like this finally works by the local "blackout" market rules, which is fine. They only issue I have is if they were to be a playoff team, you wouldn't be able to watch without a cable subscription.

_________________

Great way to alienate their fans. I refuse to pay 19.99 a month to watch a seasonal sporting event. Baseball needs a salary cap. Increased prices to games excludes a majority of middle classed families and now a subscription to watch your home team locks out the poor and lower middle class families from their product.

Unless your dad is a fan of the team, kids will not be exposed to Cubs baseball. No kid is asking for a Marquee subscription for his birthday or christmas over an Xbox Live subscription.

Maybe I'm just old and nostalgic, but I miss the days of turning on WGN in the middle of the afternoon and enjoying a game. Major sports have lost their identity as an escape from the real world and have turned into just another corporate form of entertainment.

_________________

Those days are gone and never coming back. Even the NFL has certain games that are Amazon or paid provider to watch.
We don't watch enough TV to justify wasting $70+ a month on a bunch of cable channels we don't watch. The future is a la cart streaming platforms....no way to avoid it.

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Which will end up being more than 70 bucks a month for most people.

Marquee network has re-introduced me to how satisfying it is to listen to a ball game while working in the garage or the workshop or doing any project around the house. The post above was absolutely correct in regard to subscription services killing their future audiences to make a buck now. Sad, but baseball on the radio really is nice (between the endless stream of commercial reads during the broadcast).

Went with Youtube TV at beginning of month. So besides the last two days, I haven't seen a Cubs game since. I'll find other ways to watch then pay 20 a month for Marquee if its worth the time.

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I don't blame anyone for choosing to not pay $20 a month but you also aren't really a great fan if around 80 cents a game is too much for you to subscribe.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Do you have to pay for the whole season or could you pick and choose which months to sign up?

What’s the amount per game I’d have to pay that qualifies me?

Um, seemingly 80 cents a game based on my quick math.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

So listening for free and simply keeping my $20 per month wouldn’t get me my Brick “great fan” card. Interesting. I think my way gets me all the excitement of game action PLUS the bonus money I’d be saving.

Are you Leash's Dad? Bad Cub fan here.

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Bad fan here.

I'm 46, been a cubs fan my whole life. I will never pay $20 a month to stream their games. That would ruin my Fandom. Its exploitative

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

i thought you were like 32/33 the way you post like a little child.

it's so easy to stream MLB - I even know how to do it. It's not like the NFL where they go after streams. MLB probably doesn't even know what a video stream is. So easy to watch the Cubs without paying.

Bitch please.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

What would be the appropriate amount they should charge?

_________________

Nothing.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

World Series Television Ratings
Television Analysis & Ratings Breakdown

Series Network Rating Share Viewers Rank
1968 NBC 22.8 57 -- --
1969 NBC 22.4 58 -- --
1970 NBC 19.4 53 -- --
1971 NBC 24.2 59 -- --
1972 NBC 27.6 58 -- --
1973 NBC 30.7 57 34,750,000 11.
1974 NBC 25.6 46 29,080,000 18.
1975 NBC 28.7 52 35,960,000 8.
1976 NBC 27.5 48 34,720,000 12.
1977 ABC 29.8 53 37,150,000 6.
1978 NBC 32.8 56 44,278,950 1.
1979 ABC 28.5 50 37,960,000 5.
1980 NBC 32.8 56 42,300,000 2.
1981 ABC 30.0 49 41,370,000 3.
1982 NBC 27.9 49 38,070,000 4.
1983 ABC 23.3 41 29,540,000 17.
1984 NBC 22.9 40 28,010,000 20.
1985 ABC 25.3 39 34,510,000 13.
1986 NBC 28.6 46 36,370,000 7.
1987 ABC 24.0 41 35,340,000 10.
1988 NBC 23.9 39 34,490,000 14.
1989 ABC 16.4 29 24,550,000 25.
1990 CBS 20.8 36 30,240,000 15.
1991 CBS 24.0 39 35,680,000 9.
1992 CBS 20.2 34 30,010,000 16.
1993 CBS 17.3 30 24,700,000 24.
1994 Strike n/a n/a n/a n/a
1995 ABC / NBC 19.5 33 28,970,000 19.
1996 FOX 17.4 29 25,220,000 22.
1997 NBC 16.7 29 24,790,000 23.
1998 FOX 14.1 24 20,340,000 29.
1999 NBC 16.0 26 23,731,000 27.
2000 FOX 12.4 21 18,081,000 34.
2001 FOX 15.7 26 24,528,000 26.
2002 FOX 11.9 20 19,261,000 32.
2003 FOX 12.8 22 20,143,000 30.
2004 FOX 15.8 26 25,390,000 21.
2005 FOX 11.1 19 17,162,000 36.
2006 FOX 10.1 17 15,795,000 38.
2007 FOX 10.6 18 17,212,000 35.
2008 FOX 8.4 14 13,198,000 45.
2009 FOX 11.7 19 19,334,000 31.
2010 FOX 8.4 14 14,217,000 41.
2011 FOX 10.0 16 16,521,000 37.
2012 FOX 7.6 12 12,636,000 46.
2013 FOX 8.9 15 14,984,000 39.
2014 FOX 8.2 14 13,930,000 43.
2015 FOX 8.6 16 14,533,000 40.
2016 FOX 12.9 23 22,847,000 28.
2017 FOX 10.6 20 18,705,000 33.
2018 FOX 8.3 17 14,125,000 42.
2019 FOX 8.1 16 13,912,000 44.
2020 FOX 5.2 12 9,780,000 49.
2021 FOX 6.5 16 11,750,000 47.
2022 FOX 6.1 17 11,780,000 48.

Average age of MLB fan - 57

Good luck to MLB with the subscriptions

All the great fans will be happy to pay for what they’ve gotten free (or included in even a basic cable bill) their entire lives. Gonna work out awesome long-term growing the game.

2016 > 2005

_________________
An unjust law is no law at all--St. Augustine of Hippo

Cause tried and true
I see the light in you
Oh, can you dig in my soul?
Could you smell my whole...
life?--Gener and Deaner

hey Harvard Dan, I'm on these pain killers and last night I dreamt about you for some reason. I remember you have your own band - in the dream I wrote a song specifically for you and your band. It was called 'Harvard Dan' but it was the same song as the Beatles 'Polythene Pam.'

The song went the same as the Beatles song but insert 'Harvard Dan' instead of 'Ploythene Pam' in the lyrics. And there were some changes here and there which I can't remember. One about posting here about the Cubs was one of the lyrics.

You can justify it how you want but if "free" is the most important part of the equation then you just aren't really a great fan.

If you would choose to listen to the games instead of watch them if both were free then I'll give you a pass on choosing to listen on the radio instead of watch.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

for many years i have watched and listened to the cubs, and been an active fan of the team. then they decided to create their own network, which in my case meant the games were no longer available to view on my chosen service (what I believed to be a sacrifice at the time). I adapted by listening to more games, which I have found to be both enjoyable and practical. The Cubs come along and offer me the "opportunity" to give them $20 extra per month because their viewership is slipping so steeply on Marquee, but I decide no thanks, I'm good.

BAD FAN