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Rating the MLB TV booths: The NL Central

By Bill Felber

PITTSBURGH, PA - OCTOBER 07: Former Pittsburgh Pirates player Bob Walk stands on the field before throwing out the ceremonial first pitch prior to the National League Wild Card game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park on October 7, 2015 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - OCTOBER 07: Former Pittsburgh Pirates player Bob Walk stands on the field before throwing out the ceremonial first pitch prior to the National League Wild Card game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park on October 7, 2015 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images) /
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Jim Edmonds. (Photo by David Welker/Getty Images)
Jim Edmonds. (Photo by David Welker/Getty Images) /

Among NL Central TV booths, there is more talent homogenization than probably any other division. That’s especially true at the bottom end. All five of the booths’ MLB crews could plausibly be argued to be among the division’s best.

In the final analysis, though, one booth does stand out. More on that momentarily.

Rating the MLB television broadcasters – the NL Central

Play-by-play and color analysts are important because the vast majority of baseball fans enjoy the sport through the eyes and lips of their favorite team’s announcing booth. Although this is particularly true in a Covid-driven era of limited in-stadium attendance, it’s really been substantially so since widespread access to televised games became available anywhere and any time through various media.

But that in turn means that a lot of the buzz we draw from a game hinges on the skill, passion, knowledge and oratorical talents of each team’s telecasters. As in any field, some are better than others.

In the series that enters its fourth installment here, each team’s primary TV booth is rated based on six criteria that are important to fan enjoyment of a game. The criteria are:

1.       Experience: How deep and constant is the attachment between the announcing booth and the team?

2.       Likeability: Does the announcing crew genuinely come across as people a fan might enjoy spending an afternoon or evening with?

3.       Knowledge: This criterion does not require description.

4.       Humor: Does the booth make an appropriate effort to entertain without being clownish?

5.       Rapport: Do members of the booth seem to get along easily with one another?

6.       Oratory: Do members of the announcing crew evince a comfort level with proper techniques of English language delivery?

Focusing only on TV announcing crews – they’re the ones most readily available on more than a regional basis – the evaluation considers the main play-by-play announcer plus the principal color commentators or, if you prefer, expert analysts.

This analysis specifically does not consider pre-game or post-game personalities, or in-stadium interviewers.

We’re going to approach the task in six parts, one installment for each division. You can find the first three installments, dealing with the AL East, NL East, and the AL Central, at the accompanying links.

Today’s subject is the NL Central. Announcing teams can receive a max score of five points in each category: with six categories that make 30 points a perfect score.

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