Former “SportsCenter” anchor and cable news host Keith Olbermann has found a new home — Turner Sports.
Olbermann will serve as a studio host for Major League Baseball coverage on TBS during the 2013 postseason, Turner Sports announced Wednesday. He replaces Matt Winer, who hosted studio coverage the past three seasons.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Olbermann’s deal with Turner has an option for the 2014 postseason.
Turner Sports’ acquisition of Olbermann is quite the surprise. While it was clear that Olbermann would likely have to return to sports after several stints in cable news, previous reporting by The Big Lead indicated he might land at ESPN.
Olbermann is the latest high-profile hire for Turner Sports, which also picked up former ESPN reporter Rachel Nichols earlier this year. Unlike Nichols, it does not seem likely Olbermann would also contribute to CNN.
The addition of Olbermann is part of a shake-up of Turner Sports’ Major League Baseball broadcast team. While Dennis Eckersley will return as a studio analyst this year, no mention was made by Turner of fellow analyst David Wells.
Meanwhile, the fourth member of the studio team — Cal Ripken Jr. — will leave permanently to join Ernie Johnson, Jr. and Ron Darling on game coverage. Darling has agreed to a “long-term extension” with Turner Sports.
John Smoltz, who worked alongside Johnson and Darling last year, will move down to the TBS ‘B’ team with Brian Anderson. The Johnson and Anderson teams will call TBS coverage of the MLB Wild Card games this year.
(Wed. news from Turner Sports; additional information from The Hollywood Reporter via Deadspin)
