ESPN’s Jessica Mendoza has a new contract extension, and a far less prominent role. Also: Jay Cutler is trying to get back into TV; Josina Anderson’s ESPN future is murky; Roger Kahn has passed away.
ESPN dumps Mendoza from Sunday nights
ESPN Major League Baseball analyst Jessica Mendoza will not return to Sunday Night Baseball next season, but will remain with the company under a new contract extension, it was announced Friday. Mendoza, who began calling Sunday night games in 2015, will continue to serve a game analyst on weeknights and holidays. She will also increase her studio appearances on ESPN’s various shows, including SportsCenter, “Get Up!” and Baseball Tonight.
Mendoza will open the season in the studio on March 26-27 before working her first game on March 30. Her new role also includes game analysis on ESPN Radio coverage of the World Series. [ESPN PR 2.7]
Cutler looking to get back into TV
Former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler, who was hired by Fox Sports in 2017 but left his position before calling a single game, has met with ESPN and CBS about a potential role with those networks, The Big Lead reported this week.
Fox hired Cutler straight from the playing field to serve as an analyst on its #2 NFL broadcast team alongside Kevin Burkhardt and Charles Davis. Since spurning Fox for a brief comeback with the Miami Dolphins, Cutler has not had even a guest role on an NFL broadcast. [The Big Lead 2.5]
ESPN NFL reporter Anderson could leave, per NYP
The New York Post reported last week that ESPN NFL reporter Josina Anderson could leave the company after her contract expires this summer. Anderson joined ESPN in 2011 and has been an NFL insider for the company since 2015. [NYP 2.2]
Boys of Summer author Kahn dies
The author and sportswriter Roger Kahn, best known for his 1972 book about the Brooklyn Dodgers The Boys of Summer, died Thursday at age 92. Kahn focused primarily, but not exclusively, on baseball during a writing career that began with stints as a Dodgers and Giants beat writer for the New York Herald-Tribune in the 1950s. He also spent seven years as the sports editor at Newsweek. [AP 2.6]
