Robin Roberts and Geno Auriemma will return to ESPN for a WNBA broadcast next month; Roger Clemens is part of the broadcast team for the Sunday night Red-Sox Yankees game on NBC; and Rece Davis is hosting ESPN coverage of The Championships, Wimbledon for the first time. Plus news on Rece Davis, Dan Le Batard, the Sacramento Kings and 97.1 The Fan.
Roberts, Auriemma to call WNBA game
Former ESPN anchor and play-by-play voice Robin Roberts will make a rare return to the network next month as part of the broadcast team for its July 7 Wings-Liberty WNBA game, it was announced Sunday. Roberts will reunite with her former WNBA broadcast partner Geno Auriemma, with the pair working alongside play-by-play voice Beth Mowins.
Roberts was a play-by-play voice on ESPN’s early days of WNBA coverage and, with Auriemma, called the network’s first WNBA game in 1997. Her time at ESPN, which ended when she joined “Good Morning America” full-time in 2005, is best remembered for her tenure on “SportsCenter,” where she was one of the program’s top anchors.
Auriemma appeared on ESPN WNBA coverage sporadically as a game and studio analyst during the league’s first decade, including calling some WNBA Finals series. The longtime UConn women’s basketball coach is coming off of a highly-criticized exchange with South Carolina women’s basketball head coach Dawn Staley towards the end of a national semifinal game in April, for which he later apologized.
As part of the WNBA’s 30th season, the league and its media partners are hearkening back to the early days of the league. On Sunday, ESPN carried a rematch of the first-ever WNBA game, Liberty-Sparks, on the 29th anniversary of the league’s launch. Hannah Storm, who called that first-ever game on NBC, hosted ESPN’s “WNBA Countdown” pregame show.
Clemens to provide analysis on NBC “SNB” broadcast of Red Sox-Yankees
Former MLB SP and seven-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens will be in the broadcast booth as an analyst for the upcoming Red Sox-Yankees “Sunday Night Baseball” game on NBC and Peacock, it was announced Monday. Clemens will work alongside play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti and NESN analyst Will Middlebrooks.
Clemens, an 11-time All-Star who played for both the Red Sox and Yankees throughout his career, previously served as a guest analyst three years ago for an Opening Day game on ESPN. He was also a guest analyst on the “KayRod” alternate presentations of “Sunday Night Baseball” ESPN carried during the 2023 season.
Clemens is the second former MLB player in as many weeks to be included on “Sunday Night Baseball” without recurring broadcast experience. Former MLB RP John Franco made his national broadcast debut on NBC as an analyst for Sunday’s matchup between the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies. NBC has also included former players on the broadcasts who do not regularly serve as analysts on regional networks, some of whom include Hunter Pence, Neil Walker and CC Sabathia.
This is the only time during the regular season that Red Sox-Yankees will be featured as the “Sunday Night Baseball” matchup after three such appearances last year. The divisional foes will also face off on ABC this Saturday at 1 PM ET after meeting on Fox earlier in the month. The Red Sox and Yankees will not play each other again this year unless they were to meet in the postseason.
Davis to host Wimbledon coverage on ESPN
ESPN “College Gameday” host Rece Davis will serve as a host on the network’s Wimbledon tennis coverage, the company announced on Monday. Both Davis and Malika Andrews — who joined ESPN tennis coverage for the Australian Open in January — will fill the role once held by Chris McKendry, who, in the wake of Cliff Drysdale‘s retirement last year, has shifted from hosting to play-by-play announcing.
Davis, who has not previously covered tennis, inked a multiyear contract extension with ESPN last April to continue hosting the college football and men’s college basketball editions of “College Gameday.” Rob Schaefer of Sports Business Journal reported that ESPN president/content Burke Magnus floated a possible tennis assignment during those negotiations.
Davis and Andrews will work together on “Breakfast at Wimbledon” hosting coverage on Saturday, July 11 and Sunday, July 12 at 10 AM ET. In an interview with Schaefer, Davis said that listening to the Andy Roddick-hosted “Served” podcast has helped him prepare for the tournament. Roddick will be making his ESPN debut as a Wimbledon analyst and will also take part in the network’s US Open coverage.
ESPN first started airing Wimbledon in 2003 and acquired exclusive rights in 2011. It will continue carrying the event exclusively through at least 2035 under a media rights extension with the All England Lawn Tennis Club.
Plus: Disney-FCC, Dan Le Batard, Sacramento Kings, 97.1 The Fan
- After being forced into an unusual early license renewal process by the FCC, The Walt Disney Company is now encouraging viewers to voice their opinions to the government agency in an on-air campaign that began Monday. The spots explained to consumers what is at stake and ended with a QR code linking to a page where users can submit comments regarding the early license renewal, and a separate but seemingly related issue regarding whether “The View” should be exempt from ‘equal time’ rules.
- Meadowlark Media co-founder/host Dan Le Batard announced that his eponymous show title will no longer include the name of Jon “Stugotz” Weiner, his longtime co-host of more than two decades. Weiner has not appeared on the program over the last year and has since focused on his own projects, including a podcast with iHeartMedia and national afternoon drive program on Fox Sports Radio. The name change officially took effect on Monday morning with updated imaging and graphics.
- The Sacramento Kings announced Monday that it was debuting Kings+, a free streaming platform that will provide users with access to digital series, press conferences and behind-the-scenes footage, but not any of the team’s games on NBC Sports California, Sports Media Watch has confirmed. Those broadcasts are available to stream in market through Peacock with an RSN add-on subscription or out of market using NBA League Pass.
- Audacy announced Monday that James Koh will be hosting a new evening show on 97.1 The Fan in Los Angeles, Calif., completing a daily weekday lineup with 14 hours of local coverage. Koh has experience broadcasting for several local networks, including NBC4 and Fox 11, along with Amazon’s Prime Video, NFL Network and DirecTV Sports. “James brings a rare combination of local roots, national perspective, and multi-platform success that aligns perfectly with our vision for the new 97.1 The Fan,” Andrew Williams, the station’s brand manager, said in a statement.
