ESPN executives Tim Corrigan and Mark Gross are reportedly taking voluntarily early retirement offers from Disney; Chicago White Sox television play-by-play announcer John Schriffen will not return next season; and Derek Chang discusses the partnership between Formula One and Apple. Plus news on the WNBA Finals, TNT Sports, David Moulton and SNY.
Corrigan, Gross reportedly taking Disney voluntary early retirement offer
ESPN producers Tim Corrigan and Mark Gross are taking a voluntary early retirement offer from The Walt Disney Company, ending their tenures with the network after nearly four decades, according to Austin Karp and Josh Carpenter of Sports Business Journal. Aside from Corrigan and Gross, other Disney/ESPN executives who have reportedly accepted the offer include VP/ESPN Events Clint Overby, Disney VP/sports brand solutions Deidra Maddock and ESPN coordinating producer Aimee Stokes.
Corrigan oversees NBA and WNBA coverage as an SVP/sports production for the network and produces the company’s NBA Finals telecasts. Prior to his current role, he worked as a producer on prime time football broadcasts, primarily on Monday nights, plus college football, the WNBA Finals and “SportsCenter.” Corrigan began working for ESPN in 1987, serving as a production assistant before rising to an associate producer/director two years later. He will reportedly stay on through this year’s NBA Finals.
Gross has oversight of ESPN coverage of Major League Baseball, hockey, tennis and NFL event/studio production as an SVP/sports production. Before moving into his current position, he served as a SVP/EP, production where he had oversight over “SportsCenter,” NBA event/studio production, the Little League World Series and the network’s talent office. Gross joined the network in 1988, beginning as a production assistant before becoming an associate producer for “SportsCenter” and “College GameDay.” He will reportedly work through Super Bowl LXI in February.
Disney EVP/chief people officer Sonia Coleman had notified employees of the cost-reduction effort in August, alluding to ongoing layoffs that “will continue into next year,” per a report by Nellie Andreeva of Deadline. Disney CFO Hugh Johnston said on this summer’s quarterly earnings call that the company is looking “at meaningful reductions to cost, including labor and SG&A.” The media conglomerate has imposed layoffs on multiple occasions in the last few years, most notably eliminating 7,000 jobs in an effort to cut $5.5 billion in costs under former CEO Bob Iger, a target that Disney surpassed by $2 billion. Disney, now operating under CEO Josh D’Amaro, reports its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings in mid-November.
White Sox TV play-by-play voice Schriffen not returning next season
Chicago White Sox television play-by-play announcer John Schriffen is departing his role with the team after three seasons, the team announced on Monday. Schriffen, who joined the organization in 2024 after Jason Benetti left to become the TV voice of the Tigers, primarily worked alongside analyst Steve Stone and reporter Brooke Fletcher on Chicago Sports Network.
“John has been a true professional throughout his three seasons with the White Sox, bringing energy, enthusiasm, and a distinctive style to our broadcasts,” Brooks Boyer, chief revenue and marketing officer for the Chicago White Sox, said in a statement provided to Sports Media Watch. “As his contract comes to an end, we believe this is the appropriate time to evaluate the direction of our broadcasts and determine what is best for the organization and our fans moving forward. We are appreciative of John’s contributions and the connection he built with our fanbase. We wish him continued success in his future endeavors.”
Schriffen confirmed the news in a post on social media Monday where he expressed gratitude towards the White Sox and its fans. Prior to his time with the White Sox, Schriffen was a play-by-play announcer and sideline reporter for CBS Sports where he worked on NFL, college football and college basketball games. He was also a host for NFL Network, anchoring “Up to the Minute” and also filling in on “NFL Total Access.”
Scott Merkin of MLB.com reported that Stone and Fletcher will return to the television broadcasts next season. In addition, he added that the White Sox radio tandem of Len Kasper and Darrin Jackson will be back on the airwaves. Merkin said that the White Sox will begin a national search for a replacement immediately.
Chang: F1 hopes to remain in partnership with Apple beyond five-year deal
Speaking at an Axios event leading into last week’s United States Grand Prix, Liberty Media CEO Derek Chang said that Formula 1 hopes to maintain its relationship with U.S. rights partner Apple beyond the expiration of the sides’ five-year media rights deal in 2030. When asked whether the ongoing agreement has any opt-out provisions, Chang said it was “a moot point” because the circuit has “a great partner.”
Formula 1 is in the first year of its agreement with Apple, which “is paying about $140 million per year for the racing rights,” as reported by Alex Sherman of CNBC last year. Apple also has other sports rights deals with Major League Baseball and Major League Soccer, with the latter deal having been shortened to conclude in 2029, per Eben Novy-Williams and Jacob Feldman of Sportico.
F1 races previously aired on ESPN, a relationship that coincided with a substantial rise in viewership over eight years from 2017-25.
Apple SVP/services and health Eddy Cue said last month that viewership for Formula One is “up by significant double-digit percentage growth on the race day, and more importantly on Saturdays,” per Alex Weprin of The Hollywood Reporter, a figure that is not verifiable as Apple does not release viewership data for its live sports properties.
Plus: WNBA Finals, TNT Sports, David Moulton, SNY
- Thursday’s Game 6 of the WNBA Finals has been moved up to a 12:30 PM ET start so that the Atlanta Dream can play at State Farm Arena. The NBA Hawks already had State Farm Arena booked for games both Wednesday and Thursday night, leaving few options to schedule the WNBA game. USA Network will still televise the game, but simulcast coverage will be on E! and SYFY rather than the usual CNBC.
- TNT Sports has added former North Carolina men’s basketball coach Hubert Davis as a contributor for college basketball studio and game coverage this season, it was announced Tuesday. Davis, who previously worked at ESPN, is slated to make his debut in studio as part of a tripleheader on Thursday, Nov. 5 alongside Tim Doyle, Dalen Cuff and Seth Davis.
- Longtime NFL broadcast spotter David Moulton passed away on Saturday at the age of 59 following a battle with cancer. Moulton, who was a spotter for ESPN’s Joe Buck and Troy Aikman both at ESPN and previously at Fox, was honored by both during “Monday Night Football” this week. Outside of his spotting work, Moulton co-hosted the “Miller and Moulton” sports radio show alongside Mark Miller for approximately two decades in addition to broadcasting Florida Gulf Coast University games and appearing on ABC7 in Sarasota, Fla.
- SNY New York Mets television analyst Ron Darling is uncertain if he will return to the network’s broadcasting booth next season, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post. Darling said that while he believes to have two more years on his SNY contract, he is “deciding from year to year” whether or not to continue. Darling is part of the network’s long-tenured broadcast trio with Gary Cohen and Keith Hernandez, which has been calling Mets games since the 2006 season. In addition, he calls regular-season and postseason games on TBS, recently broadcasting the Rays-Guardians ALCS with Brian Anderson, Jeff Francoeur and Lauren Shehadi.
