Welcome back to “On the Air,” in which Sports Media Watch Podcast co-host Armand Broady will offer in-depth breakdowns of broadcasters, on-air performance and career journeys, plus chronicle broader trends in the industry.
When Fox Sports lead MLB analyst John Smoltz made his debut as a World Series analyst in 2016 — calling one of the most memorable series in the history of the Fall Classic — he quickly became one of sports television’s most celebrated analysts.
“I think I enjoy listening to John Smoltz as much as any baseball analyst I’ve ever heard,” ESPN “Pardon the Interruption” host Michael Wilbon said in a social media post from that year.
Longtime sports media writer Richard Deitsch called Smoltz’ 2016 World Series work “exceptional.” Boston Globe columnist Chad Finn said Smoltz “had his fastball” in Game 7 of the series.
The following year, Smoltz was nominated for a Sports Emmy. It was well-deserved. The Hall-of-Fame hurler was remarkably sharp and prescient in his analysis.
Game 7 of the Fall Classic was in the bottom of the eighth inning. Chicago was leading 6-4. Cleveland outfielder Rajai Davis was at the plate when Smoltz mentioned that Davis’ only chance of getting a hit off Cubs reliever Aroldis Chapman was a pitch down and in. Moments later, Davis took a Chapman pitch down and in and ripped a line drive to left for a game-tying, two-run homer.
“I said down and in was his only chance,” Smoltz said during the replay. “Watch where this pitch is. He got it; he didn’t miss it. The one area that gave Davis a chance to hit a home run is where Chapman threw it.” Before an average television audience of 40 million viewers — still the largest for a baseball game since 1991 — Smoltz had delivered in his first World Series as lead analyst, and he knew it.
It was the kind of clairvoyance many observers at one time associated with former Fox lead MLB analyst Tim McCarver.
McCarver, who died in 2023 at age 81, memorably predicted Diamondbacks outfielder Luis Gonzalez’s walk-off single on Yankees closer Mariano Rivera in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series.
“The one problem is Rivera throws inside to left-handers,” McCarver said. “And left-handers get a lot of broken bat hits into the shallow part of the outfield. That’s the danger in bringing the infield in with a guy like Rivera on the mound.”
On Rivera’s next pitch, Gonzalez broke his bat on a bloop single into shallow center, bringing in the winning run and a World Series championship for the burgeoning Arizona franchise.
That was the peak of McCarver’s career. In the years that followed, fans grew tired of the folksy Tennessean. McCarver had always been somewhat of an on-air pedant, but in previous years, his keen observations earned him goodwill with viewers. That goodwill wore off.
And it’s been wearing off with Smoltz.
Just two years after winning the hearts of sports media columnists and baseball fans, Smoltz was receiving all kinds of backlash by 2018. Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Times called for his demotion. In a 2018 column for Boston.com, Finn said, “John Smoltz doesn’t hate baseball. He just sounds that way.”
Few have ever been better at breaking down pitching mechanics, but somewhere between there and here, Smoltz’ analysis lost its charm and luster. No TV analyst abides in the public’s good graces forever, but in his case, it has been striking.
Smoltz, like McCarver, has a brilliant mind and eye for the game and is more than capable of explaining the game to the average fan. The problem is Smoltz, also like McCarver, has a tendency to preach, not teach.
Postseason baseball is so dramatic, so replete with tension that analysis on and of every pitch is not necessary. At his best, McCarver could lean into the drama, often silently watching along with the viewers, as play-by-play partner Joe Buck and late Fox director Bill Webb told the story verbally and visually. At his worst, McCarver offered painfully obvious or just downright unneeded commentary.
Though Smoltz is not as glib as McCarver, both analysts have a reputation for speaking their minds when they feel the game isn’t being played the right way or with the right heart.
During the 1992 NLCS, McCarver criticized Sanders for playing in an NFL and MLB game on the same day, calling his commitment into question. McCarver’s criticisms led to the now infamous postgame celebration in which Sanders doused the then-CBS analyst multiple times with ice water.
Smoltz’ vitriol is not specifically launched at any one player, though he was not a fan of Yasiel Puig’s on-field flamboyance. Instead, his gripes have been primarily about analytics and the overall state of the game. It’s similar to Charles Barkley’s constant grousing about the three-point shot in the NBA. This isn’t to suggest Smoltz’ opinions are off-base. But as the only game analyst World Series viewers hear each year, he has a responsibility to not just educate and offer opinions, but to celebrate the game in its current state. When analysts call a game, they’re being trusted to document the game in front of them, not the game they used to play or the game they prefer to see.
This was also a criticism of McCarver, who called 24 World Series across ABC, CBS and Fox.
As with McCarver — and many national broadcasters — the online chatter about Smoltz can get out of hand, especially in a social media-driven age. But with each year, as he becomes increasingly disconnected from the game he knew, the similarities between Smoltz and McCarver become more obvious.
Plus: How fired coaches use television to repair their image
It seems like ages ago, but North Carolina football head coach Bill Belichick was somewhat of a media mogul last year. He had his own podcast, was an analyst on “Inside the NFL” and made regular appearances on ESPN’s “Manningcast” during “Monday Night Football.”
Belichick, the mumbling football wizard known for his deliberately curt responses to the media, was charismatic and insightful as a media personality.
On TV, Belichick could be the genius again. No losses. No arguments about Brady. No more “we’re on to Cincinnati.” He was “Coach,” the smartest guy in the room…the venerated six-time Super Bowl champion.
But now, the genius has become an amateur, mired in controversy off the field and stung by embarrassing blowout losses on it. UNC’s three defeats this season are by an average of 29 points.
His success on the small screen makes his miserable season at UNC that much more eye-opening.
Belichick’s case is a reminder of the power of television to help strengthen a fired coach’s image. Does anyone remember Dick Vitale being dropped from the Pistons in 1979? Of course not. He’s known for being the most influential college basketball analyst of all-time.
Doc Rivers had the opportunity to let the glow of television smooth out his failures with the Clippers and Sixers. Instead, he added more fuel to the fire by leaving ESPN’s lead booth in January 2024 to take the head coach position with the Milwaukee Bucks.
James Franklin was 4-21 vs. top 10 teams as Penn State head football coach. The 53 year old was fired earlier this week after a home loss to Northwestern.
Some time in front of the camera could do Franklin some good. While no reasonable observer expects Franklin to be out of coaching for long, a spell on television could be the best way for Franklin to win the PR game — if only temporarily — and set himself up for his next coaching gig. One thing we know is true: on TV, there is always room for a former football coach.
