ESPN has re-signed a trio of MLB analysts and is pursuing another. Also: Turner Sports is weighing Marv Albert’s future; news on Nicole Briscoe, the late Nick Cafardo, and Jonah Keri.
ESPN re-signs trio of MLBers
ESPN in recent days has announced multi-year contract extensions with MLB analysts Tim Kurkjian, Eduardo Perez and Doug Glanville. Perez and Glanville will continue in their current roles, and the same is likely true of Kurkjian, though details of his deal were not immediately available.
Kurkjian has been with ESPN since 1998, while Perez and Glanville are both in their second stints with the company.
According to the New York Post, ESPN is also pursuing retired OF Curtis Granderson, who last year served as a guest studio analyst for TBS coverage of the MLB Postseason. Per the report, the network is likely bringing back the Sunday Night Baseball team of Alex Rodriguez, Jessica Mendoza and play-by-play voice Matt Vasgersian. [ESPN PR 12.10, 12.12; ESPN PR/Twitter 12.11, NYP 12.11]
Turner weighing Marv’s future
The Big Lead reported Tuesday that Turner Sports is weighing whether to bring back lead NBA play-by-play voice Marv Albert next season, which would be the final year of his contract.
The news comes just over a year after the New York Post reported Turner’s interest in moving on from Albert, who has been with the company since 1999. Per that initial report, Turner planned to move Brian Anderson into the lead position as soon as this season, but those plans were seemingly scrapped after Jeff Zucker took oversight of Turner Sports earlier this year. [The Big Lead 12.10]
Other items: Briscoe, Cafardo, Keri
Briscoe extended: ESPN has reached a multi-year contract extension with SportsCenter anchor Nicole Briscoe, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported last week. Briscoe joined ESPN in 2008 to cover NASCAR and remained with the company after it lost rights to the circuit in 2014. [Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel 12.6]
Cafardo honored: The late Boston Globe baseball columnist Nick Cafardo will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as the winner of the J.G. Taylor Spink Award, it was announced Tuesday. Cafardo passed away earlier this year covering Spring Training. [ESPN.com 12.11]
Keri arrested: The baseball writer Jonah Keri, who was arrested for domestic assault in July, was arrested Tuesday on further charges. Keri was suspended from The Athletic after his arrest and, per the Montreal Gazette, dropped from the company in August. [Montreal Gazette 12.11 via Awful Announcing 12.11]
