Braves games on TBS will no longer feature the voice of Pete Van Wieren, who will only work on the radio during the upcoming 2007 Major League Baseball season. Skip Caray will also work a limited schedule on TBS, though his son Chip will continue doing play-by-play for the network.
The Braves tried this a few years ago, but negative fan reaction was so strong that the moves were undone; expect fan reaction to be less strong this time around, as it’s an inevitability that the Braves will be leaving TBS after the 2007 season. Also, with Don Sutton’s departure from Turner Sports earlier this year, this looks to be a transition year more than anything for televised Braves baseball. If anything, the final year of Braves games on TBS will be very different than previous years.
Moving to a slightly different subject, it is likely that TBS will use Chip Caray as the lead voice for playoff baseball next year, which includes every Division Series and the National League Championship Series. Caray, who called several baseball playoff games for NBC in the 1990s and the year 2000, is in position to get the most exposure he’s gotten in his career. While, in my opinion, Caray’s voice lacks the baseball gravitas of a Bob Costas or Vin Scully, or even Joe Buck, he is comparable to Thom Brennaman (who has worked an LCS each of the last five years). In other words, he wouldn’t be my first choice to lead a national baseball package, but he is good enough. The question is whether or not TBS will net Harold Reynolds or Steve Lyons, two decent(ish) analysts who were both fired this year.
