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Costas, Morgan Impress Again
Duo Does Fine Job as Braves' 6-2 Win Completes Sweep of Cubs

By Randy Williams

Listening to Bob Costas and Joe Morgan broadcast baseball is enjoyable because they discuss the game as if they're two old friends sitting on a park bench.

But while they're both insightful, they're also willing to let the game do the talking. This was often the case in game 3 of the Atlanta-Chicago National League Divisional Series.

Once again the astute Morgan was on his game. In the first, after Sammy Sosa swung and missed a 3-0 pitch on the outside corner, Morgan said he doesn't mind hitters swinging on such a count but they should only cut at a pitch they can drive.

In the bottom of the second, Morgan criticized Cubs right fielder Henry Rodriguez for not trying to score from third base on a high one-out groundout. Rodriguez was stranded and the game remained scoreless.

Later, Morgan spoke about the arm fatigue that plagued Cubs starting pitcher Kerry Wood in the season's second half. He reasoned that many young pitchers are limited to a certain number of pitchers in the minor leagues then, when they join the big leagues, they tire after they've thrown about 150 pitches. This is an excellent point and describes exactly what happened with the Cubs rookie this season.

Costas, a baseball historian, made some interesting points. He compared the 1990s Braves, winners of one of their four World Series appearances this decade, to Earl Weaver's Orioles of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Baltimore won the World Series in 1970 but lost the Fall Classic in 1969 and 1971.

Costas also started an interesting debate with Morgan as the Cubs batted in the bottom of the fifth inning. He said Greg Maddux's late-season "slump" has many people leaning towards San Diego closer Trevor Hoffman as the National League's Cy Young Award winner.

Morgan vehemently disagreed, arguing that the Cy Young is an honor for a pitcher who throws more than 200 innings in a season, while the Fireman title is reserved for relievers.

In the top of the eighth, Costas made an excellent point, noting that the key to the Braves' five-run inning was their depth, as backups Gerald Williams, Danny Bautista and Eddie Perez all scored. Perez had the big blow, a grand slam off Cubs closer Rod Beck.

In the bottom of that inning, Costas noted that the Cubs biggest comeback this season was from an eight-run deficit against Milwaukee. However, he failed to note that Chicago trailed Atlanta 6-2 in the eighth inning of a May 23 road game before rallying to win in 11 innings, 10-6.

While Costas and Morgan did well, NBC's production was shaky, at times.

After Michael Tucker flied out for Atlanta's second out in the top of the second, Andruw Jones made a baserunning gaffe, resulting in the third out of the inning. However, NBC's cameras were nowhere to be found and the only way viewers knew Jones had made the third out was because the observant Morgan saw what happened.

Also, NBC missed at-bats by Cubs hitters Lance Johnson and Mickey Morandini to cut to a "fluff" interview by sideline reporter Jim Gray. In addition, the network has a bad habit of either missing pitches or nearly missing pitches because it is busy showing promos for movie events such as "Rob Roy."

The glitches certainly took away from the enjoyment of the telecast. Let's hope NBC raises its performance to the level of its announcers as the playoffs progress.

Top stats: 1) Kerry Wood is 9-1 at Wrigley Field in 1998. 2) Cubs first baseman Mark Grace had 11 hits in 17 at-bats in his first postseason, 1989, but has no hits in 11 trips this year.

Top graphic: Figures showing the Braves and Cubs scored the same number of runs in 1998 but Atlanta allowed 208 runs less than Chicago.

The Gray file: Sideline reporter Jim Gray wasn't prominent but he did a good job of grilling Bulls forward Scottie Pippen about whether he will return to Chicago this season. He even got Pippen to say he doesn't think Michael Jordan is coming back. Before the game, he talked with Cubs manager Jim Riggelman, asking if the move to start Kerry Wood was too much of a risk to take.

Best line: "If Maddux walks you, it's usually part of his plan," Costas, as the Braves pitcher fell behind Sammy Sosa 3-0 in the count in the first inning.

Light-hearted moment: Early in the game, a breeze took Morgan's scorecard and carried it to the seats below. Fortunately, a woman retrieved it and returned it to him.

Question: Why, after every replay, does NBC have to show the network symbol in the middle of the screen as it cuts back to live action?

Grade: B (Poor camera work, particularly in the middle innings, hurt telecast)

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