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Costas, Morgan On the Mark
Veteran Announcers Excel in Just Second 1998 Game as Partners

By Randy Williams

When we last saw Bob Costas, he was annoying the masses, referring to Bulls players as Michael, Scottie and Dennis as he described the NBA Finals like a starry-eyed child. Baseball, on the other hand, is Costas' bread and butter and he showed why Wednesday night.

Costas isn't nearly as talkative when broadcasting the national pastime, perhaps due to the presence of Joe Morgan, baseball's top analyst. The play-by-play man did a good job of setting the table for Morgan, putting him in position to relay his vast expertise to the audience. This is nothing short of remarkable when you consider that the pair had only worked one game together this year - the All-Star Game in Denver.

My only problem with Costas was his failure to mention the absence of Yankees outfielder/designated hitter Darryl Strawberry until 35 minutes into the broadcast. However, he did note that the source of Strawberry's stomach problems hadn't been diagnosed.

Hall of Famer Morgan was every bit as good as he was in Monday's Cubs-Giants contest (for a review of that game, click here). To wit:

In the bottom of the first inning, he said the key to pitching against the Yankees is throwing a good pitch when behind in the account. Rangers starter Rick Helling proceeded to walk Derek Jeter on the following pitch.
In the third inning, Morgan noted that Rangers catcher Ivan Rodriguez set in his stance behind the plate and then shifted to keep Yankees hitter Bernie Williams off balance.
Two innings later, Morgan made another great point, recognizing that Pettitte had returned to his old pattern of throwing cut fastballs inside, with Juan Gonzalez doubling and Ivan Rodriguez singling on such pitches.

Costas and Morgan were at their best when talking about issues surrounding the game. The pair discussed why they think New York skipper Joe Torre should be manager of the year and compared the 114-win Yankees to Morgan's 1976 Cincinnati Reds, even showing a diagram with each team's starters.

The exchange I most enjoyed came in the top of the sixth. At that time, Costas and Morgan basically took major league baseball to task, opining that first-round playoff series should be seven games and adding that teams should be allowed to play clubs from their own division in the opening round. Costas is often opinionated on such issues, even in basketball, and his eloquence in stating his case always keeps him from sounding harsh or condescending.

In addition to Costas and Morgan, sideline reporter Jim Gray was in the house, talking with New York manager Joe Torre before the game and quizzing him about whether he will return to the Yankees in 1999. He also delivered an interesting post-game interview with rookie star Shane Spencer but a sideline journalist isn't really necessary in baseball, as we learned through a pair of useless puff pieces Gray did during the game.

Overall, NBC did a nice job with Costas and Morgan showing it won't take long for them to round into form as a team. Give credit to Morgan, who didn't miss a beat despite switching from one play-by-play man (regular ESPN partner Jon Miller) to another.

Best stat: 1) Rangers catcher Ivan Rodriguez threw out 56% of would-be base stealers in 1998.

Top graphic: Picture in the top of the third showing that Pettitte had thrown 18 strikes and just 8 balls. On the other hand, in the bottom of the fourth, Costas discussed Helling's high pitch count but the viewers weren't told/shown how many balls he had thrown.

Honesty award: Morgan, former star of Cincinnati's Big Red Machine, saying Rangers catcher Rodriguez has the quickest feet of any backstop he's ever seen (though he played with Hall of Famer Johnny Bench).

Best camera work: Footage of New York second baseman Chuck Knoblauch's failed tag on a double by Rangers right fielder Juan Gonzalez.

Best line: As Yanks shortstop Jeter battled Helling in the top of the third, Costas said: "Helling is beginning to regard Jeter like gum on his shoe - he just can't get rid of him." Obviously, there weren't many great lines on this night.

What?: Why was NBC playing that funky music whenever it showed a player's career stats? Just show us the numbers, don't hit us with a hammer.

Incomplete picture: In the pregame show, Costas showed the highlights from Wednesday's Indians-Red Sox and Cubs-Braves but neglected to show the plays for which Tribe manager Mike Hargrove and pitcher Doc Gooden were ejected.

Boldest statement: Morgan said Pettitte has "one of the best pickoff moves/balks in the game."

Corporate Award: 1) The peacock network unveiled the Sunamerica NBC Pregame Show 2) Costas trumpeted NBC's on-line alliance with The Sporting News before the bottom of the third inning.

Best story: The tale of Rick Helling, who said the death of this brother "turned my life around," according to Costas.

Grade: B+ (Considering that Costas and Morgan have worked just one game together this year, their effort was quite good)

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