Cardinals have ‘philosophical differences’
Cardinals have ‘philosophical differences’
And remembering Bob Neumeier
Good morning, all! I hope your week is off to a great start. It has been a while since I sent out a newsletter.
The R&R in North Carolina was most welcome. Of course, the sports world never stops and a lot has unfolded since my last newsletter five weeks ago. So here goes with some of my thoughts.
Cardinals fire manager
The St. Louis Cardinals are not the first team to fire a successful manager, but I was among those surprised, when Mike Shildt was given the heave-ho a couple of weeks ago. His record in the three-and-a-half years as Cardinals’ manager was solid and his club did have a 17-game winning streak to propel them into the wild card game this season.
By the time you receive this letter, the Cardinals will have introduced their new manager. Shildt, to his credit, has taken the high road on his dismissal, amid rumors he may be named the San Diego Padres’ manager, although rumors of Mike Sciocia landing the Padres’ job emerged over the weekend.
Reading between the lines, you get the idea that Shildt was not happy with the front office dictating his lineups, although that is not an accusation that has been formally leveled. The old “philosophical differences” was given for his removal. In 2021, read “philosophical differences” to mean front office interference, beyond the norm.
Yes, NFL is king
Boston Globe reporter Yvonne Abraham makes a great point when he writes it is time to stop comparing NFL television ratings to other sports. (The NFL blows MLB, the NBA and NHL away in the ratings game.) Abraham suggests the NFL is in a league of its own and should be compared to all TV ratings not just sports.
In a nutshell, as Abraham writes: “NFL games are the most-watched content on television.” Period. Exclamation point!
On Sunday Night Football, week 4, the Tampa Bay-New England game (Tom Brady’s return to New England) garnered 26.7 million viewers. Granted, that was a special game, but the Oct. 17 Sunday afternoon contest between Dallas and the Patriots brought in 23.2 million viewers.
When it comes to TV, it is fair to say the NFL is the only game in town.
How big is the Super Bowl?
Speaking of the NFL, how big is the Super Bowl? Forget about its media impact for just a moment. Front Office Sports reports that the upcoming Super Bowl, to be played at the $5 billion SoFi Stadium in greater Los Angeles, will have an economic impact of between $234M and $477M, according to the Los Angeles Super Bowl Host Committee. Even in 2021 that is real money.
R.I.P. Bob Neumeier
Broadcaster Bob Neumeier died over the weekend from health complications at the age of 70. I remember Neumeier when he broadcast Hartford Whalers games and was a sports reporter on Channel 3 in Hartford. He went on to success in Boston and also on NBC television, where he served as a horse racing analyst on that network’s Triple Crown and Breeder’s Cup coverage for many years.
In reading about Neumeier’s career, I did not realize he was the one who recommended that the Whalers use “Brass Bonanza” as a their theme song. The song and its association with the Whalers endures to this day.
R.I.P. “Neumy.”
Well that’s it for today. As always, thank you for subscribing to my newsletter and it’s great to be back.
SPORTSCASTER DAN