It Looks Like WEEI Is Trying To Change The Red Sox Radio Broadcast To A Talk Show Format Rather Than Standard Play By Play

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As you can see, Joe Zarbano (WEEI’s program director and Dave Portnoy’s best friend) is denying this, though it seems Chad’s got the receipts.

Anyway people are freaking out but I’m sure, like everything, the truth is going to be somewhere in the middle and it’ll end up being a rather standard broadcast but if you’re in the heat of a good conversation you don’t have to interrupt it to announce a foul ball to make it a 2-2 count in the fourth inning. I’m imagining it like you’re watching the game with friends and if you’ve got a good little discussion going then you focus on that rather than a meaningless point of the game, then you scream “OH SHIT!” when something big happens. Idk I guess I’d call that format like an Electric Chair rather than a talk show, but to each his own.

Nonetheless, I can’t wait to call my dad and tell him about this. I love breaking news but I particularly love breaking news that I know is going to upset someone to an extent that it brings me joy and makes me laugh. My dad is going to be FURIOUS about this. You see, my dad is actually quite young but he’s also 96 years old. He sits in the kitchen and reads the newspaper while listening to the Red Sox rather than watching the game and while driving he listens to the game *longggggg* after you’re out of range to the point where it’s mostly static but occasionally you can hear Castiglione’s voice break through, reassuring him it’s about to come back. He loves his radio broadcasts and he hates change, so this is really gonna piss him off.

PS – I get the logic of this, companies need to try and stay young and different to attract listeners/viewers/whatever, but I can’t think of a group of people who will hate this more than people who regularly listen to baseball games on local radio. That’s not a crew I’d want to fuck with.