Thank God!!

Take away the 32 minute 1st inning and the 14 minute delay to replace the home plate umpire who left the game after taking a nasty foul ball off the face mask and you would have had a 2:37 game. That fact coupled with a bottom of the ninth walk-off homerun by the Cardinals made for a fairly enjoyable day. The game started off slow with both teams scoring 2 runs in the first inning and both starting pitchers looking fairly average. The game ended with a storm minutes away from Busch Stadium. In fact, I was on the road 14 minutes after the game ended and the storm blew in. With the long first inning and the injured umpire delay, the last thing anyone wanted was a weather delay. That didn't happen. Thank God!!

Bone Head

It took 2:54 for the Pirates to defeat the Cardinals 4 - 2 tonight at Busch Stadium. There was a 2-homer game by a Pirates player in the game and that was about all the excitement this game provided. During the game, I apparently called for a lower third graphic on a batter while a lower third game flow was already on the air. I honestly don't remember calling for the graphic but I know my TD (technical director) would never have done it on his own. A brain dead, bone headed move on my part for sure. Even without that glaring mistake tonight I wasn't very sharp. Sometimes you have it and sometimes you don't. Tonight I didn't.

A Nothing Game

It took the Cards 2:39 to beat the Phiilies 4 - 0 today at Busch Stadium. I am glad that every game in Major League Baseball, from a TV standpoint, is not like this game. There wasn't anything really memorable - nothing really stood out. There was no moment where a fan would remember this game. Yes, there was a long long homerun. Yes, there week some good defensive plays. But most games have those. Yes, there was a good pace. Yes, there was some nice plays. But there was little if any drama. I am not complaining. It's just that this game was a game nobody will remember. Now, the Pirates cone to town. Should be 3 memorable games. I will be surprised if this doesn't happen.

Distracting

The Cads walked off with a win over the Phillies tonight at Busch Stadium. This 3:03 game ended as the Redbirds scored 2 runs with 2 outs in the bottom of the ninth inning. I don't remember the flow of a game being as disturbed by replay reviews as this game. There were 4 reviews in the contest and one of the reviews lasted 5 minutes and 3 seconds. Not only is the rhythm of the game affected but the rhythm of the telecast as well. I understand the reason for the reviews. I know that the umpires have to "get the play right." Tonight's game/telecast revealed that the replay review, while necessary, can be a distraction. It was almost comical when the fourth replay review was signaled by the umpires. A nice 5 - 4 win for the Cardinals. A nice "walk off" win for the telecast. Unfortunately, the distractions seemed larger than the final score.

Cutting Baseball, Watching Hockey

The Phillies beat the Cardinals tonight at Busch Stadium by the score of 1 - 0 in 2:31. Great flow, great pace and great rhythm throughout the game /telecast tonight - just what a TV baseball director craves. The only thing that could have made this telecast any more pleasurable to this director is if the Redbirds would have been victorious. There was another factor that made this evening pleasurable and that was that we had the Blues playoff telecast on in the TV truck and they were dominating the Dallas Stars. I'm thankful that the Phil's/Cards game was 1 - 0. It would have been difficult to watch the hockey game while cutting a 9 - 6 baseball game.

Worth It

The Cardinals defeated the Phillies 10 - 3 in 3:01 at Busch Stadium and belted 5 homeruns in the process. The homerun is, as you know, a baseball TV director's best friend. Not only did the Redbirds hit 5 homers but they went back to back twice. I was fortunate to cut 2 homeruns within minutes of each other twice in the same game and the other homerun was struck by the Cards starting pitcher - an upper deck shot! It must have been the homeruns because I felt as if I was busy the whole game/telecast. In a typical baseball game/telecast, there are moments where the director can sit back and take a breath - not tonight. I am a bit wiped out but it was worth it.

A Directors Type Of Game

I was really looking forward to today's game between the Nationals and the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. Two of the best pitchers in the National League were scheduled to start for each respective team. They did not disappoint. The Nats ended up defeating the Cards 6 - 1 in 2:47 with both starter being exceptional. The Redbirds hurler made 2 mistakes the whole game and it cost him as the Nats starter didn't make a mistake. A well-pitched game and therefore a telecast with a nice flow. Just what a TV baseball director desires. The 3 home runs in this game just added frosting to the director's cake.