pellegri@ittral.UUCP (Dan Pellegrino) (06/01/85)
Yes, Phil Rizzuto is biased. Yes, he's emotional, too. He also known baseball.
Some people are very cool, sophisticated observers of the game of baseball.
Others get quite emotionally involved, sitting on the edge of their chairs
with tension filling their bodies as every pitch is delivered. When watching
the game of the week or most other major league games (especially National
League games), I fall into the first catagory; however, when watch the
Yankees, those wonderful Bronx Bombers, I quickly fall into catagory two. I
get pinstripe fever. I feel as though I'm on the mound or at the plate. My
heart thumps. I enjoy it when someone else gets excited with me. That's why
its great when Phil Rizzuto does the play-by-play. He could do it for nine
innings and I would love it. Sure he's biased. He's the announcer for the
Yankees, not for Major League Baseball. His audience is a Yankee audience,
not a Met audience or a Red Sox audience. Those who can't handle it when he
is on the air might want to choose to do one of the following:
a.) If you're watching it on tv, turn the tv sound down and turn on
the radio sound (he never broadcasts on both at once).
b.) If you're listening to it on the radio, turn it off for three
innings and get caught-up with the game when Bill White or Frank
Messer is on.
I, for one, thoroughly enjoy his announcing, just as I enjoy enthusiastic
conversation about the Yankees with any avid Yankee fan. I would be
interested in hearing from any out there who are real Yankee fans and who
truly dislike Phil Rizzuto. Those who aren't Yankee fans and dislike Phil
Rizzuto...who cares what you think? :-)
-Dan Pellegrino
ittvax!ittral!pellegri
Never count out dem Yanks!
innings.woods@hao.UUCP (Greg Woods) (06/04/85)
> I enjoy it when someone else gets excited with me. That's why > its great when Phil Rizzuto does the play-by-play. He could do it for nine > innings and I would love it. Sure he's biased. He's the announcer for the > Yankees, not for Major League Baseball. His audience is a Yankee audience, I agree, but what you say is not strictly true. We get the Yankees' games here in *Denver* on the local independent station. The fans here are *desperate* for major league baseball, and will even stoop as low as to watch Yankees' games in spite of the fact that Coloradoans do not generally like easterners (the ratings are apparently fairly good for the games). I agree that Rizzuto is a *Yankee* announcer, which is why *I* don't like him. I agree he's great if you are a Yankee fan. We also do not have the options you suggested here. > a.) If you're watching it on tv, turn the tv sound down and turn on > the radio sound (he never broadcasts on both at once). We don't get the radio broadcast here. > > b.) If you're listening to it on the radio, turn it off for three > innings and get caught-up with the game when Bill White or Frank Same as a) above. --Greg -- {ucbvax!hplabs | allegra!nbires | decvax!noao | harpo!seismo | ihnp4!noao} !hao!woods CSNET: woods@NCAR ARPA: woods%ncar@CSNET-RELAY "...I may not be right but I've never been wrong It seldom turns out the way it does in the song..."
ogre@mhuxl.UUCP (LO COCO) (06/05/85)
> Yes, Phil Rizzuto is biased. Yes, he's emotional, too. > Yankees, those wonderful Bronx Bombers, I quickly fall into catagory two. I > get pinstripe fever. > ...its great when Phil Rizzuto does the play-by-play. He could do it for nine > innings and I would love it. Sure he's biased. He's the announcer for the > Yankees, not for Major League Baseball. His audience is a Yankee audience, > not a Met audience or a Red Sox audience. Those who can't handle it when he > is on the air might want to choose to do one of the following: > > a.) If you're watching it on tv, turn the tv sound down and turn on > the radio sound (he never broadcasts on both at once). > > b.) If you're listening to it on the radio, turn it off for three > innings and get caught-up with the game when Bill White or Frank > Messer is on. > > I, for one, thoroughly enjoy his announcing, just as I enjoy enthusiastic > conversation about the Yankees with any avid Yankee fan. > > -Dan Pellegrino > ittvax!ittral!pellegri > > Never count out dem Yanks! Maybe you should add another option to these baseball fans who can't watch the Yankees with Phil Rizzuto on the air. Simply watch another game or don't watch at all. I agree wholeheartedly with everything you say; and anyone out there who doesn't, well; this turn is for the Yanks; you'll get yours. Phil should be in the HALL! -- John B. Lo Coco (...mhuxl!ogre) (...szuxn!ogre) 1-201-467-7436
rossiter@cornell.UUCP (David G. Rossiter) (07/25/85)
I'm not a Yankees (or even AL) fan, but I listen to at least half of their
games on the radio network, and I watch a few innings on the tube. There are
things about Phil Rizzuto I don't like (the birthdays, whining about how bad
traffic will be after the game, etc.) but I feel that I must stand up for the
man on one count: his fairness. I don't know where you all get the idea he is
a `homer'. He certainly is a rabid Yankee fan, and lets you know it (the
team is often referred to as `we'), BUT he is very quick to give credit, even
lavish, to opposing players. For example, on Tues. eve's pre-game TV show,
he said that the Royals' Bret Saberhagen was one of the best young pitchers
in baseball, and should be getting the kind of attention that Gooden has.
He raved about Buddy Biancalana's arm (in general, Phil likes shortstops, on
any team -- on many occasions I've heard him praise Ripken and Molitor).
During the game, Phil is disappointed when the opposing team does something
good, but doesn't try to minimize it. Last night (Wed.) when Frank White and
Balboni hit back-to-back HRs in the 2nd, the phrase was `holy cow, he REALLY
creamed that ball!'. As for calls, I've heard him say things like `I don't
know what Billy is arguing about, the replay shows he was definitely out'.
As an example from last night's game, Willie Wilson made a below-the-shoestring
catch, and Phil stated that he doubted that the ball had been caught when
the play occurred, but on the replay he saw that it was indeed caught.
I could go on in this vein, but you get the general idea. Phil is a character
that some people have strong emotions about, but he's not a homer. And
no, he doesn't belong in the hall of fame.
P.S. on the subject of announcers, I really like Ralph Kiner. So what if he
is getting a bit forgetfull? He has an excellent baseball head, and was a
truly great player. He loves the game and gets excited about good play on
either team. Along with McCarver, you have some genuine baseball knowledge
and two guys who can call and talk a good game.
David Rossiter / CS Dep't / Cornell University / Ithaca / NY / 14850 / USA
{uw-beaver,ihnp4,decvax,vax135}!cornell!rossiter (UUCP)
rossiter@Cornell.ARPA (ARPAnet) ; rossiter@CRNLCS (BITNET)