Thursday, March 28, 2024

Popular Picks To Replace Len Kasper As Cubs Play-by-Play Man

-

Let me just get it out of the way because I know you probably rage commented before even clicking on the article.

Joe Buck

Here’s the thing, I’m with you. I don’t really agree with the direction that Marquee Sports Network seems to be heading in regards to finding Len Kasper’s replacement to be the Chicago Cubs play-by-play man on TV. We keep seeing that Marquee wants to get “a national feel” to its Cubs broadcasts now that Kasper has left to fulfill his lifelong dream of being a radio play-by-play man. It obviously stings a little more that it’s on the other side of the city with the White Sox.

Anyway, if there’s one guy that fits the whole “national feel” it’s Joe Buck. Number one NFL guy on Fox and the voice of the World Series. And I know you hate him, but that’s mostly because as Chicago sports fans we’ve had to suffer through terrible losses by the Bears against the Packers with Buck right there to remind everyone how much Aaron Rodgers owns the Bears.

Admit it, that’s why you hate Joe Buck. He’s not bad. He’s actually really good and if Marquee wants to shoot for the moon, then Buck’s the guy. At the same time I get it’s nearly impossible to pry Buck away from Fox, so let’s get to some other popular picks. Some of which have already been confirmed as candidates.

Joe Davis

As soon as the news came out that Kasper was leaving the Cubs’ TV booth, Joe Davis was at the top of many fans’ lists of candidates. The Dodgers broadcaster has a pretty sweet gig out in Los Angeles and although I haven’t watched much Dodgers baseball you have to believe Davis is great, considering he was the guy who took over for Vin Scully.

Davis isn’t the near impossible get as Buck, but he’s still a longshot. However, the chances aren’t zero because Davis did grow up as a Cubs fan, went to school in Wisconsin at Beloit and still has family in the Midwest. Kinda depends how great of a deal Marquee can offer.

Here’s what Sahadev Sharma wrote in his latest article in The Athletic.

It’s unclear whether the Cubs and Sinclair Broadcast Group, the team’s partner in this TV venture, would go above and beyond to lure a rising star who replaced the legendary Vin Scully at Dodger Stadium. But Marquee officials also have ambitions to create a national feel for Cubs broadcasts and Davis would bring a certain cachet.

Besides his duties with the Dodgers, Davis works for Fox Sports, calling college football and basketball, MLB playoff games and a few NFL games, too.

Brian Anderson

Hey, before coming over from the Marlins, Kasper was a broadcaster for the Brewers and prior to becoming the voice of the Cubs on radio so did Pat Hughes. So, why not look at Milwaukee once again, as Brian Anderson has been another popular named discussed by Cubs fans during the past week.

You get a guy who knows all about calling baseball games and Marquee adds a national voice. Besides Brewers games, Anderson calls NCAA Tournament games, regular season college basketball games on Fox, NBA and MLB games on TNT and TBS respectively, and he’s on the Big Ten Network as well.

There’s no word if Marquee has reached out to Anderson as of now.

On Cubs Radar

In Sharma’s article, he confirmed that Wayne Randazzo is a candidate to replace Kasper in the TV booth. Randazzo is definitely a guy with some local roots, working for 670 The Score prior to joining the Mets radio team.

As for broadcasters with local ties, radio broadcaster Wayne Randazzo is confirmed to be a candidate for the job. Randazzo, an up-and-coming talent, calls Mets games on WCBS.
Randazzo interviewed for the White Sox job that Kasper officially took on last week. Randazzo understands the Chicago market as a former anchor on 670 The Score, a play-by-play voice for the Kane County Cougars and a graduate of St. Charles East High School and North Central College. McCarthy’s eye for talent at MSG Network helped propel the careers of national broadcasters like Doris Burke, Mike Breen and Gus Johnson.

Two other broadcasters said to be on the Cubs’ radar according to Sharma are Chris Myers and Kevin Kugler. Again, let’s hope it’s not Myers. And if Kevin Kugler’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he was on the call this past Sunday, when the Bears choked against the Lions on Fox.

Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Chicago SportsNEWS
Recommended for you

0
Give us your thoughts.x
()
x