You can’t say TBS isn’t willing to try to think outside the box when assembling its new studio team for the 2013 MLB Playoffs.
Pedro Martinez will join TBS as an MLB post-season studio analyst, according to report
He will reportedly be in the studio with Keith Olbermann and Dennis Eckersley
Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
According to multiple writers out of Boston, the “Very Funny” network has added Pedro Martinez to its roster for the playoffs. He will work with a studio crew that already includes host Keith Olbermann and analyst Dennis Eckersley. Chad Finn of the Boston Globe reports that Bobby Valentine may join the crew as well, subbing in for Eckersley while he calls Division Series games with play-by-play man Don Orsillo.
This continues an overhaul of TBS’s MLB coverage, at least for the playoffs, which is the only time it is ever really in the spotlight. Only Eckersley remains from last year’s studio crew, which included Cal Ripken (who moves to the booth), David Wells (who is no longer with the network) and guest analyst Shane Victorino. Studio host Matt Winer has also been replaced by Olbermann.
Martinez would be a TV rookie, though he’s recently made some visits to the NESN booth. Throughout his career in Montreal, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia and, most famously, Boston, Martinez was known as an outspoken, colorful character. He won 219 games as a pitcher, took home Cy Young awards in 1997, 1999 and 2000, and is considered by many to be one of the best of his generation. He won a World Series in 2004 with the Red Sox.
Valentine has been doing TV for quite some time, both before and after his one-year sabbatical to manage the Red Sox. He worked as an analyst for Baseball Tonight in 2003 and returned to the show in 2010. He joined the cast of Sunday Night Baseball for the 2011 season, before his infamous year in Boston. He is currently, in addition to being the athletic director at Sacred Heart University, a part-time analyst for SNY’s New York Mets broadcasts.
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