New York Yankees Radio Network
The New York Yankees Radio Network is a CBS-owned broadcast radio network that broadcasts New York Yankees (formerly owned by CBS) baseball games. The network is made up of 52 AM and FM stations in fourteen states.[1] The network's flagship station for the network is WCBS in New York City, which produces each broadcast in association with the team, and its title sponsor is the Jeep division of Chrysler LLC; thus, the Yankees broadcasts are tagged as being on "The New York Yankees Radio Network Driven by Jeep."
All-sports-radio sister station WFAN has also served as the team's radio flagship station. In a rare move, WFAN carried the live broadcast of the Yankees day/night doubleheader at the Baltimore Orioles on August 28, 2011, so WCBS could remain within its usual news format for live, continuing coverage of Hurricane Irene.[2]
The YES Network provides some technical support for each broadcast, and XM Satellite Radio carries the network's feed for every home game the Yankees play as per their contract. A separate, Spanish-language broadcast airs on New York's WADO, 1280 AM.
The network was formed in 2002 after WCBS outbid former Yankees radio flagship WABC for the radio rights to the team.
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Broadcasters [edit]
Since 2005, John Sterling (play-by-play) and Suzyn Waldman (color commentary) have been the Yankees Radio Network broadcast team. Waldman is currently the first and (so far) only woman to hold a full-time position with a major league team, and had previously served as a Yankees beat reporter for the YES Network before moving to the broadcast booth. Waldman was also one of the original personalities at WFAN upon its 1986 launch, where she served as a studio host for various teams (including the New York Knicks, for whom she hosted the pregame show) and also was the station's Yankees beat reporter.[3]
Sterling joined the Yankees in 1989 (or more accurately rejoined; he had previously done work for the Yankees in the 1970s) after calling games for Turner Sports for the previous decade and has been at the mic for every Yankee game since, having never missed one game in his 22 years as Yankees play-by-play man. Prior to the Yankee broadcasts moving from WABC to WCBS, Sterling worked with Jay Johnstone, Joe Angel, and Michael Kay. He is widely known (and perhaps infamous) for his home run calls, which often involve one of his player nicknames or catchphrases and for saying Ballgame over! Yankees win! Theeeeeee Yankees win! after a Yankee victory. Sterling will often stretch out "the" for dramatic victories as well as say "Yankees win" in a more excited voice. (Naturally then, if the team loses, Sterling will end with a more subdued Ballgame over, (opposing team) wins)
WCBS newsman Steve Scott is the announcer for the fee plugs at the beginning and end of each broadcast. The network uses the instrumental version of "Here Come the Yankees" as its theme song, and highlights from past games/years are dubbed over it for game opens.
For the inaugural season of the Yankees Radio Network, the team continued the longstanding tradition carried on by WABC, WINS, and other Yankee flagship stations by having a two-man booth where both broadcasters would share play-by-play duties during the game. Because 2002 was also the first season of the YES Network and Michael Kay was called upon to be the team's new lead television voice, the Yankees decided to replace him with longtime ESPN SportsCenter anchor Charley Steiner, who was no stranger to calling baseball on the radio (having been ESPN Radio's lead baseball voice for the previous four seasons) nor to New York sports (having covered New York sports on radio for almost a decade and serving as the voice of both the New Jersey Generals and the New York Jets football teams). The duo worked together for three seasons, with perhaps their most notable call being Steiner's call of Aaron Boone's 2003 American League Championship Series-winning home run.
The Sterling-Steiner partnership lasted until the end of the 2004 season, with their final game together being Game 7 of that year's American League Championship Series that the Yankees lost to become the first team in Major League Baseball history to lose a series they led 3-0. After that season, to make room for Suzyn Waldman's move to the broadcast booth, Steiner was to become the YES Network's studio host for Yankee games as well as for its coverage of the then-New Jersey Nets, a spot that opened after Fred Hickman left YES for ESPN. This did not come to pass, however, as Steiner elected to go west and replace the fired Ross Porter at the Los Angeles Dodgers Radio Network.
Format [edit]
The broadcast begins with the pregame show, which begins approximately thirty-five minutes prior to first pitch and runs for approximately twenty-five minutes. John Sterling begins by welcoming the fans to the broadcast, reviewing the game's pitching matchup, gives the pregame show's rundown, and introduces his producer, Suzyn Waldman, and himself.
"The Manager's Show" is first on the pregame show and features a pre-recorded interview between Sterling and Yankees manager Joe Girardi from earlier in the day, where the two discuss the team and the upcoming game. Following this the pregame show returns live for "Diamond Notes", where Suzyn Waldman reports on the baseball news of the day. "The Leadoff Spot" is the last item on the pregame show where Waldman usually interviews a Yankee player but will occasionally speak to opposing players or other broadcasters. Sterling then returns live to wrap up the pregame show.
The game broadcast begins after a short commercial break, and Waldman returns to give the starting lineups and the pitching matchup. Sterling rejoins the broadcast as the game's leadoff hitter steps into the batter's box.
The fifth inning is dubbed "The Daily News Fifth", carrying on a tradition started when the Yankees called WABC home. A reporter from the New York Daily News (almost always team beat writer Mark Feinsand) joins the broadcast team during the opponent's half of the fifth and discusses news in and around the team in between pitches.
For the last inning or so, depending on how long the game continues, Sterling will announce the game by himself to allow Waldman enough time to get to the clubhouse for the postgame. If the Yankees win the game, Waldman will choose a player for her "Star of the Game" interview and then head into the clubhouse. Regardless of whether the Yankees win or not, after the final out (and the proceedings to follow), Sterling returns from one last commercial break with the totals and the winning and losing pitchers and closes the broadcast.
After another commercial break the postgame show begins, which as of 2012 is sponsored by Alcoa through its Reynolds Wrap brand and is titled the "Reynolds Wrap-Up Show". The postgame begins with the highlights from the game, with snippets from the game broadcast inserted where appropriate. One play is determined to be the best defensive play of the game, sponsored in 2012 by a local New York credit union, and the "Drive of the Game", a particular hit (usually a home run) that resulted in several runs being driven in sponsored in 2012 by New York-area Audi dealers. There is also one play dubbed the "WCBS NewsRadio 880 Turning Point of the Game", and listeners can win a prize (usually a Croton watch) by correctly remembering the play during the next morning's newscast. Waldman's clubhouse report then follows the highlight show.
After a commercial break the broadcast shifts to WCBS' studio for "The Scoreboard Show", where the station's sports anchor on duty at the time runs down the American and National League scores in this segment (previously, this segment was split into two separate segments for each league). The "Sounds of the Game" segment follows and is co-produced with the YES Network and features snippets from Girardi's postgame press conference as well as other interviews with players.
The broadcast then returns to the ballpark where Sterling announces the player of the game (he previously did this at the end of the game broadcast), runs down whatever charitable donations are being made by various companies based on what the Yankees did in the game (scoring a certain amount of runs, strikeouts recorded, etc.), and then announces the winner of the "Cut Above the Rest" award, given to the player who had the highest on-base percentage for the game and sponsored by Supercuts. The next day's pitching matchup is then reviewed, and Sterling reminds the listeners of the next game's starting time and then signs off for the evening.
Affiliate stations [edit]
The current affiliates are: [4]
New York [edit]
- 1380 AM WABH Bath
- 1430 AM WENE Binghamton
- 1410 AM WELM Elmira
- 1340 AM WENT Gloversville
- 1240 AM WJTN Jamestown (Weekend games only)
- 94.3 FM WKXP Kingston
- 1230 AM WIXT Little Falls
- 104.5 FM WTMM-FM Mechanicville/Albany/Schenectady
- 1420 AM WACK Newark
- 103.1 FM WJGK Newburgh (Associated with 96.7 FM WABT Lehman Township, Pennsylvania)
- 880 AM WCBS New York City (flagship)
- 101.1 FM HD3 WCBS-FM HD3 New York City
- 1400 AM WSLB Ogdensburg
- 1340 AM WIRY Plattsburgh
- 1280 AM WHTK Rochester
- 1180 AM WHAM Rochester
- 1350 AM WRNY Rome
- 570 AM/106.9 FM WSYR Syracuse (Night and weekend games only)
- 620 AM WHEN Syracuse (Weekday games only)
- 1160 AM WPIE Trumansburg/Ithaca/Elmira
- 1310 AM WTLB Utica
- 1410 AM WNER Watertown
- 97.3 FM WZAD Wurtsboro (Associated with 94.3 FM WKXP Kingston)
New Jersey [edit]
- 107.1 FM WWYY Belvidere/Easton, PA/Stroudsburg, PA (Western NJ/Lehigh Valley/The Poconos)
Connecticut [edit]
- 600 AM WICC Bridgeport
- 800 AM WLAD Danbury (AM Stereo)
- 980/WXLM: Groton (New London market)
- 1410 AM WPOP Hartford
- 1300 AM WAVZ New Haven
- 1240 AM WWCO Waterbury
- 97.9 FM WUCS Windsor Locks
Pennsylvania [edit]
- 107.1 FM WWYY Easton/Stroudsburg/Belvidere, NJ (Lehigh Valley/The Poconos/Western NJ)
- 96.7 FM WABT Lehman Township
- 1550 AM WTTC Towanda
- 1340 AM WWPA Williamsport
Alaska [edit]
- 1080 AM KUDO Anchorage
Arkansas [edit]
- 92.7 FM KASR Conway
Florida [edit]
- 1040 AM WHBO Tampa (Excluding games that conflict with Tampa Bay Rays games)
- 770 AM WWCN Estero/Fort Myers (Carries Marlins, Rays, & Red Sox as well)
- 640 AM WMEN West Palm Beach/Boca Raton
Iowa [edit]
- 97.7 FM KOTM Ottumwa
Massachusetts [edit]
Maine [edit]
Nevada [edit]
New Hampshire [edit]
- 1270 AM WTSN Dover
North Carolina [edit]
- 630 AM WMFD Wilmington
Rhode Island [edit]
- 790 AM WPRV Providence
Vermont [edit]
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ Wallace, Tim (2011-07-10). Two nations, over the air. The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2011-07-11.
- ^ "Hurricane Irene even affects radio broadcast, Yankees will be on WFAN 660 AM, the Mets station". Daily News (New York). August 28, 2011.
- ^ Yankees Broadcasters' Biographies
- ^ Yankees Radio Network Affiliate List
External links [edit]
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