Bob Costas announced his retirement from MLB play-by-play this week after decades of calling baseball, and Pardon the Interruption sent him off the only way it knows how.
While Costas went out on his own terms and acknowledged a downtick in his performance in the booth, that didn’t stop PTI hosts Michael Wilbon and “Fill-in” Frank Isola from rebutting the criticism Costas got throughout the MLB postseason while calling games for TBS.
“The Athletic is reporting that Costas has recognized his recent work fell short of the standard he set earlier in his career, but I loved the way he calls games,” Wilbon said. “Costas puts the action in front of him into historical context … and I’m going to miss him on the microphone.”
Wilbon went on to call baseball fans’ objections to Costas “stupid” while Isola argued fans shouldn’t take Costas’ style so seriously.
“I thought the criticism of Bob Costas during this most recent playoffs was over the top,” Isola said. “He’s not delivering the Gettysburg Address, and when Giancarlo Stanton has a double, we all know what’s happening.”
During the postseason, Costas was panned for focusing too much on history. That included an overemphasis on Kansas City Royals legend George Brett during Game 3 of the ALDS, as well as what some felt was too much storytelling.
Other times, Costas appeared exasperated at the network promos or the action on the field.
What Wilbon and Isola may be missing here is the seriousness and narrativizing that Costas deploys in the booth is exactly what modern fans don’t like anymore.
While Costas is certainly a legend not just calling baseball but basketball, golf, and the Olympics, it’s more than fair for fans to want a change in the booth. And Costas choosing to retire signals that he either agreed or is at least listening to their calls.
[Pardon the Interruption on ESPN]