ESPN will exclusively air MLB’s four Wild Card Series next week on its platforms from Tuesday through Thursday. The company announced the four broadcast teams calling the games on Wednesday.
The teams are almost similar to last year’s lineup. The one change is Sean McDonough replacing Dave Flemming, working alongside Jessica Mendoza, Tim Kurkjian, and reporter Coley Harvey.
- Karl Ravech, David Cone, Eduardo Perez (Buster Olney reporting)
- Jon Sciambi, Doug Glanville (Jesse Rogers reporting)
- Michael Kay, Alex Rodriguez (Alden Gonzalez reporting)
- Sean McDonough, Jessica Mendoza, Tim Kurkjian (Coley Harvey reporting)
Series assignments haven’t been announced yet because none of the matchups have been determined yet. With less than a week left in the 2023 regular season, all we know about the Wild Card round is that either the Twins or the AL West champion (if they finish with a worse record than Minnesota) and either the Rays or Orioles will host in the American League and that the Brewers and Phillies will host in the National League.
Four American League teams are still fighting for three playoff spots (the Rangers, Astros, and Mariners are battling for both the AL West crown and at least one Wild Card, while the Blue Jays are in the mix for a Wild Card) and five National League teams are still mathematically alive for two Wild Card spots (though the Padres are barely hanging on at this point).
It’s going to be a tight finish in both leagues. And while that’s awesome for the game itself, it provides a headache for networks like ESPN trying to promote the Wild Card round. Imagine sticking Julio Rodriguez in ad campaigns, and then watching the Mariners miss the playoffs. Right now, it’s only safe to use players from the Phillies and Brewers, and that could get repetitive quickly.
Anyway, the expanded Wild Card round is great. And ESPN is likely hoping for a repeat performance from last year, which saw impressive viewership for the nine games played despite taking place on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
About Joe Lucia
I hate your favorite team. I also sort of hate most of my favorite teams.