People are upset after being duped by Chris “Mad Dog” Russo’s retirement stunt, but no one is taking it harder than Don La Greca.
In case you’ve missed our myriad of posts on the topic, Chris Russo attempted to emphasize his doubt about the Arizona Diamondbacks this week by vowing to retire if they advanced to the World Series. Well, they advanced to the World Series Tuesday night, and on Wednesday, Russo still fulfilled his gigs on MLB Network, ESPN and SiriusXM.
Russo wagered his career on the MLB Playoffs and relished the attention it garnered. But as soon as he lost, the Radio Hall of Famer rescinded his promise. He attempted to make good on the bet by running errands for Stephen A. Smith and wearing a bikini for Howard Stern.
But that’s not going to satisfy everyone. Especially Don La Greca, who co-hosts The Michael Kay Show on ESPN New York, and absolutely lost it when a caller suggested he should respect his elders.
No one is taking Chris Russo ducking retirement harder than this pic.twitter.com/T8z95plyxJ
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 25, 2023
“I lost some respect for him,” La Greca ranted. “He’s my colleague, he’s my contemporary, he’s a human being, I don’t have to bow down and kneel to anybody. Get lost. Go scratch. Give me a break. They opened the door, we kicked it down! That was then, this is now! Enough already! I won’t sit there and bow down to anybody.”
“Why would this god that we’ve got to pray to have to do a stupid little college gimmick to get attention?” La Greca continued. “Why? He’s Chris Russo, he’s god! He floats on air! Why would he have to do something stupid like guarantee he’s gonna retire and then rescind it immediately like a weakling? Why would he have to do that if he’s Christ? Why?”
Russo briefly kinda sorta faked retirement. He was absent from the start of his SiriusXM radio show Wednesday afternoon, but returned for the second segment. Mike Francesa’s first retirement lasted four months. Russo’s lasted about 15 minutes. In the grand scheme of things, what’s the difference? Just a few months.
Surely, Russo loves the attention, as do the Diamondbacks. His audience loves that he’s not going anywhere (yet), and his critics should enjoy being able to hold this against him for the rest of his career. Lastly, everyone wins when Don La Greca breaks his “days without a rant” streak.
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com