Rumors abound! With Costas on his way to the MLB Network full-time, there is a vacancy at HBO Sports, and there’s someone who’s been looking for a coosh hosting job out there. That person is Joe Buck, who has failed in recent attempts to get a talk show, and the NY Daily News is saying he might be the heir apparent to the HBO gig….
After losing Bob Costas to the MLB Network, no one at HBO Sports looked to pass the buck. Instead HBO may be looking to acquire one – Joe Buck, that is.
The history of HBO Sports provides evidence its boss, Ross Greenburg, likes to hire high profile network talent. Seven years ago he brought in Costas (“Costas Now”) and before that Bryant Gumbel (“Real Sports”).
Buck, Fox’s marquee play-by-play man (MLB, NFL) looms large as the next guy Greenburg may try to snare to fill the void left by Costas. Also, it’s no secret Buck shot a pilot for his own Fox variety show. That project was put on hold. That leaves Buck out there looking for something else to do.
It seems like HBO is a good fit. HBO Sports will move quickly on finding a show to replace “Costas Now.” The network may make an announcement as soon as Thursday.
My first reaction, as with any Buck news, is to cringe. But this actually could be a blessing in disguise. The more and more shows that Costas starting hosting, the less and less play-by-play he actually did. I also rarely watched Costas Now, so the prospect of having Buck as far away from games as possible, is certainly appealing.
Again, this is just a rumor, but a boy can dream, right?
With Bob Costas gone to MLB Network, HBO may eye Joe Buck (NY Daily News)
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