Game 5 of the ALDS between the Texas Rangers and Toronto Blue Jays lived up to the hype of a do-or-die series finale, with big home runs, controversial calls, and both teams exchanging leads. The Blue Jays took control of the game in the bottom of the seventh inning, overcoming a 3-2 deficit with a four-run rally capped off by a three-run homer by Jose Bautista.
It was a stirring comeback, the type of swing you love to see in a decisive playoff finale. (Well, that is, unless you’re a Rangers fan.) But if you were listening to the game on the ESPN Radio or TuneIn mobile apps, you might have to take our word on that Toronto comeback. That’s because those apps were in an extended commercial break during the Blue Jays’ explosive rally.
@awfulannouncing ESPN Radio App when to commercial when Hamels got pulled. It’s still on commercial missing the entire Blue Jays comeback.
— Aaron Staggs (@Staggs_Aaron) October 14, 2015
We asked our Twitter followers if anyone else had experienced the same problem, and heard plenty of feedback. (People would likely have let us know even if we hadn’t asked. You guys are great.)
@awfulannouncing Yes, I experienced 10+ minutes of commercials during the crucial Jays rally.
— Tommy Barquinero (@SirBarquinero) October 14, 2015
@awfulannouncing Yes. Throwing in another effing Fan Duel commercial was just rubbing salt in the wound.
— DoublesAtWildXtra (@_2244) October 14, 2015
@awfulannouncing @Staggs_Aaron yea. That app is trash for live events. Always 10 minutes behind.
— Austin Griffin (@Art_Vandelay37) October 14, 2015
@awfulannouncing @Staggs_Aaron Yup. Listening at work. Just heard my 5,000 Draft Kings commercial in a row. WTF?
— Chris Gill (@cgill20) October 14, 2015
@awfulannouncing @Staggs_Aaron I’m listening to the ESPN broadcast on the Sirius XM app and I’ve had no problems
— Charlie Conway (@billpicha8) October 14, 2015
@awfulannouncing I’m streaming from TuneIn. Break has gone on for 13+ minutes, and now just cut off…
— Cultured State (@culturedstate) October 14, 2015
We also heard from some followers that the same thing happened on the app during Tuesday’s Cardinals-Cubs broadcast.
@awfulannouncing yes. Same thing happened during 6th inning of Cubs/cards
— Lee rosenfeldt (@LRosenfeldt) October 14, 2015
@awfulannouncing YES. Missed the entire bottom six of the Cubs/Cards game yesterday
— Aaron Gernes (@aarongernes) October 14, 2015
At this point, this is the only statement or response from ESPN Radio regarding its app issues.
We have been having technical issues with our app. The problem is being worked on. We apologize for this major inconvenience. — ESPNRadio (@ESPNRadio) October 14, 2015
More to come if we get any updates or information from ESPN Radio on what happened. By the way, if you gave up on listening, the Blue Jays held that lead up and defeated the Rangers, 6-3, to advance to the ALCS.
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About Ian Casselberry
Ian is a writer, editor, and podcaster. You can find his work at Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He's written for Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, MLive, Bleacher Report, and SB Nation.