This weekend’s Cubs Convention served as a de facto launching event for the franchise’s Marquee Sports Network. It did not start well when team chairman Tom Ricketts was booed by fans just for mentioning the paid cable network that is yet to be available on many cable providers. However, while the release on specifics on Saturday, including the on-air talent roster and network programming, cooler heads may yet prevail.
The voices of @Cubs baseball are back! pic.twitter.com/AKWWxBoFyP
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) January 18, 2020
First, the network officially confirmed that play-by-play announcer Len Kasper and color analyst Jim Deshaies will continue in those roles. Kasper has been the Cubs’ play-by-play voice since 2005 while “JD” has been there since 2013.
Bringing you the best around the clock @Cubs coverage. pic.twitter.com/lJg3yqCvJm
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) January 18, 2020
They’ll be joined on broadcasts by studio host Cole Wright & field reporter Taylor McGregor. Wright was most recently seen as part of NFL Network’s GameDay Highlights package while McGregor was previously the field reporter for the Colorado Rockies and also works on ESPN’s college football coverage.
The network also announced that a phalanx of former Cubs players and media personalities will join Kasper and JD in the booth during the season, including Ryan Dempster, Mark DeRosa, Lou Piniella, Dan Plesac, Doug Glanville, Jason Hammel, Carlos Peña, Rick Sutcliffe, and Chris Myers. Most of them will appear as analysts though some will fill in as studio hosts as well. It’s noted that Chris Myers’ role includes play-by-play, so he may pick up spot duty from time to time.
(it’s also important to note that many of these part-time analysts will remain with their primary networks, which include ESPN, Fox, and MLB Network)
You may have heard of these guys. pic.twitter.com/qwIhJsedp3
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) January 18, 2020
https://twitter.com/WatchMarquee/status/1218604922872246273
https://twitter.com/WatchMarquee/status/1218605864266993667
The in-depth coverage doesn’t stop! pic.twitter.com/YCjDitF92n
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) January 18, 2020
One fan in the audience asked why there was only one female member of the Marquee team and received an assurance from Cubs President of Business Operations Crane Kenney that this would change in the future. It was also noted that Kelly Crull, who covered the team for NBC Sports Chicago and was a fan favorite, was not on the list.
Fan asks why there’s only one female on Marquee Network, Crane Kenney said: “I was thinking the same thing when I was looking at the talent there. … your point is a good one and we’ll make sure (going forward) we’ll have adequate representation.
— Madeline Kenney (@madkenney) January 18, 2020
Shou out to @Kelly_Crull by fan telling Crane she should have been part of this broadcast crew announced today.
— Gordon Wittenmyer (@GDubMLB) January 18, 2020
Kenney basically said they were looking for former players at the start.
— Madeline Kenney (@madkenney) January 18, 2020
Along with on-air talent, there were also announcements about network programming. Since Marquee is a 24-hour network, they’ve got a lot of space to fill in-between Cubs games, and now we know a little more about how that space will be filled. Plans include the obvious (pre- and post-game coverage, inside access, “Cub-umentaries”) as well as unique features such as classic Cubs broadcasts, minor league broadcasts, and even college sports and professional soccer broadcasts.
https://twitter.com/GDubCub/status/1218602023559598080
https://twitter.com/BrandonKoretz/status/1218606111227621376
Finally, Kenney provided a brief update of who is carrying Marquee as of right now. The white whale remains Comcast, which serves an estimated 1.5-million homes in Chicagoland, and has yet to agree to a deal with the network. He did note that the network has 22 providers as of right now, including RCN, which serves many Chicago households. Kenney also said that fans should expect “all” streaming services to have Marquee in time for the season to begin.
Cubs announce they have carriage deals for 22 more providers to carry @WatchMarquee, now including RCN. Still working on Comcast, though, which is about half the market. To that end, the Cubs showed a phone number. pic.twitter.com/UlwtqlldGD
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) January 18, 2020
https://twitter.com/MLBastian/status/1218611435120594944
Saturday was a step in the right direction for Marquee after a disastrous start on Friday night. However, if they can’t come to terms with Comcast before April, all the goodwill in the world won’t save the Cubs and their new network from a whole lot of bad vibes.
[Marquee]