So much for loyalty among broadcasters

Whatever happened to tradition? When I was young, Monday Night Football was a big deal. And the broadcast teams were as much as part of the production as the game itself. The likes of Don Meredith and Howard Cosell kept viewers entertained for more than a decade. Viewers tuned in to see them as much as he action on the field. Now it seems sports broadcasters become free agents as much as the players they cover as they bounce from network to network. I watched Harry Cary call Cubs games for 16 years. Vin Scully was the voice of the Dodgers. That’s just the way it was. I enjoy Brian Anderson as a broadcaster. Anderson is well respected for his baseball play-by-play. When he is covering the Brewers. His contract allows him to do broadcasting for other networks, including covering the NBA. Still, I was a bit taken aback recently when scrolling to find the Brewers and I came across a Cubs game that was being called by none other than Brian Anderson. The Brewers broadcaster wasn’t covering the Brewers that day, but their hated rivals the Chicago Cubs. So much for loyalty. Now, networks offer options. You can watch Monday Night Football with Joe Buck, or tune to ESPN 2 to watch Payton and Eli Manning “call” the game from their man cave. I must admit, it was more interesting than what Buck was saying. So much for tradition. But maybe a new tradition is being born.