Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown Review (PTSR)

Update

2010-03-04T17:31:00.003-05:00

Well, as promised back from hiatus with a decision. Before I get into the decision, it's probably good to set the context of how the blog is updated. I rarely catch Prime Time Sports "live" from 4-7pm. Most of the time I listen to it via podcast at various times the following day. A few things have happened over the last few months:
1) I have two kids under 3, the youngest of whom has taken ill over the past few months
2) Increased responsibilities at work
3) Turning 35 recently has really made me take stock in my health including working out every day for an hour between 4-5

With these factors rearing their head, it's time for me to change perspective here.

I will be attempting a periodic review of Prime Time Sports especially when guests of interest appear on the show.

As mentioned, I do listen to Prime Time religiously, but have gone periods without the show, especially when I moved to Ottawa in 1993 and I couldn't find the show locally. Now with internet, 4 channel broadcasts, and 3 hour format made available to the nation, Prime Time is more accessible than ever. Not to mention Bobcats own website at fadoo.ca

I'm not entirely sure how long Bobcat will continue on Prime Time Sports. ...and part of the reason for me starting this blog was to pay homage and tribute to a broadcaster who I feel is one of the best in Canada, and certainly the best of my lifetime that I have had the privilege of listening to.

Hopefully this blog added to the discussion on a daily basis and will continue to attempt to bring further insight to Prime Time Sports. Should any of you wish to make contributions here, feel free to drop me a line.

Keep well everyone and talk to you soon.

2/8/10 - 200 posts later...hiatus and a possible change of format...

2010-02-08T17:13:00.008-05:00

This is post #200 here at Prime Time Sports Review.

As you have probably seen around here lately, updates are becoming like Toronto Maple Leaf playoff appearance - few and far between!! Truthfully, the extra 4-5 hour broadcast has caused a bit of a disruption with the personal routine (whoever thought more McCown would be a bad thing?!?!) That in addition to a new workout routine have really played havoc with me listening to PTS as religiously as I have in the past. Although I still end up hearing the vast majority of the shows a week, it's difficult to keep up!

We will be on hiatus here at Prime Time Sports Review until the Olympics are over, failing some incredible McCown/PTS news. We are also evaluating whether or not to go to a weekly format to review Prime Time Sports. As always, feel free to email us if you are interested in guest blogging regarding anything surrounding Bob McCown or Prime Time Sports. ...also, feel free to comment at anytime about anything!

Before I sign off for the next few weeks, I wanted to offer my deepest condolences to the Burke family on the loss of their son Brendan. Amazing story between Brian and Brendan appeared in an ESPN article this past December. It is absolutely recommended reading for all parents and young adults.

As much as I despise the leafs, Burke has my deep respect even more so since the article was written - I blogged about it last year.

In the meantime, check out our friends at Total PTS. Some awesome inside info for you that you'd otherwise never here! Amazing job by them to let you "inside" PTS.

Signing off...(for now!)

Reaction to Phaneuf deal

2010-01-31T16:49:00.004-05:00

Today was supposed to be catch-up day for PTSR, and instead Burke wrecks my plans with the Phaneuf deal. I keep getting asked about "the trade", so here's my thoughts. Leafs needed to act now. Absolutely no way Burke can afford a bottom 5 finish this year.

Add those two elements together and the flames and leafs were perfect trading partners.

Being married to a Calgarian, we watch Flames games very regularly and Phaneuf is nowhere near the defenceman he used to be (this year or last.) Leafs gamble on Phaneufs contract (6.5 for the next 4 years.) If he's a bust, leafs are in trouble with a contract that's iron clad. On the other hand, the Flames do get salary relief next year with most of the acquisitions from the Leafs being UFAs, and in this salary cap era that cannot be under estimated.

Sutter is probably one of the best minds in hockey. There's no way he lets Phaneuf go unless there is a problem and feels the contract is too much of a risk for the performance he is getting. On the other hand, Burke must feel he can 'rehab' Phaneuf and is willing to take a risk.

I spent the better part of the day listening to both Toronto and Calgary sports radio and was surprised that Leafs nation wasn't jumping for joy about this one and had skepticism about Phaneuf. On the other hand, Flames nation was generally upset that they did not receive more for Phaneuf.

Two other quick notes:
- The parallels between the Flames/Phaneuf relationship and Sens/Redden relationship is eerie
- Amazing work done by Darren Dregger from TSN on this trade, particularly from twitter end

Stay tuned to see what Bobcat thinks of the deal later on Monday at Prime Time Sports!

1/26/10 - Brunt back, Why the Cormier hindsight??

2010-01-30T08:03:00.006-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: CNBC sports business reporter, Darren Rovell, Nick Kypreos from Rogers Sportsnet; Georges Laraque, former Montreal Canadiens forward, Buck Martinez, play-by-play announcer for Toronto Blue Jays games on Rogers Sportsnet; curler Jennifer Jones; Dan Shulman from ESPN.

Finally...Brunt is BACK! Feels like ages that he's been on. He shared stories about going to New Orleans and how amazing the experience was being there during the Saints victory on Sunday. The accounts he provides demonstrates why he is an amazing writer. He called the atmosphere in New Orleans "unlike anything that I have ever seen."

I'm not sure what the point is of McCown and Brunt attacking Hockey Canada and the IIHF retroactively for Cormier hit on the Swedish player during the World Juniors. You know what they say about hindsight, and I'm not sure where the outrage was during the World Juniors regarding the incident. I don't even remember it being discussed at the time by PTS. Perhaps a more intriguing discussion is why there was no media outrage at the time of the incident during the World Juniors.

1/25/10 - Anthopulos interview gone wrong

2010-01-30T07:36:00.003-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Bruce Arthur
Guests: Toronto Blue Jays GM, Alex Anthopoulos, Rob Becker, lawyer; general manager of the Saskatchewan Roughriders, Brendan Taman; Tom Tebbutt, Globe and Mail tennis reporter.

For a guy that spends his days critiquing, dissecting and analyzing the Jays (at least when baseball is the subject), McCown is really letting Anthopoulos off the hook with these early interviews. Perhaps it's due to the fact that AA is so early in to his tenure, but no real analytical questions for AA by McCown. Thankfully, Bobcat did take listener calls which for the most part were surprisingly really good!

Your thoughts??

1/21/10 -Eugene Melnyk, Senators, Cullen, TFC

2010-01-22T11:25:00.005-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Basketball writer for the Globe and Mail, Michael Grange; Elliotte Friedman from "Hockey Night in Canada" on CBC, Eugene Melnyk, Ottawa Senators owner; Dan Shulman, ESPN broadcaster, Don Banks, writer for Sports Illustrated; David Branch, commissioner of the OHL; comedian Sean Cullen

It seems every time Melnyk comes on, McCown doesn't really talk about the Senators in any great detail, other than the cursory "how's the team doin'?" kinda questions. Melnyk always seems to be questioned about the PTS world more than anything. Since the tired notion of addressing the head shot issue was the topic of the week, that's what the conversation revolved around.

I thought Sean Cullen was the funniest thing on PTS in a long time! ...and Bobcat, just go to a TFC game the next time you get the opportunity. Or at least swear off of leaf games, will ya???

1/20/10 - @totalpts, McCown's fears

2010-01-22T11:20:00.006-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Writer for the Globe and Mail, Jeff Blair; Michael Hiestand, USA Today media columnist, Mike Dee, CEO of the Miami Dolphins; ESPN's Keith Law, Ed Olczyk; Adrian Wojnarowski from Yahoo! Sports; Dr. Peter Jensen, mental training coach for Canada's Olympic women's hockey team

When I hear Pearl Jam or Oasis in the first hour on PTS, I know my bud Neil (@totalpts) who works at PTS is doing it for me (well, at least I think he is!) Only problem is sometimes it's a while before I listen to it via the podcast. But thanks in advance @totalpts. For those interested, check out his blog. I hope to have an interview with him in the future!

Another 'who knew' moment from the Bobcat. He has a fear of public speaking. PTS is his 'element', so he doesn't think twice about speaking there, but other than that, he does truly have a fear of speaking in public.

1/19/10 - Kypreos, Cherry, HNIC, Gillett, Global TV

2010-01-22T10:20:00.010-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Jim Kelley, Sportsnet.ca columnist, Buddy Nix, Buffalo Bills GM; Rogers Sportsnet's Nick Kypreos, Former owner of the Montreal Canadiens, George Gillett; Lyle Bauer, Calgary Stampeders president and CEO; professor at Montana State University, Michael Meyers.

The dinosaurs of hockey continue with Kypreos being one of it's class clowns. How he can defend the "culture" in hockey, and in turn, indirectly justify the Cromier hit is absolutely disgusting. The disdain I have for the protectors of fighting/head shots/hits from behind/the code is similar to the way I feel about republicans and leaf fans!

Maybe Kypreos is eying the HNIC job when Cherry leaves.

There's a lot in common with the UK press and the Montreal press, eh Mr. Gillett? ...and who knew McCown had a broken heart from Global??

1/14/10 - @totalpts, CHFI, TSN, Kelley, Fay Vincent, Marvin Miller

2010-01-15T16:09:00.002-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Phil King, president of TSN; Sportsnet.ca's Jim Kelley, Dan Shulman, ESPN broadcaster; NHL executive Colin Campbell, NFL writer for Sports Illustrated, Don Banks; former commissioner of Major League Baseball, Fay Vincent; Clint Hamilton, CIS president.

"What's with the weird music around here? We've turned into CHFI!"...and so it began. Poor @totalpts getting slagged but thanks for playing some Oasis for me (note how Bobcat didn't get peeved over that one, eh??) More on our bud @totalpts coming soon!

Interesting to have the president of TSN appear on PTS. Has the president of Sportsnet ever appeared on PTS? Does Doug Beeforth ring a bell?? Not to me, so I'd be willing to bet he hasn't been on.

These segments with Kelley in fine form are also becoming classic! Is it me, or is Kelley much better as a guest than a co-host. I'm not sure why, but he is!

I am a big time Fay Vincent fan. He has a "Bert Sugar"-type adoration by Bobcat, and in turn the listeners. More gripping radio as a listener. McCown asked Vincent about Mavin Miller being in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Vincent called it an "outrageous scandal". Not being given the context ahead of time and having no clue on who Marvin Miller is, I decided to google him, and it's a fascinating story. He's alive at 92, and in an era where there is only Andrew Dawson going into the BHOF, he really should be put in to acknowledge the work he's done for Baseball.

1/13/10 - Lou Lamoriello, Pat Burns, Eric Tillman, Mark Cohon

2010-01-15T16:08:00.004-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Jack Armstrong, basketball analyst and co-host of "The Game Plan" on THE FAN 590, Lou Lamoriello, New Jersey Devils president and GM; NHL commentator for NBC and Versus, Ed Olczyk, Commissioner of the CFL, Mark Cohon; Jerry Colangelo, Phoenix Suns chair and CEO; Canadian lawn bowling team captain Steve McKerihen.

Lamoriello - CLASSIC! Good to hear Pat Burns is doing well. I wonder why McCown doesn't take the opportunity to challenge Lou a bit more when given the opportunity to speak to him. Most of the interview comprised of 'same-old' content regarding the recent power outage that caused a game to be continued at a later date. Why not question how the Devils, as good as they have historically have been, continue to draw such miserable numbers at the gate? At the time of this post, the Devils are 22nd in home attendance.

Cohon spoke about backing Tillman, and primarily backing the Judge on the case and using the Judge's ruling for the rest of league. This was not an easy decision, nor topic to speak of, particularly due to Tillman's likeability prior to the incident. If it were me, I'd have followed Bobcat's suggestion of suspending him for a year and come back after the 'reflection' Tillman needs to do has had a chance to even begin.

If you are looking here for a lawn bowling review, forget it. C'mon Bobcat? In Prime Time?? (Didn't even both listening!) I hope it's another 20 years before lawn bowling comes up again!

1/12/10 - Haiti, Canadian Athletes Now

2010-01-15T16:06:00.004-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Dave Perkins, Toronto Star baseball columnist; founder and executive director of the Canadian Athletes Now Fund, Jane Roos, Hockey analyst for Rogers Sportsnet, Nick Kypreos; Ray Scapinello, former NHL official, New York-based legal analyst, Rob Becker; Keith Pelley, CEO of the 2010 and 2012 Olympic Consortium; Steve Sarty, athletic director at St. Mary's.

Jane Roos came on appealing to Canadians for $240,000, and I honestly thought Bobcat was going to rip into her. If you are an avid listener, you'd know that Bobcat hates when athletes ask for tax dollars (which this request was not.) The discussion evolved to whether Roos was angry that corporations haven't stepped up more.

What an opportunity for a company to make a name for itself to cover such a small amount (relatively), to support our athletes. Bobcat, why don't you auction off your 'All Access Pass' given to you by Molson as a start? ...and then sell your Olympic gear too?

As an individual myself, I'm caught between supporting victims of Haiti and the athletes. Sure, I can support both, but shouldn't the 'need' be more in Haiti? Please donate to both in whatever way you can by the following links:
Canadian Athletes Now Fund
Canadian Red Cross
Alternatively, donate $5 to help the Salvation Army's efforts in Haiti by texting the word HAITI to 45678 from any Rogers or Bell cell phone.

1/11/10 - Eric Tillman's Future

2010-01-15T16:04:00.004-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: USA Today columnist Jarrett Bell; Doug Smith, basketball writer for the Toronto Star, Jeff Blair from the Globe and Mail; president and CEO of the Saskatchewan Roughriders, Jim Hopson; Ken King, Calgary Flames president and CEO.

So last week came and went without a word from Tillman as advertised. I personally think this is a good thing. Tillman needs to stay out of the limelight. If I were him, I would take a year off and recover from this doing whatever he needs to with his family and get his head on straight. What has happened has to have had a serious impact on his psyche and he needs time to deal with it. Tillman's employment (now allegedly in Toronto) can only serve as a distraction to moving forward.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, January 7th, 2010 (4:00-7:00)

2010-01-08T11:06:00.006-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Jim Kelley, columnist for Sportsnet.ca, Former head coach of the Toronto Raptors, Butch Carter; Nicholas Routhier, president and CEO of Sensio, ESPN play-by-play announcer, Dan Shulman; Bill Plaschke from the Los Angeles Times; Tim Keown, writer from ESPN The Magazine

Kelley was on fire today, and it was great to hear him back. Razor sharp and hopefully he's in continued good health. It felt like old times.

Butch Carter is one of McCown's favorites. Many one liners and a great sense of humor. The fact that he lives near Tiger Woods provided for a few awesome lines.

3D TV?? BRING IT!!! I'm sooooo in!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, December 6, 2010 (4:00-7:00)

2010-01-08T10:01:00.006-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: David Branch, president of the CHL and commissioner of the OHL, Bryan Colangelo, president and general manager of the Toronto Raptors; Dave Van Horne, former play-by-play announcer for the Montreal Expos, Ed Olczyk, hockey analyst for Versus and NBC; CNBC's Darren Rovell; Bob Elliott, Toronto Sun baseball columnist.

Alomar should be in the BHOF. Making him "earn" it, after a couple of years is absolutely stupid. Case closed. Congrats to the "Hawk" Andre Dawson for getting in!

So Becker comes on defending Arenas to the nth degree and others have come on to slag Arenas including Colangelo today. I'm not justifying what he did, of course it was in poor judgement. But I do agree with Becker that Arenas will have a major case against the NBA for being "indefinitely suspended."

...and Colangelo called McCown out for calling Bargnani a "D-League" player at best. McCown admitted that it was tongue in cheek, but then proceeded to further call Bargnani out for his inconsistency.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, January 5th, 2010 (4:00-7:00)

2010-01-06T16:26:00.003-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: President of Hockey Canada, Bob Nicholson; basketball columnist for the Toronto Star, Doug Smith, Rogers Sportsnet hockey analyst, Nick Kypreos; Aaron Fox, lawyer representing Eric Tillman, Co-author of "The Ultimate Book of Sports Movies", Glen Macnow; USA Today's Michael Hiestand; Justin Bracci from Tatics Armoured Hockey Socks.

No real compelling guests nor topics, with the exception of Eric Tillman's lawyer (with apologies to 3D TV and sports movies!)

What really interests me is McCown's revelation that long time Prime Time Sports guest Eric Tillman will be on PTS later in the week. I'm quite curious to see how McCown will juggle the on-air discussion with Tillman. Of course what Tillman did (accident or otherwise) is reprehensible. Will McCown get into the sordid details of the event? Does McCown discuss legal strategy and why Tillman was so adamant of his innocence only to plead guilty? What about how he navigated the Roughriders to a CFL final behind the scenes last season. You can be sure there will be discussion about his future in the CFL, and if Tillman is fired from the Roughriders before he comes on PTS, the job in Toronto. To what extent Tillman will be willing to discuss any of these matters is another matter all together.

I don't remember McCown ever having a guest like this come on PTS who has a history with the show in this set of extraordinary circumstances.

An explosive beginning to the year for sure. I am really interested in hearing how McCown handles this one.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, January 4th, 2010 (5:00-7:00)

2010-01-05T16:07:00.003-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Boxing expert, Bert Sugar; Darrell Davis, columnist for the Regina Leader-Post, Sports Illustrated's Don Banks; Rob Becker, attorney and legal analyst; Dan Dunleavy, radio play-by-play man for the World Junior Hockey Championship.

…and we're back in 2010! Better than EVER! Hope everyone out there had a great holidays and looking forward to a fantastic year here at the PTSR!

In the opening segment, McCown asked Brunt "It would be hard to send Eric Tillman to the Boys and Girls Club, wouldn't it?" ...and in that question epitomized the point of no return for Tillman. Tillman's only option as I see it is the Roughriders taking him back as no other organization would bring him on in any capacity. Being in Ottawa and remembering what impact Tillman had on this city, there is a tinge of sympathy for the predicament he's in for someone with vision shouldn't have. At the same time, at the time the allegations were made, he insisted that he would be given a complete discharge. Having said that, I don't think anyone thought the complete discharge would come under these admissions. Tillman is guilty. Ultimately the court of public opinion will judge his fate.

Bobcat also feels arenas should be located where people live and not downtown. As a result, I expect to hear absolutely NO negative feedback for the Senators building their arena in Kanata!!!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, December 21, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-12-22T19:15:00.003-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Richard Griffin, Jack Armstrong, Michael Boone, Neil Smith, Dennis Herrera, Ed Tait.

McCown: "Saw a great store and found a bevy of excellent products at a store that wasn't cheap."
Brunt: "Luckily you are not poor."
McCown: "I am now..."

...and off we go!

As long as I have been listening to Prime Time Sports, the issue of head shots has been an issue (and a heated one) probably 2-3 times a hockey season, typically after an on ice incident has occurred. While the discussion is always lively and passionate, it always seems as McCown and company are trying to push a stone up a steep hill. Perhaps the hope is that the ongoing discussion will eventually penetrate Fort Knox in New York. Given the history of PTS bringing up these kinds of issues, it seems like a discussion between intellectuals and knuckle-draggers.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, December 17, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-21T18:31:00.004-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Jim Kelley, Chris Bosh, member of the Toronto Raptors, Don Banks, Ed Olczyk, Don Loding.

Awesome to hear Kelley on the radio again. I wasn't his biggest fan, but when someone is going through a struggle, you certainly want to see them come out on top.

In the interest of full disclosure here at PTSR, we did publish the news that Kelley has cancer on our blog directly from William Houston's blog. We also did ask PTS themselves if it was true, to which they said no comment. We were unaware that this had not be "authorized" by Kelley and apologize to him and want him to know that we will not be publishing any stories from William Houston's blog in the immediate future.

Here's a message targeted towards William Houston who (as Kelley pointed out in the show), published the Kelley report of having cancer without Kelley's knowledge:
"As Kelley pointed out on Prime Time Sports last week, William, you are a slime bucket for publishing this without even calling Kelley first to see if it was okay to publish.

Even the dirtiest of journalists will call their subject to give them a heads up first before publishing something so personal. Kelley reports the news, he isn't the news itself. Even if he were, this is a show of disrespect for anyone, let alone someone of Kelley's stature.

Shame on you William. I hope you will call Jim to apologize and publish it here."

What's the big deal about Bosh getting a tattoo? Isn't he the last player in the NBA not to get tatt'd up?? Don't understand what the news is all about (let alone making a DVD about it.) Slow news day in Toronto, I guess?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, December 16, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-21T18:29:00.002-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Saul Korman, owner of Korry's Clothiers; Randy Robles from the Elias Sports Bureau; Globe and Mail writer, Jeff Blair, The media conference from the Toronto Blue Jays announcing the Roy Halladay trade; ESPN's Dan Shulman; Canadian golfer Lisa Meldrum, Daryl Jones and Keith McCollough of Ice Edge Holdings; Toronto Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos; Pat Gillick, senior advisor to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Rogers has the cash to pony up and pay for the Jays to compete with the ALE. They are choosing not to. Another option is to ask for a move out of the ALE - that's not happening, nor should Rogers want it with all of those Sox and Yanks fans coming in. It a perpetual losing situation until something changes (and a rookie GM with vision armed with another 3 year plan is not change.)

The Jays could roll over, play dead for 15+ years, and there would be Jays die-hards that would continue to blindly support another 3-year plan. Good thing there aren't people like that on this email!!

It's like being in a relationship with a woman who you have a 30 year relationship, whom you had a fantastic 15 years with, but in the last 15 years, you hardly see, takes you for granted, tells you things will change and after 15 years nothing has changed.

Am I saying I won't support the team - dunno. But things will never be the same. My heart needs to be swayed, but for now I enjoy the memories of what was, and hope that this sustains me through the dark ages.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, December 15, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-21T18:27:00.001-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Lester Munson from ESPN.com, Nick Kypreos, hockey analyst from Rogers Sportsnet and former NHL player; ESPN's Rob Neyer, The Toronto Star's Dave Perkins, and Scott Russell from CBC; Declan Hill, author of "The Fix: Soccer and Organized Crime".

Canadian Athlete of the Year deliberations should be made public. How 'bout a top 10 list?

Great discussion with Declan Hill, Author of "The Fix". I'm not a die-hard soccer fan, but the underbelly of the sports fixing world is absolutely riveting.

Reason behind Jim Kelley's departure from Prime Time Sports

2009-12-16T21:21:00.003-05:00

From William Houston's blog:
source: www.truthandrumours.net
(thanks Mike S for the heads up)

"We reported almost two months ago that John Shannon had replaced Jim Kelley as the semi-regular co-host of Bob McCown’s Fan590 afternoon drive. It’s worth pointing that Kelley was not pushed out of his job. His departure was necessitated by illness. He has pancreatic cancer. It’s not terminal, but he’s in a fight. We wish him all the best."

Jim, if you are reading this, on behalf of the Prime Time Sports Review blog, we wish you nothing but the best in your fight. From the time we had listening to you and reading your posts, you don't strike us as a passive person. Get well soon and fight this thing with everything you got! We look forward to hearing you on Prime Time again soon.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, December 14, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-12-15T17:50:00.008-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Toronto Sun baseball columnist, Bob Elliott; Bob Nicholson, Toronto Argonauts president and CEO, The Golf Channel's Iain Page; Playoff PAC founder, Matthew Sanderson; Canadian curling representative at the Olympics, Kevin Martin.

On the eve of Doc being traded to the Phillies, Bobcat was in an irate mood. "The Jays are in danger of killing the business. The business and economic rationale I understand. I have never espoused the concept of keeping a player at the risk of losing him and getting nothing. Halladay is different. This is the time you had to take that risk."

I care that I don't care about the Jays anymore. …and by "don't care", I mean that I don't have an emotional connection with this team the way I used to. My only connection with this team is with guys named Barfield, Moseby, Bell, Carter, Winfield and Alomar. This team has taken me as a fan for granted for the years of support I game from '82 onwards. Attention started to waiver for me in 1998, and it's been downhill ever since.

McCown continued, "If you don't spend $120 million, get out of Major League Baseball cause you can't compete. If you think you can make money by spending 80 million, just wait. Just wait till this year, and let's see how much money you make by leaving $40 million on the table. This city has had enough building, rebuilding, promises, 3-year plans, 5-year plans - those days are over. To walk into another one is suicide. I think they are making a terrible mistake."

Matthew Sanderson sounded like an infant when being questioned by McCown and Brunt. Yep, the BCS is a mess, but c'mon dude…taking it to Congress???

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Friday, December 11, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-11T17:44:00.004-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Roundtable with John Shannon, James Deacon and David Shoalts

Did someone in the first hour ask Bobcat if he ever cheated on his wife when he was on the road?? OK, maybe it's the callers that are the problem! How about someone actually check what the callers are calling about before they actually call in???

I agree with Bobcat on the spending that happens for the Olympics from the public coffers. This isn't a new opinion from Bobcat - he's maintained this for years. To clarify, it's not as much as a hesitation for giving "amateur" athletes public funding as much as it is asking amateur athletes to garner funding on their own first. I'm not sure what the reason is that Sportsnet is insisting that McCown and PTS go to Vancouver, but the only reason I can figure is to ensure that McCown stays in tow right in front of their eyes. If he's at the party, he won't complain as much as if he wasn't invited.

Hey Deacon, lighten up a bit! Your arms were folded the entire time you were on. Did that have anything to do with the above conversation?

McCown suggested that 20 years from now, we'll look back at the Tiger Woods story as the point where journalism changed. In my opinion, it wasn't the Tiger Woods story that changed the paradigm, it was OJ Simpson.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, December 10, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-11T15:36:00.002-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Elliotte Friedman, John Bitove, Darren Rovell, Buck Martinez, Dan Shulman, Chris Rudge, Allan Walsh.

Friedman returns!! Some great historical stories about McCown and negotiating his morning contract and his current contract with the FAN590. Love it - fascinating stuff. You can also sense the deep respect Friedman has for McCown. I think I've mentioned it before, but after listening to Friedman and McCown there seems to be a mutual bond between these two (probably similar to Strombolopolous). I just wonder how nerve racking it is for Friedman and other younger media personalities who grew up listening to Bobcat and are now in the position to work side-by-side with him. I'd be pissin' my pants, and not figuratively either!

Bobcat getting freebies from the Hockey House - c'mon Bobcat…put that pass on eBay! For more info on Hockey House, click here - looks impressive, but geez it looks expensive!!!

Here are two of the t-shirts from zazzle.com that Rovell hinted at:
I guess all Tigers can't climb trees
Tiger Did Me

Martinez was caught in a bit of a fib. He said that he spoke to Shulman about the radio opportunity before accepting it. As soon as Shulman came on, they asked him about it, and he said he had no knowledge about it before the announcement. Hmmmm…something weird about that, and Shannon and McCown knew it. Martinez also called John, Jeff…not a good start. Ah well, we'll always have that play from home plate with the broken leg, won't we??

At around 6:40 during the Chris Rudge interview, McCown exploded on Vanoc, etc for the "smoke and mirrors" these organizations utilize in asking for public funds and then exponentially raising the funds closer to game time. This is going to be coming to a head when McCown heads to Vancouver. I will be listening to see if McCown will end up "exploding" on his traditional view during the Olympics. It will be impossible for him not to, although if the freebies keep coming in, it's gonna be tough!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, December 9, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-10T16:12:00.003-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Dave Perkins, Damien Cox, Ed Olczyk, Wayne Parrish, Fred Gaudelli, Brendan Shanahan, Michael McKinley

Some awfully introspective questions between Cox and McCown on today's show. Questions about the media and roles and responsibilities of journalists. When McCown asks "are we wimps?", when he questions why mainstream journalists, you know the self introspection is at full tilt. There were a lot of questions in this segment, but very little answers. TMZ hides behind the site name, and the difficult thing for journalists is, they cannot hide. If someone like Cox or McCown divulge their deep knowledge of the Sports stars they cover, they can kiss goodbye access to the athletes they cover.

McCown also made mention of knowledge of major superstar who has had "indiscretions", and the process of not divulging the info. In McCown's defence, he attributed the element of legal action as his motivating factor. Cox leaned more towards future access to athletes.

Journalism in the sports world is changing...whether the old dogs want to admit it or not. This new segment of the news that McCown talks about as "fearless", is a reality. I'm interested to see how the next decade of journalists will cover stories.

Part of the reason I love PTS is the fact that we are exposed to characters we would never otherwise see. These are the big names behind sports that influence sports as much (if not more) than the athletes themselves. Fred Gaudelli is one of those individuals - great interview and hope he's a recurring guest after a long absence.

Interesting note from today's show: McCown and Cox are in an 8-year lawsuit?? Details, details!!!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, December 8, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-10T16:10:00.002-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Don Banks, Bob Elliott, Bert Sugar, Nick Kypreos, Glenn Howard, Michael Hiestand, Doug Smith.

Hiestand in trouble with NBC about comments he made on Prime Time Sports? Wow, I guess our Ameri-friends really do listen to this show, eh? Ah well, Hiestand is a big boy and has been a long time PTS contributor. Hope he doesn't change his condor on the show.

I spit out my drink when I heard McCown ask Kypreos the following, "Kipper, when you won the Hart trophy, would you feel hard done by if they changed the name?" Funniest line ever! Well done McCown!

Good chemistry between John SHHHHHHHHHHHHanon and the Bobcat. Good flow, and fantastic interchange on many occasions.

Interesting note from today's show: "Bobcat" received the name "Bobcat" as an adult. No other details provided, but enquiring minds want to know.

Jim Kelley leaves Prime Time Sports

2009-12-09T18:06:00.005-05:00

Thanks to poster Mike S for this via the Globe and Mail:
"Speaking of The Fan 590, as previously reported by Usual Suspects, John Shannon has taken over permanently as co-host on Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown. Jim Kelley, who had commuted from Buffalo to work the show the past few years, has left the station for personal reasons. No timetable for his return has been announced."

What do you guys think about this? Will you miss him? Kelley, hope the personal reasons aren't health related, and thanks for the entertainment!!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, December 7, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-12-08T16:21:00.001-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Richard Griffin, baseball writer for the Toronto Star; basketball analyst Jack Armstrong, Al Morganti from Comcast SportsNet, and E.J. Hradek, senior writer for ESPN The Magazine; Colin Campbell, NHL senior VP and director of hockey ops; Graham DeLaet, won tour card for 2010 PGA Tour.

Quiet day at Prime Time...same old, same old...AA not revealing much at the MLB winter meetings. Campbell holding the NHL flag pretty high. The highlight for the day was the story of Canadian Golfer Graham Delaet, who just won his tour card for the upcoming PGA season. Here's a nice story on Graham Delaet for your reading pleasure.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Friday, December 4, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-08T16:19:00.000-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Roundtable with Bob McCown, Stephen Brunt, James Deacon, and Michael Grange.

Yes! More Leaf discussion!! ...and the rest of the country on "the nations most listened to Sports Talk presentation" rejoyce!! Ah well, they are "Canada's Team" after all, so we all should be thankful! Covering a team that the roundtable asked to "at least try hard", tells you all you need to know. (Hey, does sarcasm translate well on a blog??)

I'm an ardent Bills fan from Ottawa and would much rather spend the cash to head to Buffalo than Toronto. I'm paying for the experience, and something about being outdoors, tailgating, in a different environment is appealing to me compared to being in Skydome. Given the results of the past couple of Bills games, Toronto fans feel the same way.

Grange brought up an interesting point. How could Rogers let this asset devalue so much, especially with the rise of the Candian dollar. Here is the history of the Dollar for some key years for Jays fans:
October 1992 - 1.2453 CAD
October 1993 - 1.32629 CAD
October 2009 - 1.05427 CAD

20% more funds coming into Rogers this year compared to the budged Interbrew had in 1992...I wonder where it's all going?? Must be to that great customer service we all get, eh?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, December 3, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-07T17:03:00.004-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Lead singer of Glass Tiger, Alan Frew, and Tom Anselmi, COO for MLSE, Vice chairman of Rogers Communications, Phil Lind, and GM of the Bills in Toronto series, Adrian Montgomery; president and CEO of MLSE, Richard Peddie; Sports Illustrated's Don Banks, Dan Shulman, play-by-play man for ESPN; legendary poker player Doyle Brunson; Brad Pascall, senior director of men's national teams for Hockey Canada.

Discussion in the first hour revolved around the leafs and whether or not they are "Canada's Team" as espoused by Alan Frew. The lyrics in MLSE's new "anthem" calls the leafs as such and it has caused a bit of a firestorm in Montreal, due to the 100th anniversary. (side note: when the hell does that 100th anniversary end???)

My take is anyone can call anyone, anything. If Alan Frew believes the Leafs are Canada's team, that's his opinion. If he decides to write a song about it, great for him. If a 'nation' of morons buys into it, more power to them. But remember one thing. The leafs may be Canada's most beloved team (and that's up for debate.) But make no mistake, they are Canada's most hated team. ...and stunts like this only embolden the resolve of us leaf haters.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, December 2, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-03T16:53:00.001-05:00

Executive producer of studio production at Rogers Sportsnet, Nelson Millman, Ed Olczyk, NBC and Versus hockey analyst; owner of the Hamilton Tiger Cats, Bob Young, Darren Rovell, sports business reporter for CNBC; president of Ryerson University, Sheldon Levy.

Wow - Nelson Millman gone. This will be really interesting, specifically how Millman's departure affects Prime Time Sports. His effect on the FAN 590 and building the radio station through the many changes will be felt for years to come. What was the first all sports radio station format has morphed into the hub of Sports, arguably in North America. How's the new guy gonna handle the ego that is McCown?? "The enemy you know vs. the enemy you don't - you can't possibly prepare him for what he's getting into", quipped McCown!

MORE STORIES OF THE HISTORY OF PRIME TIME!!! With Millman on, there was so much stuff that I really love, and I'd imagine most long time listeners do too! As time goes by, Prime Time is as much an intriguing part of sports and sports history and definitely fascinating to hear the inner stories of those who have to deal with McCown on a regular basis, and how McCown became the personality he is.

Round Table coming up at the end of the week. Bobcat, bring back my girl Mary Ormsby!!!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, December 1, 2009 (4:00-7:00)

2009-12-03T15:52:00.003-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Kevin Martin, Canadian curler; TSN's Rod Black, Former NBA player, Spud Webb; president and CEO of Tennis Canada, Michael Downey; Mark Fainaru-Wada from ESPN, Rogers Sportsnet hockey commentator, Nick Kypreos; Bob Elliott, baseball columnist for the Toronto Sun,

There are days where it's painful to write about Prime Time Sports, as the content or issues surrounding PTS is dull as hell! Today is not one of those days...

The new format of Prime Time will now eliminate the call-in portion which was held from 4pm-5pm. What this does is bring in more and more guests, but hopefully not dilute the quality. What's really interesting is (and I'm sure it's not a coincidence), guests from TSN are coming on Sportsnet. Rod Black comes on Sportsnet airwaves, and not for any topic in particular. What's the forum for Sportsnet talent to get on TSN airwaves? Off the Record? Please. CBC and Sportsnet seem to have a mutual agreement with Cherry and McLean coming on a couple of times a year. However, young talent such as Freeman seem to have pretty strict constraints on when he can appear on Prime Time.

How long before Pierre McGuire or Bob McKenzies comes on Prime Time airwaves?

The un-holy alliance is just getting started.

I have few loves in my life. Prime Time Sports, Letterman and Pearl Jam. ...and hearing Pearl Jam starting a segment just about was as close to heaven in my ears as I'll get! Keep it up!!!

I get the sense that the relationship between Brunt-McCown is the same relationship between Wilson-House...am I off on this? Maybe not from the visual end, but from the ying-yang, tension, but ultimate love for each other. (OK, maybe I'm off!!!)

Hearing Brunt talk about the ending of the Grey Cup and what that meant to him as a Sports Writer was simply poetry. He was bang on regarding what we thing a Sports Writer's life is and probably equally right about how the game ending completely threw everyone in the press box for a loop.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, November 30, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-12-01T16:43:00.003-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Rob Becker, legal analyst; Brian Cooper from Sports and Entertainment L.P., Tom Anselmi, COO at Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment; Globe and Mail columnist David Shoalts.

5 million viewers for the Grey Cup?? Not surprised. But the furor over the game not being televised on CBC and TSN instead seems to have passed from discussion.

Tiger Woods isn't going to lose a dollar from this on-going drama involving his wife and golf clubs. Unless it turns into a criminal matter.

Some cool inisghts from Bob in the 5-6 hour talking about how he never wanted to be part of radio, and got into it by accident as a supplementary income to his golfing job. …and Bobcat used to own an art gallery too? Who knew! (I eat this history stuff up!) Too bad Bobcat couldn't get his pen in order for me to make some Prime Time Sports xmas shopping! Hopefully next year.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, November 26, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-30T19:05:00.003-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Vladislav Tretiak, GM of the 2010 Russian men's Olympic hockey team; Alex Anthopoulos, GM of the Toronto Blue Jays, ESPN's Dan Shulman; Stephen Brunt, sports columnist for the Globe and Mail.

I was born in 74, but have a deep respect for the '72 series, and for some reason Tretiak too. Perhaps it's because he speaks the English language and has a fondness for Canadians (or maybe that's just my perception.) In the middle of the interview, Tretiak's cell phone went off, and he immediately said "uh oh...Moscow calling!" Fantastic sense of humor.

To the best of my recollection, Jim "Shakey" Hunt was a co-host with McCown for quite a long time. Another guy that I have great memories of, and primarily from Prime Time Sports.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, November 25, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-26T16:43:00.002-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Andrew Brandt, president of National Football Post and former VP of the Green Bay Packers; Andreas Apostolopoulos from Triple Properties, NBC and Versus hockey analyst, Ed Olczyk; Michael Hiestand, USA Today media columnist; Quinton Aaron, actor in the movie "The Blind Side".

I've asked this before, but....

McCown, if the Jays are so good right now and the nucleus is there, why fire JP in the first place? It can't be both ways. Either JP built this city on rock and roll, or he should have been axed. Which is it?? Your notion of the nucleus being there would suggest that it is the former, not the latter.

Wonderful revelation of Domi being re-signed by the Leafs for 2.5 million for the direct reason to sell jerseys. John Shannon swears it's true. 2.5 million divided by $100/jersey equals 25,000 jerseys a year. Is it possible that there are enough leaf nation idiots that justified the contract? As crazy as it sounds, I bet MLSE made their money back on that one (and then some!)

Hey - anyone know how did Brunt do on the torch relay?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, November 24, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-26T16:38:00.002-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Nick Kypreos from Rogers Sportsnet; Toronto Star basketball columnist Doug Smith, Sports Illustrated NFL writer, Don Banks; Paul Kelly, former head of the NHLPA; John Buccigross from ESPN.com
Hearing Bobcat read Winnie the Pooh was CLASSIC! Well done Bobcat!!!

We're down to 30% of our current staff at work, so the round table discussions will be missing this week!

Good to hear Paul Kelly back, and equally surpassing that he decided to stick around in the hockey landscape, as opposed to returning back to his roots as a prosecutor. As indicated, this is probably due to the fact that he still has a strong interest in returning to the Leadership of professional hockey is some capacity.

As a Sens fan, hearing that the Leafs are having problems selling boxes and there current predicament and performance is a source of great joy I take. The deep respect I have for Burke for the handling of the news of his son, is at a very high level. There is something more to Burke than meets the eye, and definitely more than his public persona would indicate. Read the full story here. Burke may not want to be a role model as a family member in this regard, however he definitely is that. You can bet Cherry won't touch this on Saturday night, as much as Ronny may want to!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, November 19, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-20T16:33:00.001-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: : Rob Zamuner, NHLPA representative and former NHL player; USA Today baseball columnist, Bob Nightengale; writer for the Wall Street Journal, Christina Lewis; Ed Olczyk, hockey analyst for NBC and Versus; Toronto Raptors radio colour commentator, Eric Smith; Don Banks from Sports Illustrated.

$550,000 for the Pontiac Silverdome…c'mon folks, we can come up with that change here and now can't we???

Bobcat and Christina Lewis seemed to be flirting a bit, no? Maybe it's my Friday afternoon ears??

Missed the Olczyk, Smith and Banks interviews but will add later today!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, November 18, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-20T16:29:00.001-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Baseball play-by-play announcer on ESPN, Dan Shulman; Peter Berg, director of "King's Ransom"; Jeff Hunt, owner of the Ottawa 67's and prospective CFL owner; Lester Munson, ESPN legal analyst.

Had the opportunity to see King's Ransom and thought it was fantastic. Moreso for the behind the scenes interviews with McNall, Pocklington and Gretzky and video from that period in time. I suspect it could have been a lot longer and hope a DVD comes out about it with a lot more content from the primary players. If you remember *anything* from that period in time, see it.

The promos for a TSN special on Sportsnet was rather interesting…and I wonder how much debate was involved with brining Berg on the show.

Ottawa gets its stadium. Being in Ottawa, I cannot believe we had this much debate and am doing everything in my power to ensure my City Councilor who voted against the plan (Peggy Feltmate) is voted out of office next time around.

Shannon with the line of the day on Bobcats dressing style: "McCown, you're a cross between Letterman and Imus."

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, November 17, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-18T16:20:00.001-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Hockey commentator for Rogers Sportsnet, Nick Kypreos; Buffalo Bills sideline reporter for Rock 97, Rich Gaenzler; Fay Vincent, former MLB commissioner; lawyer representing 14 female ski jumpers, Ross Clark; David Shoalts, Globe and Mail columnist.

Another stellar day on Prime Time Sports. Kypreos was in studio talking about the drug culture in the NHL. Fay Vincent was an epic interview with lots of topics covered including, umpiring in baseball, McGuire coming back to the Cardinals and why there will never be a salary cap in baseball.

The Olympic / Female-Ski Jumper controversy will become a big deal in the games. Without question. Canadians won't stand for rights that are violated and Female Ski Jumpers rights are being violated. This will go to the Supreme Court. The key question is whether the IOC will fight this battle on the land in which the games will be held in front of the entire world.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, November 16, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-18T16:19:00.001-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: SI.com's Stewart Mandel; Dr. Charles Tator, sports medicine expert; USA Today sports writer, Jarrett Bell; Matt Stairs, MLB free agent; Don Meehan from Newport Sports Management.

David Branch should be nominated into the Hockey Hall of Fame, regardless what he does with the rest of his career. Wikipedia doesn't have a lot of information to back this up, but Branch's impact on the game of hockey, particularly in the OHL has been significant. Regardless what you think of Branch, you know that he comes down hard on hitting from behind and "cheap hits". While this doesn't sound difficult to do, Branch does something that Bettman and the NHL can't do - protect the players at all costs.

It would be easy to prove in a court of law that the NHL hasn't done a thing to protect their players from the game or each other. If someone in the OHL passes away due to a hockey related hit or fight, it won't fall on the head of Branch. If this happens in the NHL, there is only one person that can be held liable - Bettman.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Friday, November 13, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-15T08:54:00.002-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Mark Cohon, Jack Armstrong, Rob Becker, Andre Agassi

All about Agassi. I'd be really interested who chose who. Did Agassi's team choose Prime Time Sports or did Prime Time Sports call Agassi? In the end it doesn't really matter, but interesting nonetheless.

Agassi kept talking about "atonement", but why not take the proceeds from the book and donate it to one of his many charities? Brunt did have the guts to ask Agassi about the $5 million advance. "This was never about the money. I need to go through this for me and the people who will (ultimately) read this book."

It was only one segment, and the ending of another, but a great interview by Brunt and McCown. They allowed Agassi to answer and didn't prod like a conversation between two people would go. Really well done, and probably one of the interviews of they year.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, November 12, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-15T08:23:00.005-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Brian Burke, Keith Law, Buzz Hargrove, Bert Sugar, Dan Shulman

When I heard Buzz Hargrove would be back on Prime Time Sports, I felt betrayed as a listener. After all, this was the same Hargrove (along with others), who came on the show at the time of the Paul Kelly firing, not divulging any details of what happened. Hargrove was one of the interviews who hid behind "the confidentiality of the process."

Todays interview was entirely different. Instead of me trying to summarize the entire interview, I will tell you to dig this one up. Hargrove surprisingly provided very candid details about the firing, details surrounding it, and why he left the NHLPA. My take from it? Firstly, the NHLPA is screwed up beyond even our superficial observations. Secondly, Hargrove had no problems sharing who he slept with once he left the bed. I guess he didn't have a confidentiality agreement with the NHLPA, or if he did is choosing not to observe it.

Hargrove seemed to have an axe to grind in defending his name, claiming "the media" sensationalized what happened. This very well have been the case. However, only Hargrove and the entire NHLPA are to blame for this as the silence outweighed the details. Until today. One can only hope that the others break their silence to either validate Hargrove's claims or dispute them.

...and in other news, Burke was on. McCown in the past had claimed he has a friendship with Burke, and this very well may be the case. Perhaps given the Leafs current predicament and standing within the league, Burke had his back up against the wall much more in this interview, even claiming that he only does interviews when his PR guy tells him to. McCown responded that he hopes Burkes returns based on want, and not obligation. The relationship between McCown and Burke will continue to be fascinating to watch. These are two bulls in a china shop, and so far nothing's broken, but you can definitely feel the tension starting to build.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, November 11, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-12T14:25:00.002-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Bob McCown, Stephen Brunt, David Shoalts, Gord Kirke.

Not sure what happened to Agassi being on Prime Time Sports today, as advertised and instead being moved to Friday. Perhaps the scheduling conflict had something to do with Agassi being in New York doing Letterman??

Due to Burke/Hargrove on Thursday, and Agassi on Friday the roundtable occurred today, on a Wednesday. ..and if McCown wasn't in a bad mood because of this, he certainly was when he tore Shoalts a new one ("you weren't late for Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday when I saw your fat face on there!!!") Ohhh, SNAP!

Brunt/Shoalts took a big time run at Gretzky commenting that his appearance and circus surrounding the Hockey Hall of Fame induction was well orchestrated by Gretz himself. For guys like Brunt to continue their insistence that Gretzky is a master manipulator, really does challenge the angelic notion Number 99 has in this country. The backlash Brunt took the last time around with his article challenging Gretzky was significant. Having said this, Brunt (and Shoalts) must be absolutely certain in their criticism to continue the attacks.

I love how Maclean was slagged on the show. As Shoalts pointed out, one GM told him "we forgive one mistake, but he'd better not make any more." The hatred between McCown and Maclean is hot as ever, despite Maclean coming on Hockey Central the day after the 'incident' saying life was good and he and McCown were on good terms.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, November 10, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-12T14:24:00.000-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Nick Kypreos, Chris Polian, Lou Lamoriello, Darren Rovell, John Ourlan.

Geez Brunt - that IS a huge wallet!!

Congrats to Lamoriello. The listeners got a great glimpse into how Lou has become so successful. If the Devils can do it, there should be no reason other teams can't be as successful, provided they have someone with the vision and commitment Lou has. …and therein lies the difference between the success of the Devils compared to so many other teams.

"Even though this game is more difficult with regards to the CBA, etc, hopefully we'll never have to go through another re-building situation. Foremost, you recognize this is a team game and you can’t let your fellow players down. You should never, never allow yourself to have to look yourself in the mirror and feel you let the team your down. Players can't cheat yourself - whatever god has given you, and your parents have given you, that's something you were born with. If you don't cheat yourself, I know you won't cheat the organization and cheat the people that are given you the opportunities. I'd summarize it in 3 words - Loyalty. Work ethic. Being competent." Hell, I was motivated by Lou's words to type that all out. Very inspiring words, even outside of hockey.

For the greatest laugh, check out the Rovell interview, especially about food eating competitions…funny, funny stuff!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, November 9, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-11-10T16:56:00.003-05:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Dave Andrews, Richard Griffin, Ed Olczyk, Don Banks, and Da'Shawn Thomas.

It's a cross between writer's block and a lack of any content worthwhile of reporting on today's show. While I was on the bench, I did listen to all the shows and was hoping to catch-up on what I missed but there was very little that I was inspired by.

Da'Shawn Thomas was an interesting story who started in the CFL, now at Western and invited to the NFL columbines. Interesting, but not compelling. Even Banks commented to McCown/Brunt wake him up if he makes it past the columbines.

Agassi will be on Prime Time Sports on Wednesday. Two interesting things about this. Firstly, Sportsnet continues to promote the interesting Mike Danton story, but no mention of the Agassi interview anywhere. Secondly, on Jim Rome earlier in the week he trumpeted Agassi's character as being impeccable as this would be the only reason he would "lay it bare" for a biography. What Rome was missing was the hypothesis by McCown late last week - that Agassi revealed his story about drug use, etc due to the story about to come out anyways. It will be interesting if McCown confronts Agassi on this point specifically, and while the show isn't being advertised by Sportsnet should prove to be one on the more interesting interviews of the year.

Guest Blogger - @thekanj

2009-11-10T16:36:00.009-05:00

I'm back. Thanks for the messages, and even when we were down last week, we were averaging about 50 hits a day!

From time to time, we'll have guest bloggers here at the Review. If you'd like to be a guest blogger, send an email with your thoughts at bobcat_idol@hotmail.com. In our first issue, we have Review Reader @thekanj. At the risk of sounding like Casey Kasem, "@thekanj writes"...

Hey bobcat_idol!

I’m a big fan of your blog and drop by every now and again to catch up on what Bob is up to these days. I liked how you called out for fellow listeners to submit some bloggage while you busily raise your 2 boys!

I listened to Bob interview Richard Griffin this morning (yesterday’s show)!

Before I start my guest bloggage, I just wanted to point out to all sports fans that the word ‘consistency’ does not imply that something is ‘good’.

Example of incorrect usage: “The Toronto Maple Leafs need to be more consistent”

Example of correct usage: “The Toronto Maple Leafs have been consistent over the past few years in that they have not made the playoffs.”

Anyway onto the bloggage…

Did you hear any of the Nov 9, 2009 show? The Richard Griffin segment was awesome. It was made up of 3 people all agreeing on a topic without suggesting how to change things. Part of the conversation was about Cito managing in 2010 and then giving him a 4 yr front office job. It was said that Paul Beeston has done this out of respect and loyalty for Cito Gaston. There was very little debate (although Bob and Co tried to accuse Richard Griffin that his explanation was indeed his opinion) as they agreed that it would have been better for the Jays to replace the manager for 2010.

Here is my view as to why this is not a good idea at this moment in time.

At the end of 2008 the team was suited to the managerial style of Cito Gaston. With the pitching injuries and influx of rookies during 2009, Cito’s strengths were no longer an asset for the team. The lesson here is that the manager hired for a group of players, didn’t pan out because the players changed. With this in mind, is it wise to hire a new manager now, without knowing what kind of team the Jays will have?

Another argument is that the new manager would be able to help build the team. I would suggest that the young Alex Anthopolous has sights set on building a team and wants his name attached to it without the appearance that someone else is pilling his strings and possibly to avoid a conflict that a GM vs manager may have.

Once the Halladay and Wells situation is resolved; some free agents or prospects are bought onboard; and a solid core team is put together BEFORE hiring a new manager. Of course, all this could happen during Spring Training, most likely in will happen mid-2010 season. My suggestion is that they promote bench coach Nick Leyva as manager for 2011. This will bring familiarity and consistency within the clubhouse.

But for now, today, mid-November 2009, the Jays have a vision at building a competitor in 2011, so having Cito as the manager (with a built-in, face-saving, 4-year escape clause) doesn’t harm the team at all. Knowing what the team nucleus is made up of, will probably help to attract an external manager as well.

-@thekanj

I think 2010 is pretty much a guaranteed write-off and the Jays admit as much by bringing Cito back for a one year contract. I agree it makes no sense to bring him back given the new direction the club is headed in, but at the end of the day it makes little impact.

What do you guys think?

The Yankee Championship Salary Effect

2009-11-05T08:29:00.008-05:00

While watching the Yankees win and throwing up shortly thereafter, I wondered at 3am how past Yankee Championship wins have affected salaries the following year. McCown has theorized that the Jays will have to spend around the 120 million mark to come close to the Yankees and Red Sox and make them more competitive next year. Now that the Empire has won the world series, let's look back at the effect past Yankees Championships have had on the average salary in baseball.


WS Winner Following Year Avg Salary % increase from previous year MLB salary
1996 - NYY $1,383,578 17.6
1997 - FLO $1,441,406 4.2
1998 - NYY $1,720,050 19.3
1999 - NYY $1,998,034 15.6
2000 - NYY $2,264,403 13.9
2001 - ARZ $2,383,235 5.2
2002 - ANA $2,555,476 7.2
2003 - FLO $2,486,609 (-2.7)
2004 - BOS $2,632,655 5.9
2005 - CWS $2,866,544 8.9
2006 - STL $2,944,556 2.7
2007 - BOS $3,154,845 7.1
2008 - PHI $3,240,000 2.7
2009 - NYY ??? ???

So basically, Yankees win, everyone loads up more than they normally would the following year. Based on this pattern, this wouldn't be a good year to spend as competition for free agents will be higher than normal. If you were the Jays, would this change your planning for the off-season free agent frenzy?

Apologies

2009-11-03T23:42:00.003-05:00

I've got a couple of boys under 3 who are both sick...not H1N1, thank god, but sleepless nights nonetheless! Will try and catch up, but more likely will start up when I can at the first show I hear. Been catching pieces of interviews, but not the entire show. As always, looking for writers - dorp me an email at bobcat_idol@hotmail.com.

Cheers and keep healthy everyone!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, October 27, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-29T20:53:00.004-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Rogers Sportsnet hockey expert, Nick Kypreos; USA Today's Michael Hiestand; Paul Beeston, president and CEO of the Toronto Blue Jays; ESPN baseball play-by-play announcer, Dan Shulman; Globe and Mail columnist, Jeff Blair.

...and Beeston is our man...FINALLY! But the question remains - Beeston hasn't done much since re-joining the Jays 18 months ago. How will this affect re-signing Doc? What will the budget be next year? If budget ain't an issue, how much will Beeston ask for? A 3 year deal does seem to be short. A comforting feeling was reached as Beeston said, "Winning the World Series HAS to be the priority for this organization." As a Jays fan, all I'm looking for now is comfort.

Sportsnet "responds"...

2009-10-29T19:36:00.004-04:00

"Hello,

Thanks for your recent email. The show was indeed off the air for a couple of weeks. However, it has now returned and can be seen on Sportsnet East every weekday starting at 5 pm (ET).

Sincerely
Jim LaChapelle
Audience Relations"

Hey Jim - thanks for the detailed response which doesn't address any of my questions on why Sportsnet continues to keep their viewers in the dark. In both, to the inconsistency of their programming and their lack of respect for their viewers.

Sportsnet Feedback...Part deux...

2009-10-28T17:16:00.003-04:00

After not hearing from Sportsnet 11 days ago, I decided to resend my original request to them:

Sportsnet,

11 days ago I sent in the following request and 11 days later, I have yet to hear from you. I am sending the email again in hopes of hearing back from you as perhaps something happened with my original question. Can you please explain to me why you continue to jerk around Bob McCown and more importantly, me as a viewer? Yes, I can (and do) go elsewhere to get Prime Time Sports, but the way you treat us as viewers is shameful. One day it's on, and the other it's off. ...and it doesn't have anything to do with baseball. There are days when baseball wasn't on in the past couple of weeks where Prime Time Sports wasn't shown and NO REASON OR EXPLANATION was given to us as viewers. Not sure of the love/hate of Bob McCown, but as a viewer, I'm getting tired of being jerked around. I'm sure your sponsors will really enjoy the fact that loyal viewers to Prime Time Sports are now going elsewhere to get the product they wish to have on a *consistent* basis - ie. Fan 590 or the podcasts. Please provide an explanation. This email as well as whatever your response (if any), will be posted on my website, "Prime Time Sports Review" at http://primetimesportsreview.blogspot.com. -Frustrated Listener

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, October 26, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-27T19:38:00.004-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Rogers Sportsnet baseball announcer, Jamie Campbell; Paul Waldie, Globe and Mail writer; Ken Holland, GM of the Detroit Red Wings; owner of the Ottawa Senators, Eugene Melnyk; Glenn Howard, World Cup of Curling champion.

Firstly, the torch relay matters. McCown and otherwise who suggest otherwise, are simply wrong. On a personal level, I was a young teenager in '88 when the Olympics were last in Calgary. I was riveted by the relay and had a map of Canada I kept while tracking where the Olympic flame was. My friends and I all envied the torch bearers and silently wished we were picked.

So Brunt gets selected to carry the Olympic flame, and in turn causes a bit of a controversy across the Country. Former Olympian Alison Korn it called it "unethical".

Former Globe Columnist William Houston ripped Brunt to shreds. But considering the way Houston was let go by the same employer that selected Brunt as a torch bearer, he's hardly objective and you really sense the bitterness in his tone.

Back to Brunt. He stated that 70% of torch bearers are members of the public who are selected through various processes including lottery, and I'd assume merit. The remaining 30% are sponsor selections, and Brunt is listed in this 30%.

Here's my question to you all. Would you have a problem with Brunt carrying the torch if he were in the 70%, specifically chosen on merit? I'd argue that Brunt has had an impact on the landscape of sports like very few other journalists in this country. I find his articles constantly challenge the reader and the status quo. I have yet to read "Searching for Bobby Orr" or "Gretzky's Tears", but both are on my Christmas reading list. If I had to select a sports journalist to carry the torch, he'd be my pick.

What bothers me is Brunt is treating this like any other assignment. Instead of saying that it's an honor and a privilege, he's treating this like covering the freakin' Brier? I chalk this up to being thrown for a loop that the outcry is so huge. I personally believe that Brunt felt that in some small way, he deserved the honor. I also think he underestimated what the public reaction to this story has been. CTV certainly didn't help things by producing a press release with Brunt's name front and center. The way CTV handled this also was something he was miffed by.

Surprisingly, Brunt hasn't commented about this via his Globe Column, but I expect him to face this the way he has pined others to in his past articles. Honestly.

Here is the discussion, via Fadoo:

McCown & Brunt discuss Olympic Torch Relay

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Friday, October 23, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-26T16:42:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Roundtable with Bob McCown, Jim Kelley, Bruce Arthur, and Neil Smith.

If the Senators played Dodgeball during practice, the Toronto media would have a flippin' field day. I can't believe the number of journalists defending the Leafs. Soon the tide will turn on Burke. The early play of the Leafs seems to be Burke's "bogey" by the media, and everyone but McCowns love affair with Burke is continuing. I admit that I was skeptical of how McCown would handle criticizing Burkey, but he definitely stepped into Burke with some pretty big fists questioning his vision for the team.

McCown's line of the week saying if he were GM he'd tell the players, "If you don't play better, you'll be driving a truck next week!!"

Couldn't Have Said It Better Myself!

2009-10-23T23:08:00.002-04:00

"Not sure what it costs Rogers to keep Bob McCown happy, but whatever it is, he's worth it. Prime Time Sports, especially when co-hosted by Stephen Brunt, raises the level of intelligent sports discourse in this country several notches. They're so far above the windbags on most other radio shows, it's not even funny. " - Patrick Maloney, London Free Press LINK

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, October 22, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-23T23:07:00.002-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Jim Kelley
Guests: Ryan Zander, general manager of baseball products for Sportvision; Buck Martinez, TBS baseball commentator; attorney and legal analyst, Rob Becker; Dr. Christiane Ayotte, director of the anti-doping lab at the Richmond Olympic Oval.

McCown, there's a reason you do the "Goalie Mask not in the NHL Rulebook" debate, only once a year. It's because it's meaningless!!!

This Sportsnet-PTS battle is really going to get worse before it gets better. McCown called out Sportsnet for the lack of coverage he has on the Sportsnet website. Pointing to the fact that HockeyCentral interviews that are readily available through sportsnet.ca, McCown ripped Sportsnet for not having any of PTS material online. As always, he's right. ..and so far, nothing from Sportsnet on my email request. Perhaps I should start a Letterman-Oprah type log of how I feel each day Sportsnet neglects me after I wrote them such a nice letter!

Was it the smartest thing for Dr. Ayotte to release the fact that cheating athletes can produce "better" results by drinking a Litre of water before the test?? I found this a bit odd.

Why is the off-PTS-show news so much more interesting that the on-PTS-show issues?? Kinda like Letterman, eh?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, October 21, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-23T23:07:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Jim Kelley
Guests: Tony Viner, president and CEO of Rogers Media; NBC and Versus hockey analyst, Ed Olczyk; senior advisor for the Philadelphia Phillies, Pat Gillick; ESPN play-by-play announcer, Dan Shulman; James Christie, Globe and Mail columnist.

The OFFICIAL Jays post-mortem has begun.

Viner answered the simple question - Rogers is committed to the Jays and they are not for sale. Kelley really needs to think about his question line before he asks it. There was one question that literally took a minute and a half to ask it. Viner only stayed on for one segment, but as Viner put it about Prime Time Sports, "I'm planning on being a regular."

Gillick on coming to Toronto to assist the Jays, "Not at this time…" Bobcat, if it's impossible for Gillick to answer his interest in the Jays position due to his contract with the Phillies, why ask?

The Olympics are definitely corrupt…I still smart from Toronto not getting the bid in '96. Having said that, what exactly did Vancouver do to secure their bid?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, October 19, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-20T18:46:00.002-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Jim Kelley (what the??)
Mark Cohon, CFL commissioner; Toronto Sun baseball columnist, Bob Elliott; hockey analyst for Comcast SportsNet, Al Morganti, and Neil Smith, former NHL team general manager; Daniel Kaplan from SportsBusiness Journal; offensive linesmen for the Buffalo Bills, Andy Levitre and Eric Wood.

"If the audience thinks they are the only one confused…yeah, we're a little confused ourselves. I'm happy to get 1,800 emails a day asking "where are you", Sportsnet can answer the question of where we are."

…and Kelley returns?? So now 3 co-hosts? It's a good thing Rogers Sportsnet and PTS continue to keep us viewers in the freakin' loop eh?

Steroids matter. As McCown has espoused in the past, what do we tell our kids when they have the option of pursuing elite athletics? That's it is okay to cheat, especially if it's part of the norm of society? Now whether professional sports has the balls to

Sportsnet Feedback...

2009-10-20T14:05:00.000-04:00

Interested in giving feedback? I did find the place to provide Sportsnet with questions, so fire away: LINK. Here's the letter I sent in…will keep you posted if they reply.

Sportsnet,

Can you please explain to me why you continue to jerk around Bob McCown and more importantly, me as a viewer? Yes, I can (and do) go elsewhere to get Prime Time Sports, but the way you treat us as viewers is shameful. One day it's on, and the other it's off. ...and it doesn't have anything to do with baseball. There are days when baseball wasn't on in the past couple of weeks where Prime Time Sports wasn't shown and NO REASON OR EXPLANATION was given to us as viewers. Not sure of the love/hate of Bob McCown, but as a viewer, I'm getting tired of being jerked around.

I'm sure your sponsors will really enjoy the fact that loyal viewers to Prime Time Sports are now going elsewhere to get the product they wish to have on a *consistent* basis - ie. Fan 590 or the podcasts.

Please provide an explanation. This email as well as whatever your response (if any), will be posted on my website, "Prime Time Sports Review" at http://primetimesportsreview.blogspot.com.

-Frustrated Listener

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Friday, October 16, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-19T17:00:00.003-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Roundtable with Bob McCown, John Shannon, Jeff Blair, and David Shoalts.

Prime Time Sports has always been a national broadcast. The first hour of the show featured the roundtable discussing how brutal the leafs are. Now being an Ottawa Senators fan, my bias is clear. Having said that, does the country *really* need a dissection of the worst place team? Why not discuss the challenges in Calgary, Montreal and Vancouver? What about the play of the Sens and how the team seems to have turned it around? Could it simply be that McCown, Shannon, Blair and Shoalts are all pretty much one dimensional in terms of their hockey knowledge? "Why bother being a leaf fan?" remarked Blair. Why discuss them in the first place and spend so damn long on the pathetic embarrassment that is the leafs? (Bash if you'd like, but you are only kidding yourself, delusional or a leaf fan...or all 3!)

So who would you like to see light the torch in Vancouver: Wayne Gretzky? Rick Hansen? Pierre Lueders? Terry Fox's Mother? Nancy Greene?

...and did you know that the Olympic torch will be lit in a few short days?? HREF="http://www.vancouver2010.com/more-2010-information/olympic-torch-r
elay/olympic-torch-relay-interactive-map/">LINK

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, October 15, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-19T16:59:00.000-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Peter Pocklington, former owner of the Edmonton Oilers; former player for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tie Domi; ESPN's Dan Shulman; CBC hockey play-by-play broadcaster, Jim Hughson; basketball analyst Jack Armstrong.

Ahhh, Pearl Jam starting off the show...well, at least this is one huge advantage of PTS not being on Sportsnet!

So first "Gretzky's Tears", and now "I'd Trade Him Again"...the Gretzky retrospectives continue. Pocklington was very frank and for you die-hard Oiler fans out there, it is a painful interview to hear particularly when Pocklington admits that he didn't shop the Kings offer around. Epic fail.

Wouldn't it be weird if Battle of the Blades made it to the US and the ratings outdrew NHL hockey???

Agree with McCown - if the Raptors can show any semblance of competitiveness, the Toronto media and fans will love the team more than it ever has.

McCown/Sportsnet Battle Update

2009-10-16T08:10:00.004-04:00

The whole sorted mess can be read here: LINK.

Coles notes version of the events:
- Sportsnet and McCown in battle as McCown has been without a contract since September.
- McCown threatens to pull PTS off the Sportsnet airwaves
- Sportsnet pulls PTS off the air on its own
- McCown and Rogers "connect" on a new contract without Sportsnet's knowledge
- PTS will be back on the air on Tuesday as follows:
* PTS LIVE on Sportsnet East
* HockeyCentral replay (from noon) @ 5pm on Sportsnet Ontario
* Connected @ 6:30pm on Sportsnet Ontario
As Zelkovich pointed out, "The East channel will get McCown, but those elsewhere in the country who want to see it will have to pay for that channel."

I can't believe that Rogers intervened (whether it was McCown pushing it or not), to 'save' PTS. McCown has been way more critical of Rogers with relation to the Blue Jays current issues, than Sportsnet. I still can't believe Rogers was the one who found the value in McCown and didn't want to let him go.

So, some key questions for me:
1) What did Rogers pay McCown? For how much?
2) Did Rogers know that Sportsnet would dramatically scale back the amount of PTS coverage on the airwaves?
3) How long is the contract for?

Will this affect any of you out there?

...like sands through the hourglass...

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, October 14, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-15T15:39:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Co-author of "Leafs AbomiNation", Michael Grange; Claude Lemieux, NHL player and "Battle of the Blades" contestant; Peter Keating, writer for ESPN The Magazine; NBC and Versus hockey analyst, Ed Olczyk; George Stroumboulopoulos, host of "The Hour" on CBC.

McCown: "I'm developing a book that talks about the life and times in this stupid business and how the suits have tried to mess up my life."

Brunt: "That hasn't happened recently to you has it?"
McCown: "Not in a couple of hours, but I've been here."

"An announcement is forthcoming…it's up to them to make whatever announcement they wish…we’re not sure why we're not on, but it doesn't matter why we're not on, but it's up to them (Sportsnet)…but it's going to be okay…just relax!" quipped McCown during the show.

Regardless of all the speculation going around the internetsssss these days, it seems as there will be something different, new and fresh happening with Prime Time Sports and Sportsnet. My best guess is that Sportsnet is going to take McCown and company out of the Fan590 studio and bring him into the Sportsnet studios which would lend to better camera's, better graphics and video support to conversations that take place. The simulcast will still take place on Fan590, but Sportsnet will be the base, not the Fan590, as it is now. So instead of a radio show on tv, it will be a tv show on radio. This would bring PTS up to a level to compete with TSN (Again, this is all in my mind!)

So, McCown has 3 upcoming books (all in his head) which are:
- McCowns life and times
- A retrospective of Prime Time Sports (evidently a picture book?)
- ???

…although not much has been said about Jim Kelley's departure from Prime Time Sports, Brunt did mention it by saying "now that John Shannon is a sidekick…" So it's pretty well confirmed. Kelley's out. Shannon's in.

Strombo interview was great…wish he'd be on more and can't wait for the Fleury interview on the Hour.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, October 13, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-14T16:16:00.003-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Hockey analyst for Rogers Sportsnet, Nick Kypreos; Gregg Zaun, Tampa Bay Rays catcher and Rogers Sportsnet post-season baseball expert; Damien Cox from the Toronto Star; Sports Illustrated NFL writer, Don Banks; Duane Forde, CFL game analyst for TSN.

After being mysteriously absent on Monday, McCown was back on Tuesday.

Not a peep about the current Sportsnet-Prime Time Sports issue on PTS - either via McCown himself, or on all of the teasers at the intro of the show. VERY interesting. I'm not entirely sure how many listeners knew (or even care) about the current Sportsnet situation. Heck, even with Kypreos in studio, McCown didn't take any shots…maybe it's me, but I could sense his mind was elsewhere tonight.

Word also broke earlier this afternoon that Prime Time Sports will continue to be on Rogers: LINK.

I wonder what those "internal" issues were all about? McCown has always been faithful and truthful to his listeners, and I hope he can divulge a bit about what has happened on his next show.

There's no way Bobcat is going anywhere from the FAN590. The only question is whether Rogers can continue to take the hits from McCown, particularly with the Olympics around the corner. My question is simply, why now? What has happened since September that has the big-wigs worried?

As McCown said in an interview with the Toronto Star about being replaced: "God, no. It never occurred to me. I don't know if it's ego or self-confidence ..." LINK

Are you like me? Getting tired of being dicked around by Sportsnet as a loyal PTS viewer?? …or as a radio/podcast listener, do you not care?

Sure beats talking about Phoenix, eh?

McCown out of Sportsnet?? (part deux)

2009-10-14T06:38:00.005-04:00

Small blurb about McCown being out of Sportsnet from Globe Sports: LINK. Again, thanks to Mike S. for the link.

The issue I have with this potential decision is the fact that Sportsnet continues to treat the Prime Time Sports audience like leftovers. Prime Time Sports is cheap programming. One day it's on and the other off. For those 'viewers' watching at home who set their pvrs to watch the show (like myself!), it's frustrating to come home, flip on the recorded show, only to find alternative programming that has been recorded.

The one thing that isn't being discussed is that this "decision" is coming after an in depth discussion about Rogers last Friday where McCown challenged Rogers to put up or shut up with the Jays payroll for next year. Specifically he stated that their could be a fan revolt against Rogers if the Jays aren't competitive next year and the fanbase feels Rogers is to blame. You mean to tell me it's a coincidence that Sportsnet is choosing NOW to evaluate McCown, a mere 4-6 weeks after extending the Prime Time Sports brand to 2 hours? Us viewers ain't that stupid!

Sportsnet: why don't you fish or cut bait with Prime Time Sports and be honest with your viewers?

McCown, as always, you know you have an open invitation to speak here.

McCown out of Sportsnet??

2009-10-13T21:05:00.005-04:00

According to the blog "Toronto Sports Media", McCown may be gonzo from Sportsnet as he's being "greedy" (thanks Mike S for pointing it out in the comments). LINK

What’s the source of the blog? Word on the street? Hmmm…..not sure if I’m buying.

If it's true, nothing wrong at all with Bobcat asking for more. Sportsnet is basically miling PTS for all that it’s worth. Why not ask for more?? I'm pretty sure TSN would love to have Bobcat too.

But again, anyone can go on the internet and post whatever they wish saying it was hearsay.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Friday, October 9, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-13T16:15:00.004-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Roundtable with Bob McCown, John Shannon, James Deacon, and Sam Cosentino.
Why come forward now Fleury? Why speak now and not when Sheldon Kennedy pursued a case against James? Why speak now and not when he was younger to help ensure that James would be locked away never to harm children again? Why put Graham James in a position to Coach other boys (link)?

With all of these lingering questions, how can any of us put our minds in the head of Fleury, including what he has been through and the demons he has battled through the years? It is definitely tough on mainstream journalists who need to delicately ask these questions while at the same time having empathy for what Fleury has gone through.

Still no word on whether Jim Kelley is gonzo on Prime Time Sports.

I pretty much agree with the panel on the Jays. This is the turning point. A lot of fans will make their mind up on the future support of this team based on what management does this year in the off season. Will fans still show up? Sure. But as an average of less than 20,000 - that's pretty much a given. Unless the Jays management can show the fans that they are ready to pony up and financially support this team against the Sox and Yankees.

What do you think of the Jays 60 mill vs 120 mill debate?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, October 8th, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-10T14:06:00.002-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Bruce Arthur
Guests: ESPN's Dan Shulman; Elliotte Friedman, reporter for "Hockey Night in Canada" on CBC; Paul Beeston, interim CEO of the Toronto Blue Jays; Rich Lerner from the Golf Channel; Lyle Bauer, Winnipeg Blue Bombers CEO.

Friedman returns!!! Again, because there was no TV, he was allowed on. TSN apparently wanted Friedman at the same time HNIC/CBC wanted him too. Friedman has come a really long way since joining CBC in 2003 (has it
really been that long?)

Hey McCown - GET BACK ON TWITTER DAMMIT!!! There wasn't a revenue stream when you started coming on twitter and there hasn't been one since. It's a way as fans that we could communicate and since twitter has stalled, so has that connection. Speaing of Fadoo, it seems to have fallen quite a bit as well, in terms of McCown's presence.

Get the feeling that Beeston has known all along who the new President of the Jays is going to be? Seems he's just waiting for the post-season to be over to 'pluck' him from another organization.

At a quote today from McCown that is now amongst my favourite: "If you're happy with what you are doing, don't screw it up. If you're not happy, don't be afraid to make yourself happy." Such a happy thought going into the weekend!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, October 7th, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-10T14:04:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Bruce Arthur
Guests: Globe and Mail sports writer, David Naylor; Scott Moore, executive director of CBC Sports; Ed Olczyk, NBC and Versus hockey analyst; legal expert Rob Becker; Keith Law from ESPN.

Nice to hear some real music on the podcast breaks...instead of the studio music. Cheap Sportsnet bastards won't pay for licensed music on the TV airwaves.

Would love to know more details about the books that McCown/Naylor have going on. It still sounds like it's at least a year away though for anything to be produced. Hope the History of Prime Time Sports makes it to fruition.

"Don (Cherry) is a bit of a dancer" - Scott Moore. Does anyone in Canada know this side of Cherry?

Looking at the Kelly-NHLPA situation, McCown has recently argued that Kelly's fundamental mistake was not getting rid of the 'old guard' and letting the Executive Board continue to run, without putting in "his own guys". The problem with this argument is that it is all in hindsight. No one saw this coming and unfortunately McCown's comments come after the fact. If McCown thought this, why not say it before instead of after Kelly was fired? ...and a bit sick of the "Sword of Damocles"
saying too! For those that need it, here's the link to what the reference is all about:
LINK

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, October 6th, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-10T14:02:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Bruce Arthur
Guests: CNBC sports business reporter, Darren Rovell; Nick Kypreos from Rogers Sportsnet; Alex Anthopoulos, general manager of the Toronto Blue Jays; ESPN.com writer, Rob Neyer; president of Hockey Canada, Bob Nicholson.

Anyone know what the song is that is played when Kypreos comes on? It's catchy, ain't it?

2 million people watched the CBC Battle of the Blades?!?! How is that possible??

Man, Anthopoulos sounds good, eh? Or could it be a young guy that feels like he just got laid for the first time?? But then again, I felt positive when I first heard Ricciardi speak!

Change at Prime Time Sports??

2009-10-08T00:03:00.002-04:00

From Bruce Dowbiggin at the Globe & Mail (thanks to user Mike S!)
"There's a change in the co-host lineup for Prime Time Sports and Prime Time Sports Connected.

Former Hockey Night in Canada executive producer John Shannon - who most recently was executive VP of programming and production for the NHL - steps into a slot opposite Stephen Brunt (of The Globe and Mail) on Bob McCown's nightly talk show produced by Rogers.

It isn't clear what that means for veteran hockey writer Jim Kelley, who has commuted from his Buffalo-area home to do the show since 2006."
LINK: Few full article here

What do you guys think? Is this the end of Kelley on Prime Time Sports?? I'll give you guys my thoughts later in the week...

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, October 5th, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-06T23:19:00.005-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Bruce Arthur
Guests: Chicago Blackhawks general manager, Stan Bowman; Tom Anselmi, VP and CEO of Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment; Paul Godfrey, former president of the Toronto Blue Jays; ESPN.com's Lester Munson; baseball columnist for the Toronto Sun, Bob Elliott; Don Banks, Sports Illustrated NFL writer.

Sorry for the lack of updates last week. Both of my kids under 3 have been sick and it's been kleenex hell dealing with all the runny noses (sniff, sniff!) I blame it on McCown infecting my family with whatever he had last week through the radio!! No updates from Thursday and Friday as a result...apologies!

Blackhawks remind me of the Sens from the Yashin days - tons of potential and sky's the limit.

Why can't the NHLPA fire the Executive Committee and bring back Kelly? I think Kelly would come back under the right circumstances. If not, the NHL should hire him. It's a lot easier to leave Kelly fired than keep Kelly and fire Penny, Pink and Hardgrove of the NHLPA. It's hard to believe that the NHLPA will do what's right. More likely, they'll do what's easy as their track record clearly shows. Lester Munson and Bob McCown circled around the same themes in their interview.

Which mess would you rather be part of - the Jays or the NHLPA???

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, September 30, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-10-02T11:17:00.000-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Jim Kelly
Guests: GM of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Brian Burke; ESPN broadcaster Dan Shulman; Paul Waldie, writer for the Globe and Mail; Rob Becker, attorney and legal analyst.

After a painful week without McCown, he returned from the brutal cold he had to conduct a fascinating interview with Burke. A must listen for any hockey fan. As a Sens fan, it's my duty to hate the leafs with a passion (and I am proud to do so.) But you can't help but be amazed by the charisma Burkey speaks with. The leafs are in good hands.

You can really see the connection between Burke and McCown. All will go well between these two as long as the leafs are winning. If something goes off the rails, McCown will be ready to call Burke out, and Burke will surely stand his ground making for some interesting radio (like there hasn't been enough of that recently on PTS?)

...and after the months of crap with Balsillie, her falls on his sword trying to paint himself as a Canadian hero? My respect ends for Balsillie on what he's achieved for RIM and Blackberry, although it has greatly diminished by the way he has tried to acquire the Phoenix Coyotes.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, September 23, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-24T16:47:00.000-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Hockey analyst for Rogers Sportsnet, Nick Kypreos; USA Today's Michael Hiestand; David Branch, CHL president and OHL commissioner; former director of players affairs for the NHLPA, Glenn Healy.

Bobcat has MORE than one vice, Brunt. Gambling and smoking! Probably the best first segment between Brunt and McCown that spread to TFC, fishing, smoking, golf, murdering, soccer hooligans, guns, vices and interests of both Brunt and McCown. Great radio!

OK, so Healy et al can't talk about what 'really' happened regarding Kelly and the NHLPA. Why doesn't someone go to Bob McCown and TELL him what happened and allow Bobcat to report this information confidentially?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, September 22, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-24T16:46:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Tom Anselmi, MLSE executive VP and COO; John Branch, writer for the New York Times; Paul Waldie, business reporter for the Globe and Mail; Sports Illustrated's Don Banks.

TFC may be doing great as an "experience", live and in person, but the TFC ratings on CBC are brutal. There are almost as many people watching on tv that are attending games. McCown attending a TFC game is now a "definite maybe"?? Now this I gotta see! What do you guys think the chances are that he'll actually go?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, September 21, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-22T15:26:00.003-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Ed Olczyk, hockey analyst for Versus and NBC; Hamilton Tiger Cats GM, Bob O'Billovich; Bill Daly, NHL deputy commissioner; Trent Edwards, quarterback for the Buffalo Bills.

The leafs get a bonnifide 35-goal scorer for 2 first round picks and a second? If Murray made that deal in Ottawa, he'd be fired.

On the Daly interview, I thought both McCown and Brunt were out of line a couple of times. Daly answered questions up front and a couple of times, both Brunt and McCown hinted at owners not talking as they were "afraid of getting their wrists slapped." The two times they did this, they did not give Daly an opportunity to respond, although it was more of a cheap shot than a question. Daly answered the questions honestly and it seemed (at least initially) that both McCown and Brunt had an axe to grind.

...and out of nowhere, McCown hit Daly with the referee lawsuit question. To my recollection, I don't remember this issue ever being discussed. As a listener, it would have been nice to get more context before Daly was asked the question.

On the positive, a great answer by Daly on the whole NHLPA-Kelly firing. "Shocked" was the word Daly used.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Friday, September 18, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-22T15:25:00.000-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Bob McCown, Stephen Brunt, Neil Lumsden, and Gord Kirke.

Jordan is a world class a-hole. Yep, it will be tough for your kids to follow your footsteps, but I find it impossible to think that they will be less humble.

It will be interesting to hear what the NHL will say to Melnyk's assertion that NHL teams have veto power over territorial rights. I wonder if MacLeans name will come up??

Nadir - get on Prime Time Sports, will ya???

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, September 17, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-22T15:24:00.000-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Rob Becker, lawyer based in New York; Doug Smith, Toronto Star basketball writer; owner of the Ottawa Senators, Eugene Melnyk; ESPN baseball play-by-play announcer, Dan Shulman; Mitch Melnick, show host on the Team 990 in Montreal.

McCown for a Senate seat? I've always known deep down that McCown wished he was an Ottawa Senator!!!

To hear Shulman, Brunt and McCown reminisce about announcers is really interesting as I think the three of them will go down amongst the top Canadian broadcasters of our generation. 30 years from now, the three of them will be discussed in the same vein.

Mark my words, Melnyk's words will be used by Balsillie in court saying that teams do have a veto over the territorial rights. The owners will fight the league on their stance that teams do not have that right.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, September 16, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-17T16:25:00.002-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Glendale, Arizona council member, Phil Lieberman; Bob Elliott, baseball writer for the Toronto Sun; Don Banks from Sports Illustrated; ESPN's Mark Fainaru-Wada; NFL player agent, Leigh Steinberg.

First segment McCown and Brunt talked about books, and writing. Whatever happened to the two books McCown was to produce next year?? Know what's going on? Drop us a line in the comment section. A book of fiction selling well Bobcat? How about a book about the leafs winning the cup thousands of years in the future (if we're talking about true fiction?)

Hearing from Arizona Council Member Phil Lieberman was a hit of reality on the Phoenix issue. Who will assist the small businesses that will suffer with the Coyotes departure? Certainly not the NHL nor the Balsillie camp, both of whom are out for themselves. Balsillie only cares about getting a team in the southern Ontario market. Bettman only cares about getting those lucrative expansion/re-location fees on his terms.

Line of the day when Bob Elliot was introduced..."Bob's not hear, it's Doug MacLean!!" ...and Bob Elliot agreed with McCown too saying McCown "was right". Interesting. Guests that skirt around the MacLean issue never get a full diatribe on the subject as McCown has remained steady that he won't discuss it anymore but if others want to discuss it, he'll listen.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, September 15, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-16T22:34:00.000-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Tuesday: Nick Kypreos, Rogers Sportsnet hockey analyst; Jeff Blair, sports columnist for the Globe and Mail; former WWE wrestler and co-founder of the Sports Legacy Institute, Chris Nowinski; Calgary Flames president and CEO, Ken King; Ed Tait from the Winnipeg Free Press.

Kipper brought up the best point in the ongoing saga which is the McCown-MacLean debate. How do we know that MacLean didn't rip into the Balsillie camp when he joined their team? The "peacemaker" Brunt is supposedly working behind the scenes to bridge the gap…wonder how those negotiations are going?!?!

Nadir Mohamed will be the new public enemy Rogers in Prime Time Sports land. Hopefully he comes on the air as the Jays season comes to an end.

From all accounts from the media, Theoren Fleury is good to go from a fitness point of view. Mentally whether Theoren Fleury is ready to go, is another question all together. Why would Calgary take the risk of bringing Fleury on their final roster with the likes of Bouwmeester, Iginla, Phaneuf and Kipper, in this incredible promising year for the Flames? While I love Fleury and the heart he has possessed, I can't see the Flames taking a chance on him and putting their Stanley Cup dreams in jeopardy.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, September 14, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-15T20:41:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Darren Rovell, CNBC sports business reporter; Globe and Mail tennis expert, Tom Tebbutt; Al Morganti from Comcast SportsNet, and Neil Smith, former NHL general manager; Buffalo News reporter, Jerry Sullivan; Bert Sugar, boxing historian.

Kanye West and Serena Williams have NOTHING on Doug MacLean.

Absolutely insane numbers here at the 'review from the MacLean/McCown argument. Welcome and howdy everyone! Stick around and feel free to contribute to the discussion.

No discussion about Heatley or the Heatley trade early on. This was the trade that so much of us (well from Ottawa and maybe Edmonton anyways) were waiting for, for months. This was a day where Prime Time Sports really showed it's Toronto-centricity, which I find it doesn't display regularly. Perhaps it's the fact that our local sports radio station was completely absent on the weekend, choosing FOX Sports radio to be aired instead of analysis. The conversation with Morganti and Smith on the Heatley deal was simplistic and void of any detailed analysis, which again is rare for their weekly segment.

Can't wait for the Sundin speculation to begin on a daily basis on Prime Time Sports.

Brunt's new book on Gretzky is coming out shortly. In non-Bobcat fashion, he wants to actually READ this one before he talks to Brunt about it. Usually he talks to the author first and reads second. Wonder why the switch on Brunt's book?

Update to the MacLean-McCown fight

2009-09-11T16:26:00.002-04:00

MacLean stated on the afternoon show on the Fan590 @ roughly 3pm:
- he spoke with Bob this morning at 8:30
- he cleared the air with him and did apologize
- he asked to pass on a message to Bobcat that he won't be able to be on Prime Time Sports later today (weird, no?)
- his neighbors were looking worried at him when he was in the argument
- he and Bobcat are still friends

Bizzare.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Thursday, September 10, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-11T16:04:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: ESPN's Dan Shulman; Peter King, Sports Illustrated football writer; George Gillett, Montreal Canadiens outgoing owner; Doug MacLean, consultant to Jim Balsillie's company; Daniel Kaplan of SportsBusiness Journal.

OK, you see yesterdays review? Skip it! If there are new and twisting revelations with regards to the Phoenix situation, like that of today with MacLean jumping ship, then giddyup, lets go! MacLean absolutely ripped into McCown during the spring regarding the Balsillie mess. I don't recall Prime Time Sports ever replaying a past interview before a guest came on, especially when the guest did a complete 180 of the way they felt. A great set-up for the interview that took place.

When I heard the news of MacLean joining the Balsillie camp, I immediately thought that if Balsillie loses, MacLeans career is DONE! No one will ever give him a shot after the "betrayal" of the NHL with this move.

HOLD CRAP what an explosive interview with MacLean!!! MacLean attacked McCown "...it's not unlike you when someone is not in the studio that you are at your best. For you to say it was it was suicidal for me to partner with Balsillie, it was suicidal for me with the NHL for me to become a friend of yours." Man, he was ticked. I do agree with MacLean that McCown was a bit out of line to throw the tape on air when he wasn't around.

It sounded like MacLean wants to be the bridge between Balsillie and the NHL.

I have said it time and time again that MacLean has an axe to grind with MacLean. McCown: "He always makes it a personal attack and that's what he did tonight. As long as I sit in this chair, that will be the last time you hear MacLean on this program. I may be criticized for that, but I don't care. He is who I thought he was." Stunning.

I would love to see the video behind this and McCown's reaction when MacLean was speaking. I can't ever remember Bobcat being spoken to like this on Prime Time Sports...ever...

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, September 9, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-11T16:03:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: Toronto Blue Jays play-by-play broadcaster, Alan Ashby; Jack Armstrong, analyst for the Toronto Raptors; Rob Becker, New York-based lawyer; Brandon Lang, sports handicapper; Globe and Mail columnist, David Shoalts.

Beatles talk with Brunt, Bobcat and Becker...awesome. I saw Love in Vegas and it was nothing short of phenomenal!

As much as I love this Phoenix story, it's time for Prime Time Sports to stop the coverage (after this round.) The amount this has been covered on Prime Time Sports is enough to make me sick. Don't get me wrong, as a passionate listener, it's impossible not to have even a mild interest in sports business, but this is just insane. I find myself tuning out from the guests who get into the deep legal explanation of what's going on. Perhaps part of it is due to the fact that we all know this case will be bogged down in appeals. Like the Heatley situation, one can only hope this sideshow is coming to an end.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, September 8, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-10T06:29:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Stephen Brunt
Guests: President and CEO of the Toronto Argonauts, Bob Nicholson; David Peterson, chair of the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games Bid; Don Banks from Sports Illustrated; manager of team travel for the Toronto Blue Jays, Mike Shaw; Brahm Resnik, reporter and anchor for News 12 in Phoenix.

Nothing like the best combo in sports radio, Brunt and McCown!!!

If you think Bettman v Balsillie is insane, imagine Bettman vs MLSE? The battle lines are drawn and the next few days will dictate exactly how close those two are headed towards battle.

David Petterson, Chair of the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games Bid came on and supposedly the two of them had a loud altercation regarding the bid. Bobcat has been a long time advocate of no public funds going to sporting bid tournaments, especially the olympics. Hell, he's even critical of the Vancouver Olympics that he'll be attending at broadcasting at! When it came down to the Pan Am Games, Bobcat was pretty adament that it was the wrong way to proceed based on a multitude of factors. While it was a very, VERY civil conversation, if this thing gets closer expect a major battle between Peterson and Bobcat on the airwaves.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, September 7, 2009 (6:00-7:00)

2009-09-08T16:10:00.000-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Roundtable with Bruce Arthur and Neil Smith.

One of the less memorable shows...Bobcat still in a funk about not getting down to the bottom of the NHLPA mess. But other than that, not much to write about.

Bettman all of a sudden isn't arch enemy #1 around these parts!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Friday, September 4, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-08T16:05:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Roundtable with James Deacon, Michael Grange, and Gord Kirke.

McCown to open the Roundtable: "We did our best but I must confess failed miserably in trying to ascertain why Paul Kelly was fired. After Buzz Hargrove, Paul Kelly, Ian Penny all showed up, we got nothing and apologize for the waste of time to our listeners."

Say what you want about Bobcat, he really does value his listeners time. My biggest gripe is, all of these players knew they *had* to come on Prime Time Sports. I personally feel they used the show to save face and McCown needs to evaluate these players in the middle of an interview and hang up on guests that are not forthcoming with information. If not, those who feel like "using" Prime Time Sports as an avenue to "show face" will continue to do so without answering the questions that need to be answered.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown - Thursday, September 3 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-04T09:28:00.002-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Phil Esposito, NHL Hall of Famer; USA Today's media columnist, Michael Hiestand; interim executive director of the NHLPA, Ian Penny; ESPN baseball play-by-play announcer, Dan Shulman; Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star

Bobcat simply put, you should have hung-up on Penny's ass. It was an absolutely hideous interview with me as a listener getting nothing except for frustration from his lack of answers...

As a fan of hockey, the NHLPA firing matters. When Kelly first came onto the scene (oh, those many days ago), his candor was something that I came to worry about. He was a top prosecutor and his comments worried me about future labour strife. Through the months, his willingness to discuss tough issues and common-sense approach was one I came to really respect (especially when interviews were done on Prime Time Sports.)

Kelly's departure leaves a lot of unanswered questions, and Prime Time Sports is normally where questions are answered. This week has been disappointing for me as a listener when ultimately we are talking about the 2nd most powerful man in hockey.

The future of the NHL has never looked as bad as does now (and that's saying a ton!)

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Wednesday, September 2, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-03T20:59:00.002-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: President of the Hamilton Tiger Cats, Scott Mitchell; Anton Thun, NHL player agent; Paul Kelly, former NHLPA executive director; Vancouver Canucks GM, Mike Gillis; columnist for the Globe and Mail, Stephen Brunt.

"Stunned, saddened and disappointed." - Paul Kelly

The interview with Kelly showed one thing. He's unbelievably loyal. Almost to a fault. Although he didn't want to speak about the details of his firing, he refused to take shots at the NHLPA. Class the entire way through, and one hopes that Bobcat rips into the NHLPA when their representation comes into Prime Time Sports tomorrow. (Did I mention class?)

Best lines again from "BruCown"
McCown: "I have a new use for the Globe and Mail!"
Brunt: "You got a dog???"

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Tuesday, September 1, 2009 (6:00-7:00)

2009-09-02T20:43:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Sports Illustrated football writer, Don Banks; Lester Munson from ESPN.com; GM of the Toronto Argonauts, Adam Rita.

Only 1 hour for the review today as the podcast was reduced due to the Jays doubleheader.

Kelly appearing on tomorrows show in his first and so far only interview after being fired from NHLPA.

Bobcat stated today, "While they are the most likable, most approachable of all professional athletes, NHL Players are collectively the most stupidest group I have encountered and demonstrated this (their lack of business knowledge) repeatedly through the years."

I simply don't understand this move. In the era of professional sports, so much is kept hidden from the people that pay the bills. Why does Heatley *really* want out? What does the NHL *really* find objectionable in Balsillie? ...and why did the NHLPA *really* fire Kelly? I'm not sure it serves everyone best by not divulging these issues, as in the age of the internet, sports radio and the wider fan interest in sports, rumours and speculation carry with it more legitimacy than ever before.

In this case, the NHLPA and their constituents (by their silence) look completely unjustified in firing Kelly. Perhaps more importantly it leaves a downright scary glimpse into what the future of the NHLPA and collective bargaining with the NHL could be.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown: Monday, August 31, 2009 (5:00-7:00)

2009-09-01T18:14:00.003-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Brian Cooper of Sports & Entertainment L.P.; Toronto Sun baseball columnist, Bob Elliott; Buzz Hargrove, interim ombudsman for the NHLPA; Ernie Els, golfer on the PGA Tour; president and CEO of the Edmonton Oilers, Patrick LaForge.

"Kelly is smart - smart like Bettman is smart. …and whatever my differences are with Gary, I've always acknowledged this is a really bright guy."

What the hell??? Bob, have you been sipping the kool-aid while you've been away? I never thought I'd see the day that I'd hear McCown say this! I think it's safe to say that through the past couple of years, McCown had a deep 'intrigue' in Paul Kelly. He didn't dodge questions by Bobcat, was honest and was a refreshing change from the normal Hockey Executives.

I can remember McCown in the past hanging up on guests in the past for not answering questions and not wanting to waste the time of the listeners. I was waiting for McCown to hang up on Buzz Hargrove who did a great tap dance around questions without answering a damn thing. I felt my time was wasted, not by Bobcat but by Hargrove not answering the fundamental question of WHY Kelly was released as Head of the NHLPA.

Somewhere, Bob Goodenow is laughing his arse off.

...and we're back!

2009-09-01T18:14:00.001-04:00

No updates for the next 2 weeks

2009-08-08T16:40:00.000-04:00

In Alberta and BC for a family reunion, and just as important seeking Dany Heatley to explain himself! Cheers!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown - Tuesday, August 4th (5:00-7:00)

2009-08-06T08:35:00.002-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: James Deacon
Guests: Bob Elliott, Bart Andrus, Rob Becker, Doug Smith, Stephen Brunt

Why review the perfection that is Bobcat? After being on vacation for a week, Bobcat came back in fine form. Two forms of evidence proving this today:

"If you can go win a major golf championship 10 weeks after spitting out a kid, I'm thinking it can't be that big of a deal. I'm trying to come up with a arallel...like maybe if I had a sore throat and won a major championship...having a baby ain't a big deal. Every day someone is having a baby."
Man, this was a good rant in the first segment. Can't wait for my wife who just had her second baby to hear this one!!

"Lying SunummBitch General Manager" - Bobcat describing JP Ricciardi.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown - Friday, July 24 (5:00-7:00)

2009-07-27T21:36:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Guests: Roundtable with Bob McCown, John Shannon, Rob Faulds, and Gord Kirke

A tale of two Bobs today.

The good - calling out Rogers Management for not taking a leadership position in the current predicament of the Jays. It's really ballsy (not to be confused with Balsillie) to call out your management (even if they are really higher-up, literally) on air. Bob has got nowhere to hide and has never held back firing at Rogers.

The ugly - Bobcat letting Erin Andrews she had nothing to worry about regarding the leaked photos of her, suggesting her body wasn't anything to be ashamed about. I was trying to think why Bob would have such a position, and if it was his daughter that was in a similar predicament, if he would give her the same advice.

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown - Thursday, July 22 (5:00-7:00)

2009-07-24T19:21:00.002-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Rob Becker, legal analyst; the Golf Channel's Iain Page; Bill Daly, NHL deputy commissioner; Keith Law from ESPN; defensive end for the Edmonton Eskimos, Kitwana Jones.

Bobcat - you are GIVING books away??? To whom?!? How'z 'bout you signing my book that was bought on the first day it was released (the FIRST edition!)

It must be hard for Bobcat to show restraint on Daly. After all, he has called the guy a liar before regarding the Coyotes mess (and truthfully, he is!) Having said that, today the two were cordial, and even 'playful' with each other. It amazes me that all the guys in the sports business, or most, have pretty thick skin.

Thanks Bob for not taking a run at the Sens when discussing the issue of the exercise bikes! It was a softball that you could have killed us on, and you laid off. Thanks for becoming an honorary Sens fan!!

So, what are the odds that Bobcat will be away on Monday....ohh, how I hate Mondays!!!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown - Wedneday, July 22 (5:00-7:00)

2009-07-23T15:27:00.002-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Tuesday: Scott Simmons, RCGA executive director; president and general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Brian Burke; ESPN's Dan Shulman; National Post writer, Bruce Arthur; Brendan Taman, Saskatchewan Roughriders football administration director.

The relationship between Brian Burke and Bob McCown is going to be an interesting one to follow over the course of this season and through the duration of Burke's contract. There are two men with large history in the sports landscape, two experts on how the media is used and most importantly 2 owners of massive egos. Burke came on the show today and called McCown "Mac". I don't recall anyone calling McCown this before. It's common knowledge that McCown and Burke met to discuss hockey earlier this summer and McCown even posted an article on fadoo.ca. Burke spoke about how the media and sports franchises use each other, and was very open in discussing this point.
I wonder how this interesting relationship will play itself out. Can these two really get along, or are they inevitably headed for a massive collision of ideals? What about when Bobcat brings up Bettman with Burke (a long time Bettman supporter)?

Blair - spit out your comments will ya'? You're thinking on the fly way too much and as a listener it's hard to listen to...

Just a great article by Bruce Arthur on the Erin Andrews scandal. I have to admit I have seen the video and it's not titillating as much as making me feel like a stalker. If this was your daughter or a family member, how would you feel?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown - Tuesday, July 21 (5:00-7:00)

2009-07-22T17:12:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: John Shannon
Guests: Tuesday: President and GM of the Toronto Raptors, Bryan Colangelo; Pat Gillick, advisor to the Philadelphia Phillies; SportsBusiness Journal writer, Bill King.

Yet another great co-host in John Shannon. Great behind the scenes discussion regarding sports television production and direction. For anyone interested in sports broadcasting, particularly hockey, the first segment is for you.

Interesting times in Toronto - Bosh and Halladay could easily be gone this time next year. These moves will be critical for both the Jays and Raptors.

I was waiting for McCown to tell Gillick that Beeston may need the ultimate convincing from Gillick himself in coming back to the Jays as GM, something that Bobcat has espoused on fadoo.ca and on Prime Time Sports.

Hey Bobcat, there are no "wimpy easterners" in Ottawa...we LIVE cold here!!! Saskatchewan ain't got NUTTIN' on Ottawa with regards to winters!

The Bill King interview was great. Hope he returns! McCown quipped on blogs, "Blogs are opinion pieces, they are not information pieces. Any information that has been gleamed off of a blog has been usually ripped off of someone else, traditional media. What are bloggers? Amateur columnists!" Thanks Bob - I take that as a compliment, although I am not ripping off
anyone...and you won't see profanity here!!! :)

As these are the dog days of summer, I've compiled a top 5 list of Bobcat's Public Enemies:
1. Gary Bettman
2. Tom Watson
3. All-Star Games
4. Soccer
5. Cito Gaston

What/Who am I missing? Post below!!

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown - Monday, July 20 (5:00-7:00)

2009-07-21T15:46:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown

Co-Host: Bruce Arthur

Guests: Daryl Jones, Research Edge LLC managing director; Toronto Blue Jays radio play-by-play announcer, Alan Ashby; roundtable with Bob McCown, John Shannon, and James Deacon.

(My opinion on the Heatley situation, which continues to be ignored by Prime Time Sports:)
There is a parallel between the Heatley-Sens situation and the Halladay-Jays situation. As Beeston said a couple of days ago (paraphrased), "If someone wants Doc, it's gonna have to *hurt* them with the pieces they are going to give up. He's a quality pitcher and you are going to have several quality pieces to get him".

I applaud Murray for 'standing pat'. What's the worst that could happen if Heatley is forced to return? Or if Heatley accepts the move to Edmonton, but the Oil don't put up any more compensation to deal with the 4 mill the Sens dished out? There's no way Heater would sit out on the Sens, especially during an Olympic year. This decision will be as pivotal for the Sens as is the Doc decision is with the Jays. It will set the Sens up well for the next few years or set us back a few if the decision isn't the right one. If there are no suitors, I say wait it out and bring Heater back.

OK Bobcat, let's can the baseball discussion and get to the story behind you and Watson... What happened? Why is he such an a-hole?

EDIT: Reader Sensfan commented that Heatley was discussed to death while I was away...apologies to PTS and Bobcat. Well, what did the glassed-eyed-one have to say on Heatley??

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown - Friday, July 17 (5:00-7:00)

2009-07-21T15:45:00.000-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Bruce Arthur
Guests: Roundtable with Bob McCown, Bruce Arthur, Mary Ormsby, and Gord Kirke.

Bob, when will you learn that Ormsby's bite is worse than her bark! You could hear McCown recant when he said that the reason the leading candidate for the Jays GM role didn't come to Toronto as the wife didn't want to be here. "Always blame it on the wife, eh? That damn Janet
Gretzky!!" quipped Mary. My long-time crush on Mary Ormsby continues!

All-Star games do NOT get "ignored" by Prime Time. It's the same discussion every time..."how can it be improved?"..."wasn't it great the way it was?" Bobcat also "ignores" soccer. The difference? Soccer is never talked about, but all-star games (nhl, nba, nfl, mlb) are discussed every couple of months. If it isn't relevant, and you hate it as we all do, then kill the discussion!!

Bobcat can raise 100 million to help fund an NCAA team coming to southern Ontario? What's wrong with this picture - Bobcat gets excited by the potential of bringing the NCAA to Ontario but things the NFL is a pipedream?

Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown - Thursday, July 16 (5:00-7:00)

2009-07-20T16:29:00.001-04:00

Host: Bob McCown
Co-Host: Bruce Arthur
Guests: Paul Beeston, interim CEO of the Toronto Blue Jays; Hamilton Tiger Cats owner, Bob Young; Kevin McCabe of Fox Sports Net; Jeff Blair, Globe and Mail sports columnist; USA Today writer, Michael Hiestand.

LOVED the discussion about Bobcat listening to the Beatles as a 12 year old at Maple Leaf Gardens. Well told memory. Having Bobcat talking about Letterman and the Beatles is a bull's-eye on my love of Music, Sports and Comedy. I also LOVED Arthur's annihilation of Leno. I also hate Leno with a passion and agree that he's brutally over rated. "Letterman's last show will be something you can't miss. Leno's last show was NOTHING!" I now like Arthur that much more! Great first segment.

So Beeston and company haven't talked to Doc about an extension, but have openly talked about being open to offers? How's that first chat with him gonna go?

WS Winner	Following Year Avg Salary	% increase from previous year MLB salary
1996 - NYY	$1,383,578	17.6
1997 - FLO	$1,441,406	4.2
1998 - NYY	$1,720,050	19.3
1999 - NYY	$1,998,034	15.6
2000 - NYY	$2,264,403	13.9
2001 - ARZ	$2,383,235	5.2
2002 - ANA	$2,555,476	7.2
2003 - FLO	$2,486,609	(-2.7)
2004 - BOS	$2,632,655	5.9
2005 - CWS	$2,866,544	8.9
2006 - STL	$2,944,556	2.7
2007 - BOS	$3,154,845	7.1
2008 - PHI	$3,240,000	2.7
2009 - NYY	???	???