Two Reader Comments• “I often turn on the radio while I watch.”
• “Rick Manning once said that it would be better to allow a solo home run than a double that could lead to a rally.”
Notes
A lack of enthusiasm seems to be the definitive quality of the Cleveland broadcast team — both in the booth itself and among the fans who we’ve asked to write about them.

Three Reader Comments• “Walk and Brown are very good, Blass and Wehner are pretty weak. Neverett has the chops but lacks the personality in his short time on the job.”
• “Tim N. and Wehner are probably the least annoying combo, but also the least frequent.”
• “They truly detract from the experience of enjoying a game on TV, which is basically the worst thing one can say about announcers.”
Notes
There’s some disagreement among respondents as to whom, precisely, is most deserving of their scorn — besides Blass, perhaps, about whom readers are mostly unified in their scorn. Speaking anecdotally, I found this interview by Bob Walk with Charlie Morton from last May to be enlightening.

Three Reader Comments• “For breaking down the game, that’s about a 4.5 for Welsh, who is quite good, and a 2 for Thom, who is talented at announcing but too thinly spread to have a strong grasp of the game.”
• “Brennaman : Baseball :: Not Washing Your Hands : Bathroom Etiquette.”
• “Unctuous, repulsively insincere and condescending: Thom Brennaman’s black heart routinely bleeds the life out of the game we love…. Chris Welsh isn’t so bad. He tries to understand the new numbers, but discussing them with Brennaman is like talking about the theory of relativity with a soap dish.”
Notes
Many of the reader comments confirm the one thing that those of us outside the Cincinnati market suspect about Thom Brennaman — namely, that he is very polished and, because of that, can appear disingenuous. Also, that one reader up there says his heart is black — which, that probably warrants medical attention.

chicago510;1101885 wrote:LOL, no love for Hawk Harrelson?

Youuuuu can put in on the boooooooard, YES!

Laley23;1102245 wrote:The only people Ive ever met who liked Hawk were the Sox fans I am friends with from IU.

chicago510;1102289 wrote:I'm a sox fan and I like his homerun call, but do not like that announcing team. Granted, I don't watch a ton of games other than the WGN ones.

Laley23;1102306 wrote:Yeah, that seems to be the trend. Sox fans like him, and thats it. The only thing I like that they do is the Pick to Click segment before the game. The "He Gone" strikeout is overly pretentious and unprofessional imo. The homerun call isnt bad, I just dont like it because I dont like the other things he does.

justincredible;1102355 wrote:Chip Carey is awful.

gorocks99;1102311 wrote:There's "homerism" and then there's "Hawk Harrelson homerism." He takes it to a whole other level.

justincredible;1102355 wrote:Chip Carey is awful.

hoops23;1102468 wrote:Give me Tom Hamilton.

Rick is ok, but Matt Underwood makes me want to punch orphans.

wildcats20;1102471 wrote:The best thing about going to Fab's in the summer is sitting out on the deck and listening to Tom do games.

chicago510;1102492 wrote:Better than the beejs?

hoops23;1102468 wrote:Give me Tom Hamilton.

Rick is ok, but Matt Underwood makes me want to punch orphans.

Classyposter58;1103176 wrote:When I watch the Tigers/Indians series on STO I wanna absolutely just shoot myself. They are possibly the most boring broadcast team ever. I like the Reds team though

chicago510;1101885 wrote:LOL, no love for Hawk Harrelson?

Youuuuu can put in on the boooooooard, YES!

Classyposter58;1103176 wrote:When I watch the Tigers/Indians series on STO I wanna absolutely just shoot myself. They are possibly the most boring broadcast team ever. I like the Reds team though