What Went Right: YES Network Upgrades
ByOver the next week or two or three, we’re going to recap the season that was by looking at what went right as well as what went wrong for the 2010 Yankees.
The Yankees had many things go right this year despite the disappointing end result, but let’s kick off our series by looking at the improvements made to the medium that brings Yankee games to millions of fans: the YES Network. The network hasn’t made many cosmetic changes since launching in March 2002, at least not until this year. They overhauled the game broadcasts to make them fresh and modern, leading to a more enhanced and enjoyable broadcast.
Of course the biggest upgrade was the commercial you see above, which brought the power of RAB into the homes of countless fans in the Tri-State Area. Okay fine, that wasn’t much more than an afterthought, but it still rocked for us. Anyway, let’s break down the upgrades piece by piece…
New Graphics
We provided a sneak peek at YES’ new graphics right before the season started, and they delivered in every way. The old 2-D graphics that ruled the broadcast since the network’s inception were replaced with new ones featuring 3-D effects while retaining familiar elements like the traditional Yankee blue and white color scheme. Names would pop out of the lineup as the broadcasters talked about them and Yankee players jumped out at you when featured on a statistical leader board. They managed to be both easy on the eyes and attention grabbing, a pleasant combination.
The scoreboard overlay, batter’s line, and pitcher’s line all received makeovers, including more information that ever before. On-base percentage was added to each batter’s statistical line and pitcher’s splits between right and lefthanded batters would be featured where appropriate. We had to look that stuff up for ourselves before this season. Overall, the new graphics made for a much cleaner and more informative game broadcast.
Pitch Count & Radar Gun
Technically these two are part of new graphics, but they were so great they deserve their own section. The new pitch count feature, which kicked in after the Yankee starter threw his tenth pitch, stole the show at the start of the season. I often found myself looking for it on non-YES broadcasts, and it allowed us to become part of action by thinking ahead to bullpen moves and matchups pitch-by-pitch throughout the game. It was a small addition in the grand scheme of things, but one that made a world of difference.
In addition to the new pitch counter, the once-comical radar gun received a big-time upgrade. After years of what seemed like completely arbitrary pitch velocities, YES synced up with MLBAM’s PitchFX system to provide accurate radar readings. Gone were the days of 65 mph fastballs and 92 mph curveballs. It sounds simple enough, but being able to trust the information provided was a big improvement.
Jack Curry
(Photo Credit: www.yesnetwork.com)
YES has always featured a large cast of in-game analysts, but it wasn’t until this year that they added to their in-studio crew. Jack Curry, formerly of The New York Times, joined the network this season and provided analysis during the pre- and post-game shows in addition to some sideline reporting. Curry even made a one inning cameo in the broadcast booth this summer.
Two decades of experience with the Times allowed Curry to talk more about what others were seeing with the Yankees rather than his personal opinion, something the network already has plenty of people doing. His connections within the game enabled him to speak intelligently about trade rumors and scouting reports, giving fans “inside information” we weren’t getting before. He was refreshing voice of reason as well, offering a better and more reasonable perspective than anything the network had before.
* * *
YES (and My9) carry something like 150 games a year, and it was about time they made some significant changes to their broadcast. The dull tone of the old graphics were eliminated this year, and Curry’s insight and reason was more than welcome in the studio. We all love watching the Yankees, but this improvements made the games that much more enjoyable.
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The pitch count plus the addition of Jack Curry were stellar.
Indeed
Totally.
I also found myself looking for the pitch counter during Fox, ESPN and TBS broadcasts.
Jack Curry was really good this year as well. He has a knack for letting the topic be the focus, instead of himself.
100,000% agree.
I can say after my first year of subscribing to MLB.TV that the YES network is the best for presenting a game.
I remember at the beginning of the year where I thought the pitch count thing was stupid. Boy, was I wrong. Whether you are someone who agrees with the way pitchers are handled or not today, the pitch count is such an important part of the game. Sooner or later all the broadcast outside of YES will have pitch count too.
I love the pitch count. During the playoffs, I’d often have to go online to look for pitch counts because I had gotten so used to have them and not having them was driving me nuts.
Agreed. I can’t imagine going without the pitch count now.
I like TBS’s pitch count graphic, though, where periodically they’d have a pull-down box that listed not just the pitch count but the pitches by inning. I’d like YES to copy that.
NESN added a Pitch counter right after the first yankee series. Someone at NESN must have watched the YES broadcast and been impressed.
That would be helpful in letting you see where the trouble spots were if you happen to tune in half-way through. Agreed.
I still miss Coney, but Curry was a nice compensation prize.
Just wondering did you guys have any input on the commercial or was it all done by YES employees?
No input, they put it together.
We approved their script, but they put the rest of it together.
I can only assume “Get all your Yankee bases covered” was the second option for the official slogan behind “Come for the analysis, stay for the discussions of William Howard Taft’s illegitimacy” and legal made you choose the former over the latter.
I believe Joe suggested Pravda as the original title of the blog, but Ben was afraid they might ge copyright infringement lawsuits.
“Come for the analysis posada sux lol whatevs”
I know someone will ask … no, we were not obligated to write this post in any way. Hardy har har.
Sincerely,
Ford.
(Drive one!)
Just curious, did the commercial increase traffic to the site?
Yes, but not substantially. There was a definite uptick though.
Maybe substantially. It’s tough to tell. It aired during July which is always our top traffic month during the season.
*Ben drives away in his brand new Ford*
Ben, I’m very concerned about this new habit of drinking Johnnie Walker while driving your Ford Edge.
Safety >>> Consistency.
I know it is not happening but if they could only get rid of My9 post game (if you can call it that) and stick to YES that would be ever better. Also have to add that the addition of pre and post game shows on games that were broadcast on either FOX or ESPN also was a great addition.
I like Jack Curry better than David Cone, though I did like Coney.
But honestly, I don’t see how we can call this season disappointing. We didn’t get to or win the WS but we went deep into the playoffs and were outplayed by a very hot team and we had injuries. And if the Yankees keep winning the WS you know there are going to be more calls to “level the playing field” with $$$. There’s always some tweak that is mentioned when they win. I would rather win, of course, but this season was not disappointing.
My one pedantic nitpick:
It’s not “YES-MO”. It’s Slo-Mo. You don’t get to name something after yourself that you didn’t invent.
As in “Mo is the son of god. You didn’t create him?”
One more: It’s not a “scouting report” if you’re telling me inane tidbits about players that have nothing to do with scouting their game. It’s a “list of 3 random things nobody is interested in and that teach the audience nothing important.”
Let me guess you are one of those “old school” guys that also thinks the “Keys to the Game,” should provide some sort of insight about the keys to the game.
I’m a real curmudgeon, I know.
You’re old grandpa. You need to be youthenized. All the cool kids are watching The Twilight Saga, just pop in the DVDs and you’ll be youthenized in no time.
One more:
It’s not “Segment 2″. Your segments don’t need names, and if they do, they need ACTUAL NAMES and not just a number.
Really?
Every Scientist in history’d
Now if only Curry could replace Kay in the booth…
That series where Lorenz and Curry were in the booth was AMAZING
Was that against Seattle – during the 3D series?
I didnt want to be the first to say it, but now that you mention it…
as long as Kay is in the booth, they could upgrade everything else around him and I still will get annoyed watching the game.
More Leiter
MORE LEITER FOR SURE!
I love the dynamic between Al Leiter and Michael Kay because you could just hear in Leiter’s voice how much Kay was annoying him at certain points.
The games where Paul O’neill teamed up with Michael Kay were even better.
Knowing what Paul had eaten earlier, was eating now, and planned to eat later was the one thing baseball broadcasting was really lacking.
Vital information. I was constantly jealous of those meals Paul kept receiving.
The bit on the radar gun reminds me of a series in Tampa Bay a few years back where pretty much every pitch came in at 87 mph. Moose was throwing 87 mph curveballs and changeups to go with his 87 mph fastball, Wang was inducing those grounders with his 87 mph sinker, bullpen guys were blowing hitters away with 87 mph heat… it was ridiculous.
Love that RAB commercial. Whenever I saw it, a big grin came across my face.
Signed, the proud Mom
It was that above commercial that brought me to this website!
Love the pitch counts and Curry. Also, love when Paul O’Neill is announcing – we need more of that! A+’s all around.
Seasoning the broadcasts with a little more Curry works for me.
Watching all the Michael Kay posters/banners/signs during the broadcast doesn’t.
A+: Improved radar gun and pitch count
A: Jack Curry
C: Not enough Leiter
C-: Too many Michael Kay signs in the crowd
D: No more David Cone
F: Too much O’Neill and Flaherty
I wish YES would incorporate the strike-zone tracker a la TBS.
Not sure about that one. I found it increasingly frustrating to see a sure strike being called a ball and vice versa. I prefer to remain ignorant of the actual location of the pitch.
Eh, I usually have Gameday open to peek at the strike zone during the game. Might as well just have it up on the screen.
I vacillate between agreeing with that (the idea that relative ignorance is bliss) and liking the zone-tracker.
Although… If we got a sophisticated, tested and accurate zone-tracker on YES, there’s no reason it couldn’t be used in games. But that’s neither here nor there, I suppose.
(And I realize we already do have good zone-tracking tech, just realized my sarcasm might have been a bit unclear there.)
Ignorance may be bliss, but knowledge is power, and power is intoxicating, and being drunk is blissful.
So there.
Just moves us that much closer to tennis beeps and boops replacing CB Bucknor’s histrionics. Robot umps FT-MFing-W.
BRO-BOT… I AM A BRO-BOT…
and then BOOOOOOOOOOOM, MAKE IT EXPLOOOOOOOOODE!!!!
I agree. They have one on NESN and it is pretty good.
My only fear is some stations will show the strike-zone tracker, which says the pitch was a ball or strike, but won’t show the replay from another angle (such as the top down angle to show if the ball caught the corner). I still want to see the replay from other angles regardless of what the strike tracker says.
This is true. YES does do different angle replays on balls/strikes, though. Hopefully they wouldn’t get rid of it if they added the zone tracker.
Speaking of the other angles… one thing YES neglects to do is go to the over-head camera on balls that are caught on the corners.
Ball is thrown to the corner (height was clearly within the strike zone). Kay says “Let’s see if it was a strike.” They replay the 1st or 3rd base camera angle and it shows nothing useful, so Kay or Flaherty is forced to say “well, it’s definitely above the knees.” It wasn’t a check swing. The ball was in the strike-zone, height-wise. We need to see the replay from the overhead angle to determine if it was on the black or not.
Small pet peeve of mine.
You sure about that? I could have sworn YES has the overhead angle…
It does. I’ve seen plenty of overhead replay angles.
I think they have the overhead angle, they just don’t go to it when they should. I assume its a problem with the guy in the truck picking which camera angle to broadcast.
I don’t need the strikezone tracker. For one, we do know that umpire’s have slightly different strike zones. What’s important to the hitter is that the umpire be consistent, so if he’s calling a pitch an inch off the plate a strike, he remain consistent with that call. Second, the strike zone tracker is not always accurate. Pitches may cross the edge of the plate, where it’s a strike, but may land in the glove slightly out of the zone. That makes it appear to be a ball, but it’s a strike.
It’s not gonna matter to me since I actually plan on having cable in March, but My9 games should be shown on the “Yankees on YES” internet package. I never understood why they aren’t considering they show the full slate of commercials anyway.
Hey, you forgot Kim Jones. Loved all her interviews, especially the one where the fan ate her pork chop.
Pete Abe…is that you?
A fictional character’s hidden identity just accused the mother of one of the blog’s authors of hiding her true identity as Peter Abraham.
We are through the looking-glass here, people.
“Marsha a/k/a Interested Reader”
Supposedly on another talk show, Kim Jones said she wasn’t a Yankee fan just reported on the Yankees. When I heard that, it made me like her less. I wonder who she is a fan of?
The Red Sox. And witchcraft. And Satan. And Osama Bin Laden. And punching kittens.
Is she also in love with Cameron Diaz?
Kim Jones is not a witch; She is YOU!
I can live with the last four, but the first one’s a deal breaker.
Most beat writers and reporters aren’t fans of the teams they cover. I think Sweeny Murti is a Philly fan. Lot easier to write objectively when you don’t have an emotional investment in the team, I imagine.
except for Boston. All the boston scribes are hard core homers.
Fat pete abe broke down and cried when Pedoria was lost for the season.
Which is why Pete Abe fails at writing objectively. His irrational hatred of A-rod is borderline comical.
Kind of hard not to be linked in childhood to a favorite team. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have followed the sport and looked to cover it.
The worst thing is reporters who say “I root for my story.”
That’s exactly what’s wrong with reporting: rooting for an angle that is probably a strain to begin with and possibly, manufactured, and attempting to force “events to make them “fit.”
They all grew up rooting for teams. Believe me, once you’ve covered pro sports for a long time, if you’re not in someone’s back pocket – you’re in someone else’s.
Most of these reporters really dislike the players, too. They spend a great deal of time mocking them.
Quick poll…
What is everyone’s take on the true CF camera that some broadcasts have (Sox on NESN for one). I find it disorienting, but I appreciate that it gives you a greater feel for just how the pitches are breaking.
Would you like to see YES incorporate this angle?
Would probably require some remodeling – and there’s a restaurant in the way.
Yes, I love the dead center camera. I was disappointed when the New Stadium didn’t have it.
I like it, but I find the ones off to the sides slightly fine too. However, the one TBS had for the Texas series was horrible; it was off to left field way too much and skewed everything.
They good include a corporate tie-in. “The Mohegan Sun Straight as an Arrow” Camera angle.
The W.B. Mason “Who Abuts Us?” Freestanding Dead Center-Cam.
I love that. I hope Hal makes it happen.
Pitch count is good. Some type of strike zone tracker would be good but only with the thought that it’s just an indicator and not the final word. In my opinion all baseball broadcasts suffer from what Michael Kay first stated was “Foxified” broadcasts meaning excessive amounts of camera closeups of fans praying, managers grimacing or in deep thought about the game. The baseball field has seven other players out there but TV broadcasts (including YES) focus almost all their camera shots on the pitcher and catcher. Sometimes we don’t find out the infield is playing in until the second pitch. Would love to see how the OF, IF is playing once in a while. I like the guys we have in studio and doing the broadcasts on YES but I greatly miss David Cone. He definitely had some insight on pitching that other guys don’t bring.
One thing I do like is when they show a close-up on the catcher as he’s giving the signs. There’s no need to do it on every pitch, but maybe for key pitches both with and without runners on base.
I love to see Jorge flash all kinds of sign at Mo when there’s a runner on 2nd, when we all know the only question is location.
I love the new tighter tops Kim wore that accentuated her figure. She also switched to a brighter and hawter color of lip gloss.
Wish I had YES.
The awful camera work by Fox and TBS this postseason just show you how great the YES crew is. We are spoiled by an amazing network.
Michael Kay is unbearable. There were times during the year where I would turn on the out of town broadcast just because I could take listening to him try to create some false controversy.
The broadcast was so much better when Kenny was calling play by play.
I can’t wait for the What Went Right: WCBS 880 post. I assume it will be extremely short, since it will only involve the season mercifully ending and John and Suze not poisoning the airwaves again until March.
Even that went wrong, frankly. I was forced to listen to Joe Morgan and Jon Miller on ESPN Radio during the ALDS and ALCS because I couldn’t take another day of Sterling and Waldman. So…no. The MLB iPhone app allows you to listen to out-of-market broadcasts, which I may be forced to use on a regular basis next season. I honestly believe Sterling and Waldman are diminishing the Yankees brand and I cannot understand how they are still employed by an organization so committed to quality in every other regard. This is “the voice of the New York Yankees”? Ugh, so embarrassing.
Yes fails for me in that I live in Washington DC and use Verizon Fios. I get the YES Channel with the sports package yet get every single game blacked out. No exceptions. Makes no sense.
I’m in the same boat, sucks.
I’d like to see YES give Leiter more time and rehire Cone and if they let Flaherty go that would only be a positive for me.