(My) Top 10 Music Performances on Letterman

Does this have anything to do with sports, no. However, music performances on Letterman are probably my favourite part of the show. Is this a definitive list of the best music performances on Letterman, no. But these are some of my favourites in no particular order. Sound quality is not the best on all of them (I’d say many came from VHS)

Foo Fighters – Everlong (Letterman’s favourite song)

Oasis – Live Forever (My favourite song)

New Pornographers – The Laws Have Changed

Smashing Pumpkins – Pefect

Alice in Chains – Again/We Die Young

Stone Temple Pilots – Vasoline

Blur – Tender (with a choir!)

The Black Keys – I Got Mine (remember when it was really only the 2 of them?

Queens of the Stone Age – No One Knows

Coldplay – Trouble

2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup TV Schedule

With matches from Vancouver to Moncton, hopefully soccer fans all across the country can make it out to at least one Women’s World Cup game, but obviously none of us will make all of them. Amazingly, CTV/TSN and FOX are both producing an unprecedented amount of live soccer for a Women’s World Cup. Here is the full match schedule, with many games available on CTV and FOX. All times are eastern.

Saturday 6/6, 6:00pm – Canada v. China (from Edmonton) – CTV
Saturday 6/6, 9:00pm – New Zealand v. Netherlands (from Edmonton) – TSN1/3/4
Sunday 6/7, 1:00pm – Norway v. Thailand (from Ottawa) – CTV, FOX
Sunday 6/7, 4:00pm – Germany v. Ivory Coast (from Ottawa) – TSN, FOX
Monday 6/8, 4:00pm – Sweden v. Nigeria (from Winnipeg) – TSN, FOX
Monday 6/8, 7:00pm – Cameroon v. Ecuador (from Vancouver) – TSN2
Monday 6/8, 7:30pm – United States v. Australia (from Winnipeg) – TSN1/3/4
Monday 6/8, 10:00pm – Japan v. Switzerland (from Vancouver) – TSN1/3/4
Tuesday 6/9, 1:00pm – France v. England (from Moncton) – TSN, FOX
Tuesday 6/9, 4:00pm – Columbia v. Mexico (from Moncton) – TSN
Tuesday 6/9, 4:00pm – Spain v. Costa Rica (from Montreal) – TSN2, FOX
Tuesday 6/9, 7:00pm – Brazil v. South Korea (from Montreal) – TSN
Thursday 6/11, 4:00pm – Germany v. Norway (from Ottawa) – TSN
Thursday 6/11, 6:00pm – China v. Netherlands (from Edmonton) – TSN
Thursday 6/11, 7:00pm – Ivory Coast v. Thailand (from Ottawa) – TSN2
Thursday 6/11, 9:00pm – Canada v. New Zealand (from Edmonton) – CTV
Friday 6/12, 5:00pm – Australia v. Nigeria (from Winnipeg) – TSN
Friday 6/12, 7:00pm – Switzerland v. Ecuador (from Vancouver) – TSN
Friday 6/12, 8:00pm – United States v. Sweden (from Winnipeg) – CTV, FOX
Friday 6/12, 10:00pm – Japan v. Cameroon (from Vancouver) – TSN
Saturday 6/13, 1:00pm – France v. Colombia (from Moncton) – TSN, FOX
Saturday 6/13, 4:00pm – England v. Mexico (from Moncton) – CTV, FOX
Saturday 6/13, 4:00pm – Brazil v. Spain (from Montreal) – TSN
Saturday 6/13, 7:00pm – South Korea v. Costa Rica (from Montreal) – TSN
Monday 6/15, 4:00pm – Ivory Coast v. Norway (from Moncton) – TSN2
Monday 6/15, 4:00pm – Thailand v. Germany (from Winnipeg) – TSN, FOX
Monday 6/15, 7:30pm – Netherlands v. Canada (from Montreal) – CTV
Monday 6/15, 7:30pm – China v. New Zealand (from Winnipeg) – TSN
Tuesday 6/16, 5:00pm – Ecuador v. Japan (from Winnipeg) – TSN
Tuesday 6/16, 5:00pm – Switzerland v. Cameroon (from Edmonton) – TSN2
Tuesday 6/16, 8:00pm – Nigeria v. United States (from Vancouver) – CTV, FOX
Tuesday 6/16, 8:00pm – Australia v. Sweden (from Edmonton) – TSN2
Wednesday 6/17, 4:00pm – Mexico v. France (from Ottawa) – TSN, FOX
Wednesday 6/17, 4:00pm – England v. Colombia (from Montreal) – TSN2
Wednesday 6/17, 7:00pm – Costa Rica v. Brazil (from Moncton) – TSN1/3/4
Wednesday 6/17, 7:00pm – South Korea v. Spain (from Ottawa) – TSN2

Round of 16
Saturday 6/20, 4:00pm (from Ottawa) – CTV
Saturday 6/20, 7:30pm (from Edmonton) – CTV
Sunday 6/21, 1:00pm (from Moncton) – TSN
Sunday 6/21, 4:00pm (from Montreal) – CTV
Sunday 6/21, 7:30pm (from Vancouver) – CTV
Monday 6/22, 5:00pm (from Ottawa) – TSN
Monday 6/22, 8:00pm (from Edmonton) – TSN
Tuesday 6/23, 10:00pm (from Vancouver) – TSN

Quarterfinals
Friday 6/26, 4:00pm (from Montreal) – TSN, FOX
Friday 6/26, 7:30pm (from Ottawa) – CTV, FOX
Saturday 6/27, 4:00pm (from Edmonton) – CTV
Saturday 6/27, 7:30pm (from Vancouver) – CTV

Semifinals
Tuesday 6/30, 7:00pm (from Montreal) – CTV, FOX
Wednesday 7/1, 7:00pm (from Edmonton) – CTV

Medal Round
Saturday 7/4, 4:00pm – Third Place Game (from Edmonton) – TSN, FOX
Sunday 7/5, 7:00pm – Championship Final (from Vancouver) – CTV, FOX

2015 Premier League Survival Sunday Schedule

The final day of the 2014-15 Premier League season is this coming Sunday. Unlike many recent seasons, there is relatively little drama. Chelsea (84 points) will be crowned champions and will join Manchester City (76 points) and Arsenal (72 points) in the Champions League group stage next fall. Manchester United have clinched their spot in the Champions League playoff round. Technically United can catch Arsenal if they win and Arsenal lose by a combined 7 goals, but that’s unlikely. For whatever a Europa League spot is worth, Liverpool (62 points), Spurs (61 points) and Southampton (60 points) are fighting for them. Although all 3 will get into the Europa League if Arsenal wins the FA Cup against Aston Villa next weekend. Burnley and QPR (30 points each) know they are playing their last Premier League games for at least a year, while Newcastle (36 points) will try to ensure their safety, which would send Hull City (34 points) back to the Championship.

For anyone wondering what the Premier League will look like next season, Bournemouth and Watford have booked their spots in the top flight by finishing atop the Championship. They will be joined by the winner of the playoff match between Middlesbrough and Norwich.

But now back to the schedule this Sunday. NBC, TSN and Sportsnet will have the matches. I’ll add in commentator info if/when it becomes available. All times are eastern. It’s also worth noting that the matches on TSN and NBC are preceeded by the Monaco Grand Prix which tends to run past 10am ET many years.

10:00am, Hull City v. Manchester United – NBC/TSN4
10:00am, Newcastle v. West Ham – SN World
10:00am, Chelsea v. Sunderland – SN
10:00am, Stoke City v. Liverpool – SN360
10:00am, Manchester City v. Southampton – TSN1
10:00am, Everton v. Tottenham – SN World NOW (encore: 7pm ET on SN360)
10:00am, Arsenal v. West Bromwich – TSN3
10:00am, Leicester City v. QPR – TSN.ca
10:00am, Crystal Palace v. Swansea City – TSN.ca
10:00am, Aston Villa v. Burnley – SN World NOW

2014 NCAA Bowl Games Canadian TV Schedule

The 2014 bowl season is upon us. And while it starts out with the usual bore of mid-level teams playing in front of half empty stadiums in places like Boise (brrr) and St. Petersburg, this season actually features the best bowl matchups in recent memory. The top ranked teams are all playing top ranked teams. Now that the American (former Big East) no longer gets an auto-bid to the biggest games, combined with the ACC having two very good teams, the New Year’s Six can all claim an exciting matchup with ranked teams. On top of that, all of the other teams in the AP Top 25 have difficult and interesting matchups, usually against other ranked teams. Top matchups outside of the New Year’s Six include the Holiday Bowl (Nebraska vs. USC), Russell Athletic Bowl (Oklahoma vs. Clemson), Music City Bowl (Notre Dame vs. LSU), Belk Bowl (Georgia vs. Louisville), Outback Bowl (Auburn vs. Wisconsin) and Alamo Bowl (Kansas State vs. UCLA). If teams from the “Group of 5” is your think, check out the Boca Raton Bowl on December 23 between MAC champions Northern Illinois and C-USA champions Marshall.

Unfortunately, as is often the case here in Canada, all of these matchups are not available. Even with 5 feeds TSN is not showing every game, often due to conflicts with hockey.

New Orleans Bowl (Superdome in New Orleans, LA)
Saturday December 20, 11:00am
UL-Lafayette (8-4) vs. Nevada (7-5)
TV: TSN3

New Mexico Bowl (University Stadium in Albuquerque, NM)
Saturday December 20, 2:20pm
Utah State (9-4) vs. Texas-El Paso (7-5)
TV: TSN3

Las Vegas Bowl (Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, NV)
Saturday December 20, 3:30pm
Utah (8-4) vs. Colorado State (10-2)
TV: ABC, TSN2

Idaho Potato Bowl (Albertsons Stadium in Boise, ID)
Saturday December 20, 5:45pm
Air Force (9-3) vs. Western Michigan (8-4)
TV: TSN3

Camellia Bowl (Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, AL)
Saturday December 20, 9:15pm
Bowling Green (7-6) vs. South Alabama (6-6)
TV: TSN3

Miami Beach Bowl (Marlins Park in Miami, FL)
Monday December 22, 2:00pm
Memphis (9-3) vs. Brigham Young (8-4)
TV: TSN1/4

Poinsettia Bowl (Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, CA)
Tuesday December 23, 9:30pm
Navy (7-5) vs. San Diego State (7-5)
TV: TSN2

Bahamas Bowl (Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau)
Wednesday December 24, 12:00pm
Central Michigan (7-5) vs. Western Kentucky (7-5)
TV: TSN1/4

Hawaii Bowl (Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, HI)
Wednesday December 24, 8:00pm
Rice (7-5) vs. Fresno State (6-6)
TV: TSN2

St. Petersburg Bowl (Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL)
Friday December 26, 8:00pm
NC State (7-5) vs. Central Florida (9-3)
TV: TSN2

Sun Bowl (Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, TX)
Saturday December 27, 2:00pm
Arizona State (9-3) vs. Duke (9-3)
TV: CBS

Independence Bowl (Independence Stadium in Shreveport, LA)
Saturday December 27, 3:30pm
Miami (6-6) vs. South Carolina (6-6)
TV: ABC

Holiday Bowl (Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, CA)
Saturday December 27, 8:00pm
Nebraska (9-3) vs. Southern California (8-4)
TV: TSN2

Music City Bowl (LP Field in Nashville, TN)
Tuesday December 30, 3:00pm
Louisiana State (8-4) vs. Notre Dame (7-5)
TV: TSN2

Belk Bowl (Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC)
Tuesday December 30, 6:30pm
Georgia (9-3) vs. Louisville (9-3)
TV: TSN2

Foster Farms Bowl (Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, CA)
Tuesday December 30, 10:00pm
Maryland (7-5) vs. Stanford (7-5)
TV: TSN2

Peach Bowl (Georgia Dome in Atlanta, GA)
Wednesday December 31, 12:30pm
TCU (11-1) vs. Ole Miss (9-3)
TV: TSN2

Orange Bowl (Sun Life Stadium in Miami, FL)
Wednesday December 31, 8:00pm
Mississippi State (10-2) vs. Georgia Tech (10-3)
TV: TSN3/5

Cotton Bowl Classic (AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX)
Thursday January 1, 12:30pm
Baylor (11-1) vs. Michigan State (10-2)
TV: TSN3

Citrus Bowl (Citrus Bowl Stadium in Orlando, FL)
Thursday January 1, 1:00pm
Missouri (10-3) vs. Minnesota (8-4)
TV: ABC, TSN2

Semifinal #1: Rose Bowl Game (Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA)
Thursday January 1, 5:00pm
Oregon (12-1) vs. Florida State (13-0)
TV: TSN

Semifinal #2: Sugar Bowl (Superdome in New Orleans, LA)
Thursday January 1, 8:30pm
Alabama (12-1) vs. Ohio State (12-1)
TV: TSN

Alamo Bowl (Alamodome in San Antonio, TX)
Friday January 2, 6:45pm
Kansas State (9-3) vs. UCLA (9-3)
TV: TSN2

Cactus Bowl (Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, AZ)
Friday January 2, 10:15pm
Washington (8-5) vs. Oklahoma State (6-6)
TV: TSN2

Birmingham Bowl (Legion Field in Birmingham, AL)
Saturday January 3, 1:00pm
East Carolina (8-4) vs. Florida (6-5)
TV: TSN2

GoDaddy Bowl (Ladd Peebles Stadium in Mobile, AL)
Sunday January 4, 9:00pm
Toledo (8-4) vs. Arkansas State (7-5)
TV: TSN2

College Football Championship Game (AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX)
Monday January 12, 8:30pm
TV: TSN

BOWL GAMES NOT BEING SHOWN ON REGULAR NETWORKS
(No doubt they will be available on the specialty channels)

December 23, 6pm – Boca Raton Bowl: Marshall vs. Northern Illinois
December 26, 1pm – Heart of Dallas Bowl: Illinois vs. Louisiana Tech
December 26, 4:30pm – Quick Lane Bowl: North Carolina vs. Rutgers
December 27, 1pm – Military Bowl: Virginia Tech vs. Cincinnati
December 27, 4:30pm – Pinstripe Bowl: Boston College vs. Penn State
December 29, 2pm – Liberty Bowl: Texas A&M vs. West Virginia
December 29, 5:30pm – Russell Athletic Bowl: Clemson vs. Oklahoma
December 29, 9pm – Texas Bowl: Arkansas vs. Texas
December 31, 4pm – Fiesta Bowl: Arizona vs. Boise State
January 1, 1pm – Outback Bowl: Auburn vs. Wisconsin
January 2, 12pm – Armed Forces Bowl: Pittsburgh vs. Houston
January 2, 3:20pm – TaxSlayer Bowl: Iowa vs. Tennessee

Denver Post Writer Adrian Dater’s Creepy/Sexist Twitter Direct Messages

Yesterday news broke that sports media blogger Steve Lepore had been accused (with proof) of asking random women on Twitter if he could take (potentially) nude photographs of them. It was creepy and weird, but let’s be honest, as much as Lepore is well-known in sports media circles and maybe amongst other hockey fans, he’s just one of many bloggers who write for sites such as Awful Announcing (where he was subsequently fired). As is usual when someone finally steps forward with an accusation, the floodgates open and many more victims come forward. In fact around twenty more women accused Lepore of similar conduct yesterday.

Which then lead to the accusation (again, with proof) of similar misconduct by Denver Post writer Adrian Dater. Unlike Lepore, Dater is very well known. He is the Colorado Avalanche beat writer for a newspaper that is over 100 years old. He is credited with breaking the news that the NHL lockout had ended in the early morning hours of January 6, 2013. Yes, he broke the biggest NHL story of 2013 ahead of the likes of McKenzie, Lebrun and Kypreos. Oh, and he was also suspended by the Denver Post for two weeks in October for calling a hockey player a “pussy” on Twitter. A stance which he proceeded to defend.

Then today a woman, who is seemingly just a random Red Wings fan from Calgary named Maria Camacho, on Twitter accused him of similar misogyny he had been caught for in the past, as well as harassment. Ms. Camacho began with a Tweet stating, “I’m gonna to speak out about someone. I’m not gonna accuse them, I’m just going to post the screenshots and you can make your own judgement.” She followed up with screenshots of Dater complimenting her on a new profile pic, and then asking, “well, if you feel like showing more before that crop: daterster@gmail.com.” She also posted a screenshot of Dater telling her he is “not going to argue with a woman.”

Interesting to see if the Denver Post reprimands him for this. Surely they have to. Thought I’d give this a little more attention since it may fly under the radar. He boasts in his Twitter bio that he is a husband and father, bet this will go down great at home.

More to come… assuming the Denver Post responds.

For a New Era, NHL Broadcasts Feel Very Familiar

When Rogers purchased NHL televisions rights for the next 12 seasons last November, everything was promised to be different. As Sportsnet rolled out its new flagship broadcasts, Wednesday Night Hockey, a reinvigorated Hockey Night in Canada and Hometown Hockey over the past week, the broadcasts felt remarkably similar to what we have watched on Sportsnet’s Hockey Central, HNIC and TSN in the past.

On Wednesday, Sportsnet signed on to show their first Wednesday Night Hockey telecast. In the studio were Hockey Central stalwarts Darren Millard, Doug MacLean, Nick Kypreos, joined by new recruit and former TSN analyst Darren Pang. While the studio itself was large, expansive and impressive, the on-air talent was the same as many regional broadcasts last season. But one can hardly really expect Sportsnet to compete with TSN’s James Duthie, Bob McKenzie and Aaron Ward regardless of how hard they try. What was more impressive, however, was Sportsnet in-game production. It felt very similar to a CBC broadcast, with CBC’s former lead broadcast crew of Jim Hughson, Craig Simpson, Glenn Healy and reporter Scott Oake still intact. The Canadiens-Leafs matchup gave us our first glimpse of the best innovation Sportsnet has offered thus far, the sky cam they installed at the ACC.

Something that I thought worked better than the Wednesday night broadcast was the debut of Hockey Night in Canada. Having the games spread out across CBC, City, Sportsnet 360 and Sportsnet One was fantastic. Almost too much to keep track of. George Stroumboulopoulos exceeded my expectations as the new host. My only complaint is he seemed rushed at times during Sportsnet’s fast-paced pregame show. It was strange seeing Sportsnet microphone flags on CBC, but the broadcasts still felt very-CBC for a Sportsnet-produced broadcast. Again, Hughson, Simpson, Healy and Oake were at the helm in the primary 7:00pm ET broadcast on the CBC. Elsewhere former CBC personalities were equally well represented. Rick Ball and Kelly Hrudey were in St. Louis, Bob Cole and Greg Millen were in Tampa Bay, Garry Galley and reporter David Amber was in Philadelphia.

Elsewhere on Saturday night, Don Cherry was cut down to a 5 minute segment in the first intermission. I think in a small dose, his continuing presence on Hockey Night will be fine. But where Sportsnet really missed the mark was the second intermission. Officially the Hotstove has been axed, but Sportsnet has kept a lighter version of it. With insiders Cox, Friedman and Kypreos in studio, Sportsnet has the opportunity to return the Hotstove to its former glory. I know Scott Moore has been clear that he wants to shift the focus away from off-ice stories (which I think is a mistake, but that’s a different matter) to on-ice, but devoting one segment a week to trade rumours seems important, regardless.

While the broadcasts on Wednesday and Saturday were really more of the same, City’s Sunday night broadcast of Hometown Hockey was new and innovative. Unfortunately, it didn’t really appeal to me. Sportsnet seemed to want to capture a family audience, which is fine for a Sunday evening broadcast, but it could come at the risk of alienating fans. It doesn’t seem like a weekly must-watch for me. The studio panel, with George, Healy and Cox, looked very casual with no ties, in a style similar to many English soccer broadcasts in Sky and the BBC. It was an interesting, and noticeable differentiation from just about every other sports broadcast in North America.

All early ratings were slightly down from last year. The Wednesday night games averaged 2 million (MTL-TOR) and 1 million (VAN-CGY) viewers. Canadiens-Leafs is now the most watched broadcast in Sportsnet history though. Saturday numbers were also slightly down. The early games averaged 2.25 million viewers, with TOR-PIT leading the way at 1.57 million. The late games averaged 1.31 million viewers.

2014 FIFA World Cup Canadian Viewers’ Guide

The 2014 FIFA World Cup begins Thursday afternoon in Brazil as the host country plays Croatia. 32 countries from six continents will take part in the World Cup, with games played in 12 cities across Brazil. Canadian viewers will have access to every game from Brazil 2014 on television in four languages – English, French, Spanish and Italian. Games will also air on radio and CBC is launching a FIFA World Cup app to allow for live streaming on mobile devices.

English coverage will air on CBC (56 matches) and Sportsnet (8 matches). Scott Russell, Nigel Reed and Craig Forrest will host CBC’s primetime coverage every evening, with a live game (usually at 6pm ET) followed by an encore. Andi Petrillo will host CBC’s afternoon coverage, along with analysts Reed and Lloyd Barker. CBC also has two reporters in Brazil, Brenda Irving and David Amber. CBC will utilize the world feed commentators for their World Cup broadcasts, featuring Peter Drury, John Helm, Dave Woods, John Roder, Martin Fisher, Gary Bloom, Kevin Keatings and Dan O’Hagan.

English-language coverage is also available in Canada on ABC, which will broadcast 10 matches including the final. ABC’s coverage, which is produced by ESPN, features hosts Mike Tirico and Bob Ley. ESPN’s commentators are led by Ian Darke and Steve McManaman, who will call the final. Their other commentators include Jon Champion, Daniel Mann, Derek Rae, Adrian Healey and Fernando Palomo. Other prominent analysts on ABC include Stewart Robson, Efan Ekoku and Roberto Martinez.

French language coverage will mostly air on Radio-Canada, with TVA Sports picking up 18 matches as well. TLN will provide coverage in Spanish and Italian through its Univision Canada and Mediaset Italia channels. The main TLN channel will also show every game in Spanish or Italian, including encores in both languages. Spanish coverage will feature Univision commentators from the United States, while Italian coverage will feature Italian domestic commentators from Sky Italia.

You may be wondering, just who exactly are these world feed commentators? In that case, here is a quick rundown of where you may have heard each of them before.

• For Premier League viewers, Drury is probably the most familiar name and voice. He calls many of the Premier League’s biggest Sunday matches for the world feed. He was formerly a commentator at ITV, where he worked every World Cup between 1998 and 201o, as well as every European Championship between 2000 and 2012.
• John Helm has called every World Cup final in Canada since 2002. Helm is a bit of an oddity in that he doesn’t commentate on many big football matches anymore, outside of the World Cup. Ironically it was some 15 years ago that Drury pushed him aside as a commentator at ITV. Since then he hasn’t featured much on British domestic television.
• Dave Woods is a regular fixture of the world feed for both the World Cup. He has also worked for the BBC and was Five’s primary commentator when that network held Europa League rights. In Britain he is perhaps better known as a rugby league commentator, calling the biggest Super League matches for the BBC.
• John Roder regularly works matches for BBC highlight programs Match of the Day and The Football League Show. Last year he was one of the commentators for the Confederations Cup in Brazil.
• Martin Fisher also calls matches for BBC’s Match of the Day and The Football League Show. He has also recently called the UEFA Champions League final on the world feed.
• Gary Bloom was once the main commentator for Channel 4’s famed coverage of Football Italia, back when Serie A was the envy of the rest of Europe. Aside for the World Cup, I’m not sure what he’s done recently to be honest.
• Kevin Keatings is Sky Sports’ Spanish football commentator. He covers La Liga matches each weekend, as well as many UEFA Champions League matches featuring the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid.
• Dan O’Hagan is yet another commentator who works for BBC’s Match of the Day and The Football League Show.

Here is the complete English-language broadcast schedule. All CBC and ABC broadcasts are preceded by a 30 minute pregame show. Since most of Brazil is in the Atlantic Time Zone (ET + 1 hr), those are the times listed here.

Group A
Thursday 6/12, 5:00pm – Brazil vs. Croatia – CBC (John Helm)
Friday 6/13, 1:00pm – Mexico vs. Cameroon – CBC (Peter Drury)
Tuesday 6/17, 4:00pm – Brazil vs. Mexico – CBC
Wednesday 6/18, 7:00pm – Cameroon vs. Croatia – CBC (Dan O’Hagan)
Monday 6/23, 5:00pm – Croatia vs. Mexico – CBC/SN
Monday 6/23, 5:00pm – Cameroon vs. Brazil – CBC/SN

Group B
Friday 6/13, 4:00pm – Spain vs. Holland – CBC (Dave Woods)
Friday 6/13, 7:00pm – Chile vs. Australia – CBC (Dan O’Hagan)
Wednesday 6/18, 1:00pm – Australia vs. Holland – CBC (John Roder)
Wednesday 6/18, 4:00pm – Spain vs. Chile – CBC
Monday 6/23, 1:00pm – Holland vs. Chile – CBC/SN (John Roder)
Monday 6/23, 1:00pm – Australia vs. Spain – CBC/SN (Dan O’Hagan)

Group C
Saturday 6/14, 1:00pm – Colombia vs. Greece – CBC/ABC (Adrian Healey & Taylor Twellman)
Saturday 6/14, 10:00pm – Cote d’Ivorie vs. Japan – CBC (Gary Bloom)
Thursday 6/19, 1:00pm – Colombia vs. Cote d’Ivorie – CBC
Thursday 6/19, 7:00pm – Japan vs. Greece – CBC (Gary Bloom)
Tuesday 6/24, 5:00pm – Greece vs. Cote d’Ivorie – CBC/SN
Tuesday 6/24, 5:00pm – Japan vs. Colombia – CBC/SN (Kevin Keatings)

Group D
Saturday 6/14, 4:00pm – Uruguay vs. Costa Rica – CBC/ABC (Jon Champion & Stewart Robson)
Saturday 6/14, 7:00pm – England vs. Italy – CBC (Kevin Keatings)
Thursday 6/19, 4:00pm – Uruguay vs. England – CBC
Friday 6/20, 1:00pm – Italy vs. Costa Rica – CBC
Tuesday 6/24, 1:00pm – Italy vs. Uruguay – CBC/SN (Gary Bloom)
Tuesday 6/24, 1:00pm – Costa Rica vs. England – CBC/SN

Group E
Sunday 6/15, 1:00pm – Switzerland vs. Ecuador – CBC/ABC (Adrian Healey & Alejandro Moreno)
Sunday 6/15, 4:00pm – France vs. Honduras – CBC (John Roder)/ABC (Daniel Mann & Kasey Keller)
Friday 6/20, 4:00pm – Switzerland vs. France – CBC
Friday 6/20, 7:00pm – Honduras vs. Ecuador – CBC (Kevin Keatings)
Wednesday 6/25, 5:00pm – Ecuador vs. France – CBC/SN
Wednesday 6/25, 5:00pm – Hondruas vs. Switzerland – CBC/SN (Dan O’Hagan)

Group F
Sunday 6/15, 7:00pm – Argentina vs. Bosnia – CBC
Monday 6/16, 4:00pm – Iran vs. Nigeria – CBC (Dan O’Hagan)
Saturday 6/21, 1:00pm – Argentina vs. Iran – CBC
Saturday 6/21, 7:00pm – Nigeria vs. Bosnia – CBC (Dan O’Hagan)
Wednesday 6/25, 1:00pm – Nigeria vs. Argentina – CBC/SN
Wednesday 6/25, 1:00pm – Bosnia vs. Iran – CBC/SN

Group G
Monday 6/16, 1:00pm – Germany vs. Portugal – CBC
Monday 6/16, 7:00pm – Ghana vs. United States – CBC (Gary Bloom)
Saturday 6/21, 4:00pm – Germany vs. Ghana – CBC
Sunday 6/22, 7:00pm – United States vs. Portugal – CBC (Kevin Keatings)
Thursday 6/26, 1:00pm – United States vs. Germany – CBC/SN (Gary Bloom)
Thursday 6/26, 1:00pm – Portugal vs. Ghana – CBC/SN

Group H
Tuesday 6/17, 1:00pm – Belgium vs. Algeria – CBC
Tuesday 6/17, 7:00pm – Russia vs. Korea – CBC (Kevin Keatings)
Sunday 6/22, 1:00pm – Belgium vs. Russia – CBC (Gary Bloom)/ABC
Sunday 6/22, 4:00pm – Korea vs. Algeria – CBC/ABC
Thursday 6/26, 5:00pm – Korea vs. Belgium – CBC/SN
Thursday 6/26, 5:00pm – Algeria vs. Russia – CBC/SN (Kevin Keatings)

Knockout Phase
Saturday 6/28, 1:00pm – A1 vs. B2 – CBC/ABC
Saturday 6/28, 5:00pm – C1 vs. D2 – CBC/ABC
Sunday 6/29, 1:00pm – B1 vs. A2 – CBC
Sunday 6/29, 5:00pm – D1 vs. C2 – CBC
Monday 6/30, 1:00pm – E1 vs. F2 – CBC
Monday 6/30, 5:00pm – G1 vs. H2 – CBC
Tuesday 7/1, 1:00pm – F1 vs. E2 – CBC
Tuesday 7/1, 5:00pm – H1 vs. G2 – CBC

Friday 7/4, 1:00pm – Quarterfinal #1 – CBC
Friday 7/4, 5:00pm – Quarterfinal #2 – CBC
Saturday 7/5, 1:00pm – Quarterfinal #3 – CBC/ABC
Saturday 7/5, 5:00pm – Quarterfinal #4 – CBC

Tuesday 7/8, 5:00pm – Semifinal #1 – CBC
Wednesday 7/9, 5:00pm – Semifinal #2 – CBC

Saturday 7/12, 5:00pm – Third Place Match – CBC
Sunday 7/13, 4:00pm – Championship Final – CBC/ABC

Bob Cole Will Return to HNIC Next Season

As was first reported by Damien Cox last Friday, Bob Cole has not called his last game for Hockey Night in Canada. HNIC host Ron MacLean confirmed the news just before game 7 of Kings vs. Blackhawks last night. Many fans thought Rogers might not retain Cole, who was the primary voice of HNIC through 2008 before taking a secondary role. Cole turns 81 later this month. Terms of the deal were not revealed, and Rogers has not made it official. In fact Rogers has yet to confirm any play-by-play announcers or colour commentators for their NHL coverage, which begins in the fall. They likely will not release these details until after the Stanley Cup Final, which begins Wednesday night in Los Angeles. However, I do expect Rogers might release this before July 1. However, some more details of Rogers’ NHL coverage, including the start time and details of Hometown Hockey, will likely be revealed at City’s upfront presentation in Toronto tomorrow afternoon, June 3.

EDIT: Steve Lepore is reporting that Dave Randorf is leaving TSN to join Sportsnet as a NHL play-by-play announcer. I’m not surprised Randorf is leaving TSN considering James Duthie will assume his role of CFL on TSN host, which was part of the new contract he signed with TSN last December. Randorf’s other main gig at TSN is calling regional NHL and IIHF games. Next season TSN’s main hockey commentators, Gord Miller and Chris Cuthbert, will be available to call those games. Stay tuned for updates.

MLB Canadian TV Schedule: April 21-27

Here is this week’s MLB schedule for TSN and Sportsnet.

Monday April 21
11:00am, Baltimore Orioles @ Boston Red Sox – Sportsnet
7:00pm, Chicago White Sox @ Detroit Tigers – Sportsnet
7:00pm, Cincinnati Reds @ Pittsburgh Pirates – TSN2
10:00pm, Texas Rangers @ Oakland Athletics – SN West/Pacific

Tuesday April 22
10:00pm, Texas Rangers @ Oakland Athletics – SN West/Pacific

Wednesday April 23
3:30pm, Texas Rangers @ Oakland Athletics – SN1
7:00pm, New York Yankees @ Boston Red Sox – TSN2

Thursday April 24
1:00pm, Chicago White Sox @ Detroit Tigers – SN1

Friday April 25
10:00pm, Texas Rangers @ Seattle Mariners – SN West/Pacific

Saturday April 26
7:00pm, Cincinnati Reds @ Atlanta Braves – Sportsnet

Sunday April 27
8:00pm, Anaheim Angels @ New York Yankees – TSN2

MLB Canadian TV Schedule: April 14-20

Here is this week’s MLB schedule for TSN and Sportsnet.

Monday April 14
7:00pm, Atlanta Braves @ Philadelphia Phillies – TSN2
7:00pm, Tampa Bay Rays @ Baltimore Orioles – SN1
10:00pm, Oakland Athletics @ Anaheim Angels – TSN2

Wednesday April 16
12:30pm, Tampa Bay Rays @ Baltimore Orioles – Sportsnet

Thursday April 17
7:00pm, New York Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays – SN360
8:00pm, Boston Red Sox @ Chicago White Sox – SN1

Sunday April 20
7:00pm, Baltimore Orioles @ Boston Red Sox – TSN2

2014 NHL Divisional Semifinals Schedule and Announcers

The new NHL playoff format debuts Wednesday night with the start of the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The new divisional-based format has resulted in one laughable “rivalry” (Montreal-Tampa Bay), but otherwise the first round features quite a few true rivalry matchups. In the East the Detroit Red Wings will play the Boston Bruins in the playoffs for the first time since the Original Six era; they last met in 1957. Meanwhile the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers re-new their longtime playoff rivalry. The Western Conference features three great rivalry series. The Colorado Avalanche face the Minnesota Wild. These two have played in the same division since the Wild joined the NHL in 2000. The St. Louis Blues encounter the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks. In the Pacific Division, California rivals San Jose Sharks and Los Angeles Kings face off.

Here is the complete schedule for each series, including commentator information.

Atlantic Division
(1) Boston Bruins vs. (WC2) Detroit Red Wings – TSN (Gord Miller, Ray Ferraro)
Game 1, Friday April 18, 7:30pm
Game 2, Sunday April 20, 3:00pm* (Mike Emrick, Ed Olczyk, Pierre McGuire)
Game 3, Tuesday April 22, 7:30pm
Game 4, Thursday April 24, 8:00pm
Game 5, Saturday April 26, 3:00pm* (NBC)
Game 6, Monday April 28
Game 7, Wednesday April 30

(2) Tampa Bay Lightning vs. (3) Montreal Canadiens – CBC (Jim Hughson, Craig Simpson, Glenn Healy)
Game 1, Wednesday April 16, 7:00pm
Game 2, Friday April 18, 7:00pm
Game 3, Sunday April 20, 7:00pm
Game 4, Tuesday April 22, 7:00pm
Game 5, Thursday April 24, 7:00pm
Game 6, Sunday April 27
Game 7, Tuesday April 29

Metropolitan Division
(1) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (WC1) Columbus Blue Jackets – CBC (Bob Cole, Garry Galley)
Game 1, Wednesday April 16, 7:30pm – CHEX
Game 2, Saturday April 19, 7:00pm
Game 3, Monday April 21, 7:00pm
Game 4, Wednesday April 23, 7:00pm
Game 5, Saturday April 26
Game 6, Monday April 28
Game 7, Wednesday April 30

(2) New York Rangers vs. (3) Philadelphia Flyers – TSN (Gord Miller, Ray Ferraro)
Game 1, Thursday April 17, 7:00pm
Game 2, Sunday April 20, 12:00pm* (Kenny Albert, Joe Micheletti)
Game 3, Tuesday April 22, 8:00pm – TSN2*
Game 4, Friday April 25, 7:00pm
Game 5, Sunday April 27, 12:00pm (NBC)
Game 6, Tuesday April 29
Game 7, Wednesday April 30

Central Division
(1) Colorado Avalanche vs. (WC1) Minnesota Wild – TSN (Chris Cuthbert, Mike Johnson)
Game 1, Thursday April 17, 9:30pm* (John Forslund, Tripp Tracy)
Game 2, Saturday April 19, 9:30pm
Game 3, Monday April 21, 7:00pm
Game 4, Thursday April 24, 9:30pm – TSN2*
Game 5, Saturday April 26
Game 6, Monday April 28
Game 7, Wednesday April 30

(2) St. Louis Blues vs. (3) Chicago Blackhawks – CBC (Dean Brown, Greg Millen)
Game 1, Thursday April 17, 8:00pm
Game 2, Saturday April 20, 3:00pm
Game 3, Monday April 23, 8:30pm – CHEX
Game 4, Wednesday April 23, 9:30pm
Game 5, Friday April 25, 9:00pm
Game 6, Sunday April 27, 3:00pm
Game 7, Tuesday April 29

Pacific Division
(1) Anaheim Ducks vs. (WC2) Dallas Stars – TSN (Chris Cuthbert, Mike Johnson)
Game 1, Wednesday April 16, 10:00pm
Game 2, Friday April 18, 10:00pm
Game 3, Monday April 21, 9:30pm
Game 4, Wednesday April 23, 8:00pm
Game 5, Friday April 25, 10:30pm
Game 6, Sunday April 27
Game 7, Tuesday April 29

(2) San Jose Sharks vs. (3) Los Angeles Kings – CBC (Mark Lee, Kelly Hrudey)
Game 1, Thursday April 17, 10:30pm
Game 2, Sunday April 20, 10:00pm
Game 3, Tuesday April 22, 10:00pm
Game 4, Thursday April 24, 10:30pm
Game 5, Saturday April 26
Game 6, Monday April 28
Game 7, Wednesday April 30

CBC’s Decision To Stop Showing Unprofitable Sports is Unfortunate

The big news revealed on Thursday by CBC President Hubert Lacroix was that the public broadcaster will no longer compete for the broadcast rights of professional sports leagues. However, I think this was a largely symbolic move by Lacroix. In reality CBC hasn’t been competitive for professional sports rights for years and has slowly dropped every pro sports they once broadcast. The Blue Jays first disappeared in 2003, before a few games returned to the CBC in 2007 and 2008. CBC also picked up Raptors broadcasts in 2007, but only kept them for two seasons. The CFL ended its 52 year run on the CBC in 2007. And while curling isn’t a fully professional sport (yet, at least), it has ratings most sports in Canada could only wish for. Curling’s signature events, branded the Season of Champions, left CBC for TSN in 2008. This summer the CBC will mark the last of the CBC showing the FIFA World Cup, which is headed to CTV in 2018. So, again, in reality the CBC has not truly competed for professional sports rights for a few years now. The exception was Hockey Night in Canada. Last November it became clear CBC would no longer compete for that either.

The more troubling aspect of Lacroix’s statement, which the media has mostly ignored, is that the CBC will only consider broadcasting sports where it can break even or turn a profit. I’ve always thought that the role of the CBC in Canadian sports broadcasting was to fill a void left by the private networks. Since presumably TSN and Sportsnet also don’t broadcast many sports that fail to break even, this could leave some sports completely off the Canadian airwaves. One recent example is the IAAF Diamond League, featuring Track & Field’s signature events. CBC dropped coverage two years ago following government funding cuts. No other network has picked up coverage of the events since. It seems like the sports that the CBC will most likely drop, are also the least likely to be picked up by a private network. And that’s sad for these amateur sports that rely on some TV coverage to generate interest among the youth, Canada’s potential future Olympians.

The most puzzling thing about the CBC’s statement is what constitutes “professional”, which the CBC will not compete for anymore, and what constitutes “national interest”? Obviously the NHL is professional and the Olympics are of national interest, but what about the Rogers Cup. Tennis is a professional sport, but the event is arguably of national interest. And it also makes no mention of sub-licensing, which CBC has touted as a key component to its long-term sports-broadcasting viability. Will the CBC continue to seek sub-licensing deals, as they have with Sportsnet for the World Curling Tour and NHL.

National Post Report: CBC To Make Sports Budget Cuts Thursday

This evening the National Post reported that CBC Sports will make significant cuts as a result of the loss of Hockey Night in Canada revenue to Rogers. This isn’t a surprise, I’ve heard talk of cuts at CBC Sports since the Olympics ended over a month ago. And it doesn’t take much deduction to figure out that a loss of revenue from HNIC will result in cuts elsewhere at the public broadcaster. This round of cuts at CBC Sports comes almost two years to the day after CBC Sports cut $4 million from its annual budget in light of reduced government funding. That $4 million cut resulted in CBC ending its Sports Weekend amateur sports program during the summer months, and completely eliminated coverage of many summer sports such as athletics. In fact in 2013 CBC didn’t show the World Aquatics Championships or World Athletics Championships for the first time in years.

Will CBC’s winter sports lineup take a hit this time, with the next Winter Olympics a full 4 years away? Speed Skating, alpine skiing and figure skating are the highlights of CBC’s winter lineup. Further cuts to summer programming could include Spruce Meadows equestrian, the Calgary Stampede or the Rogers Cup. Of course the CBC would have to wait until the current broadcast contracts end before they could cut cost through those events. And tennis popularity is at an all-time high in Canada with Milos Raonic and Genie Bouchard serious threats to win on home soil. So, the most immediate cuts will likely come in on and off-air talent. Senior employees such as Scott Russell, Scott Oake and Steve Armitage are probably the safest, but cuts in the sports broadcast industry are never something pleasant to write about.

Edit (April 7, 2014):

Yahoo! Finance’s Andy Raida has also published an article about the impending cuts at the CBC. Quoting Ian Morrison of Friends of Canadian Broadcasting, the article seems to confirm much of what I speculated about earlier in this article. Raida reports that the cuts will equal dollar value cuts of $130 to $140 million, with around 350 English-language positions cut. Morrison adds, “In terms of programming, what I’ve heard is that they’re going to really curtail anything that has to do with sports. That’s a decision that has been made. They’re going to close down sports departments — things of that nature.”

So things do not look good for CBC’s sports department. It looks at though the private sports broadcasters could finally devour it. As I mentioned earlier, after losing hockey CBC doesn’t have many sports properties to cut. Aside for Rio 2016, the only events CBC holds rights to are the Figure Skating’s Grand Prix and World Championships (through 2016 Worlds), Alpine Skiing’s World Cup, the Rogers Cup (through 2015), Calgary Stampede (through 2015, options for 2016-17) and Spruce Meadows equestrian. I am unsure of the current contract situation for both the Queen’s Plate and the Canadian Women’s Open The CBC also sub-licenses a couple Grand Slam of Curling broadcasts a year from Sportsnet, but if Sportsnet is producing CBC’s hockey coverage, there’s no reason they couldn’t begin producing their curling as well. But I think the end-dates of these contracts makes it clear CBC could almost entirely pull out of producing sports coverage by the end of the Rio 2016.

CNN’s MH370 Coverage a Sad Statement on News Coverage in America

As anyone who follows me on Twitter has probably figured out over the past month, I have a real problem with CNN’s coverage of the missing Fight MH370. And my argument isn’t that the story doesn’t constitute news. It certainly does. In fact it probably has deserved to lead every national newscast for the past month, except for a few days after the horrific mudslides in Washington. Instead my problem is that CNN shills out hour after hour of MH370 coverage, at the expense of other very important news, for ratings. Which leads me to my second problem, that America is more fascinated with this than it is with other news items, such as Russia annexing a sovereign country or the America’s new medical insurance program, which in some way directly impacts just about every American.

And this coverage has undoubtedly paid off for CNN in terms of ratings and profit. Recently released ratings for the month of March show that CNN is ahead of competitor MSNBC for the first time since last summer. MSNBC, for their part, has tried to stay away from excessive plane coverage. This shows a general correlation that more plane coverage = higher ratings, less plane coverage = lower ratings. CNN’s weekday primetime coverage for March 2014 is up 35% in total viewers compared to March 2013. Between March 12 and March 14 Anderson Cooper’s “360” beat Bill O’Reilly’s “Factor” on Fox News three consecutive nights.

And, so, it absolutely baffles me that so many people have watched CNN repeat the same news hour after hour every day. In fact, it seems much of the news is the same each day that passes. CNN’s coverage was fantastic in the first few days after the plane’s disappearance. However, CNN’s coverage quickly turned to filling time with conspiracy theories and other inane filler that doesn’t actually result in the reporting of any news, you know, what news reporters are supposed to do. The inane on CNN has ranged from countless “aviation experts”, some of whom have very questionable credentials, to a full-time reporter at a flight simulator in Mississauga (the only time Canada is ever mentioned on CNN, I might add), to model planes and the use of “breaking news” for the smallest of items.

I’ll start with the aviation experts. Some of these experts are in fact ex-pilots or flight engineers, or at least I’d hope they are. However, CNN’s go-to man on aviation expertise is Richard Quest. A CNN regular, Quest is only moonlighting as an expert on MH370, he has a day job as a CNN business analyst. One could question why Quest even still has a job at CNN, after he was found in Central Park with crystal meth in 2008. But I’ll simply stick to questioning why he is a plane analyst (er aviation expert), and the answer is I haven’t a clue.

Another aspect of CNN’s time-filling is their use of planes, big and small, real and fake. CNN has used the simulator in Mississauga quite often to show what it is like for a plane to ascend, descend or turn left at a rapid rate. Only problem is none of us viewers can actually tell what these movements feel like, so we have to rely on the CNN reporter inside the cockpit to describe them for us. Fascinating stuff. If a life-size simulator wasn’t enough, Don Lemon appealed to the inner-child in all of us when he showed the plane’s movements using a model plane a few weeks ago. This 80 second video is great because it pretty much sums up CNN’s speculation as well. And, unbelievably, it wasn’t Don Lemon’s worst on-air moment of the past month, but more on that later.

The craziest part of CNN’s coverage are the theories of what happened to the plane. Of course we really don’t know what happened and won’t until the black box is recovered, if it ever is. But that simple, newsworthy explanation would only take a minute to report. CNN needed something juicy that would last for days. And so, the conspiracy theories came in. The first of these was the immediate linking two Iranians with stolen passports (apparently a rather disturbingly often occurrence) to a supposed hijacking. When officials revealed the plane could be in any number of former Soviet Union countries, speculation began that the Iranians were going to use the plane for a later terrorist attack on Israel. Then investigators realized the Iranians were just normal passengers, so attention turned to the pilots, despite a complete lack of evidence that either had any motive. But no, CNN’s theories didn’t stop there at these surprisingly plausible explanations. CNN had to go a step further, quickly turning the “Zombie Plane Theory” (why not latch on to America’s most watched show, The Walking Dead?), while Lemon outdid himself questioning if the plane’s disappearance was supernatural or caused by a mini black hole.

But I think CNN’s coverage, and America’s consumption of it, shows a larger problem with society. In a reality show era of television, live 24/7 news has almost become just another form of reality TV. There are many examples before MH370. One of the defining examples was nightly primetime coverage of the Iraq War. CNN, along with Fox News and MSNBC, showed coverage of American bombings in Iraq. And the people loved it as all three cable news networks set ratings records. Fascinated viewers watched villages being bombed. Regardless of the fact that these bombings killed many innocent people, viewers didn’t care because they never actually saw this. It also deflected coverage away from talk about whether the war itself was just, ethical or any number of other things. Another example was the coverage of the search for the Boston Marathon bombers a year ago. Of course the difference was that search lasted 24 hours, not a month. And for the record, I thought it did make for fascinating television.

I think CNN could cover the plane story better by covering it less, and by focusing on other ignored aspects. For example cooperation, or a lack of, between the various Asian countries involved in the search could be investigated more. As could the poorly handled investigation by Malaysia or whether any Asian countries are considering better radar coverage. Or they could look into how outrageously easy it seems to board a plane with fake passports.

Actually I think CNN had one of the great, moving moments in news this year when it aired an interview with the previously mentioned Iranian passenger’s mother. Turns out she is living in Germany, receiving cancer treatments and awaiting refugee status. Her son wanted to visit her quickly in case her cancer became worse.  He figured a stolen passport was his best chance to get from Iran to Germany. Due to his love for his mother, he was on the plane. And now she has to live with that. The interview is absolutely heartbreaking.

The other thing that is fascinating about CNN’s coverage is the flow of events. When it came to light the plane had taken a left turn after leaving Malaysia, which I consider the turning point in this whole event, CNN has constantly clung on to one small piece of news per day, before discarding it for something else when it is proven irrelevant. They started off with the “northern and southern arcs”, and how the plane could have been flown to some remote former Soviet airstrip unnoticed. Despite that logic tells us the plane probably flew south crashing into the Indian Ocean, CNN focused on the remote possibility that it was refueling somewhere in one of the “stans” for a potential future terror attack.

When officials revealed it had in fact headed south, CNN turned their focus to the pilot’s flight simulator. They made it sound odd that a pilot who loved flying would own a simulator. They came up with theories that maybe he had practiced flying a plane into the Indian Ocean, or maybe an airstrip on a small island in the Indian Ocean, and that this was (or had once been) recorded on his simulator. When these theories had finally run their course, and investigators announced there was a new “search area” off the coast of Australia, CNN moved their coverage to an entirely new continent.

And with this new search area came over a week of day-after-day coverage with breaking news, officials had found “their best lead yet.” Of course that isn’t saying much considering every lead in this story has turned out completely wrong. And so CNN took to showing grainy satellite images of objects in the ocean, and day after day these turned out to be ocean trash. And now with the news that Chinese and Australian officials have found the much-talked about, famous “pings” of the black box maybe they will finally find the wreckage and CNN can move on to reporting actual news about the crash, which I think we are all anxious to hear, and put behind them this embarrassing reality-show style coverage.

MLB Canadian TV Schedule: April 7-13

Here is this week’s MLB schedule for TSN and Sportsnet.

Monday April 7
1:00pm, Baltimore Orioles @ New York Yankees – Sportsnet
7:00pm, Texas Rangers @ Boston Red Sox – TSN2

Tuesday April 8
1:00pm, Baltimore Orioles @ New York Yankees – SN1
10:00pm, Detroit Tigers @ Los Angeles Dodgers – SN Pacific

Wednesday April 9
1:30pm, Cincinnati Reds @ St. Louis Cardinals – SN1
10:00pm, Detroit Tigers @ Los Angeles Dodgers – SN West/Pacific

Friday April 11
10:00pm, Oakland Athletics @ Seattle Mariners – SN Pacific

Saturday April 12
1:00pm, Boston Red Sox @ New York Yankees – Sportsnet