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🎙️ Pasch on the move. Veteran play-by-play announcer Dave Pasch is re-signing a multiyear deal with ESPN that will see him continue his roles on NBA, college football, and college basketball coverage. And, as has been floated in recent reporting, Pasch is in line to secure a spot as ESPN’s No. 2 NFL announcer. In doing so, Pasch has also stepped away from his gig as the radio voice for the Arizona Cardinals, where he has called games for over two decades.

🎾 Evert’s battle. Tennis Hall of Famer and longtime ESPN analyst Chris Evert revealed her ovarian cancer has returned for the third time, keeping her from attending Wimbledon this year. “Because of this, I will not be attending Wimbledon this year,” Evert wrote in a statement. “I will step back from my professional commitments over the next few months to focus on my health.”

🏈 Tucker time. Ross Tucker appears to be the leader in the clubhouse to nab a spot in CBS’s fourth NFL booth alongside play-by-play announcer Andrew Catalon. The booth has seen plenty of turnover in recent years, this time due to Jason McCourty signing an exclusive deal with ESPN and Charles Davis making the transition to college football.

Read more of today’s top stories at Awful Announcing.

Boomer Esiason has become a main character on Awful Announcing in recent months, and it’s not necessarily for his on-the-field takes. The WFAN host and former CBS Sports NFL analyst continues to ingratiate himself with the anti-woke side of the culture wars with regularity.

Most recently, Boomer made his way into the headlines for an all-too-predictable Caitlin Clark take following another incident in which WNBA refs were accused of failing to protect Clark from overly physical play, which resulted in the Indiana Fever star leaving the game due to injury.

Thursday, on his WFAN show, Boomer blew past dog-whistle territory and said the quiet part out loud, suggesting the WNBA is not treating Clark with the requisite level of respect because she’s a straight, white player.

“If I were Caitlin Clark, I would seriously consider going to play overseas somewhere and get royal treatment,” Esiason suggested. “And get real money.”

He continued:

“I know Caitlin makes a ton of money off the court in terms of endorsements, and rightfully so. But I think there is a petty jealousy, and she’s a straight, white basketball player. And she is not being treated with any sort of respect whatsoever.”

Boomer’s take immediately went viral, and drew criticism from a number of high-profile commentators across sports and politics.

Former ESPNer Jemele Hill asked, “So is he implying that she should receive special treatment because she’s straight and white?”

MS NOW contributor and The Bulwark writer Tim Miller joked a “poll test” should be necessary before someone gives a Caitlin Clark take. “You must be able to name 5 other WNBA players and have 3 other opinions about the league before you can weigh in,” he suggested.

This is the status quo for Boomer Esiason recently. The former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback preemptively called for the New York Knicks to visit the White House to celebrate their championship, before they have even been invited. He lambasted New York Giants linebacker Abdul Carter for his social media reaction criticizing teammate Jaxson Dart for appearing with President Trump at a recent rally. But just a few months earlier, Boomer called out multiple Olympic athletes for speaking about politics, telling them to “pipe down” and “respect the flag.”

So when Dart introduces Trump at a rally, it’s fine, but when Eileen Gu or Hunter Hess share their political opinions, it’s shut up and dribble? Quite the cognitive dissonance, I must say.

It’s interesting. Boomer Esiason had a long run on The NFL Today, and he would never venture into this kind of commentary. But now, outside the mainstream sports media ecosystem and tucked away on WFAN, he’s comfortable letting it rip. Fair play, there’s clearly an audience for it. But in going down this path, he’s also opening himself up to criticism. Meadowlark Media’s Mike Ryan has frequently dished it out towards Boomer, for instance.

But as these types of takes increase in frequency, Boomer is reshaping his image from a sports guy to the uncle you’d like to avoid at Thanksgiving. If his listeners are into it, who’s to say he’s wrong in making that transition?

It is abundantly clear, however, Boomer is entering his boomer era, and you can either get on board, or depart the station now.

Boog Sciambi has a dog doppelganger?

The Caitlin Clark takes are coming fast and furious…

Hydration breaks have been all the rage at this summer’s World Cup, literally. But how are viewers behaving when these stoppages in play occur? Well, as one could predict, it differs a bit between Fox, which is showing full-screen advertising during most breaks, and Telemundo, which is sticking with on-field coverage.

However, the difference in viewer behavior isn’t as stark as you’d think. An analysis by the sports media consultants at Octagon show that Fox is only losing between one and three percent of viewers during the breaks, while Telemundo is gaining two to three percent in the same period.

No doubt, this is encouraging data for Fox to see. Even with how unpopular the hydration-break commercials have been, few are choosing to actively switch the channel. And as the old television adage goes, viewers vote with their remotes.

As has been well-documented, Fox stands to make money hand-over-fist during these hydration breaks, with revenue estimates ranging from $250 million to $600 million for just that ad inventory alone throughout the World Cup. Given that viewers, for the most part, are staying engaged in spite of the commercials, there seems to be little downside to inspire the network to change its approach.