Now, here's the problem.
An in-game interview with ESPN's Quique Hernandez on Sunday gave a preview of what the Los Angeles Dodgers will pitch against the St. Louis Cardinals on the broadcast.
The progress is as follows.
In the top of the third inning, with the Cardinals at bat, ESPN visited Hernandez for an in-game interview with broadcasters Karl Labec, David Cone and Eduardo Perez. Hernandez was covering third base during the interview.
Hernandez's Pitchcom is now available
Hernandez answered questions about his opponent and provided commentary on the game with Cardinals rookie speedster Victor Scott II at the plate. Scott led off with an infield hit, and Hernandez was wary of a possible double play. He then turned up the volume on his PitchCom speaker, which he held to his ear, but encountered a problem.
“The pitch com needs to be higher,” Hernandez said. “You guys can't hear me.”
In this case, “you” meant ESPN, the station he was listening to.
“Can you hear me?”
Hernandez powered up his PitchCom device. Soon, a new voice joined the broadcast. It looked like he was saying, “Fastball, away.”
Hernandez asked, “Can you hear me?”
It's done. Ravetch replied, “I think they said fastball, away.”
Gavin Stone's next pitch was a 95 mph four-seam fastball.
This continued throughout the inning, and a mysterious voice was repeatedly heard announcing “changeup,” “fastball in,” and “fastball away.” Each time, the call matched the incoming pitch.
Meanwhile, Hernandez continued to answer questions ranging from questions about the weather in Los Angeles to whether Rally Banana would return to Dodger Stadium.
None of it was particularly appealing to viewers. But it was clear that pitching was coming. The inning continued without any interruptions in interviews or pitching. The Cardinals had three men on base and scored one run on Paul Goldschmidt's RBI single. The Dodgers won 5-4.
It is unlikely that the Cardinals could have taken advantage of the uproar, as the information would be useless if the live broadcast was delayed. Still, this is a problem that needs to be solved, and it will definitely be solved. It wouldn't be a problem without the insistence on in-game interviews, which has permeated every major game since the All-Star Game.