It was a historic year for the Cardinals, who came roaring back from a 10 1/2-game deficit in the playoff chase in late August to not only qualify for the postseason on the final day of the regular season but also to win the World Series. And the biggest events in local sports media in 2011 also involved their broadcasts.
• The Cards made many fans happy by moving their radio broadcasts back to powerhouse KMOX (1120 AM) after a five-year experiment at KTRS (550 AM) led to grousing from people who were unable to pick up the signal. But they went the other way with their TV coverage, leaving over-the-air (so-called free TV) for the first time since they began televising games in the 1940s. The lure was a bigger offer from cable's Fox Sports Midwest — which, for the second year in a row, flubbed coverage of the home opener. This time it cut away while the Cards were being introduced..
• The number of games broadcast by longtime FSM Cards announcers Dan McLaughlin and Al Hrabosky was slashed to get more work for Rick Horton, who had been broadcasting the approximately 20 games that had been airing on KSDK (Channel 5). And Horton's partner at KSDK, Jay Randolph, did some fill-in Cards broadcasting this year and worked on some ancillary shows.
• Hrabosky had neck surgery at the All-Star break that affected his vocal cords and led to a froggy-sounding voice.
• FSM's approach became convoluted late in the season, when McLaughlin had just one of its final 12 games, while the comparatively inexperienced Horton was on play-by-play as the monumental comeback unfurled.
• The saga exploded in late September, when McLaughlin was arrested for drunken driving for the second time in a 13-month span. He has been extremely remorseful, saying he went to rehab and entered a long-term help program to deal with alcoholism. He isn't doing his normal college basketball assignments this winter as he deals with his issues.
"I thank God every day that I didn't hurt myself or anybody else because of my stupidity and a totally selfish act," he said in an emotional interview in mid-November. "… I'm an alcoholic, and I'm not ashamed to say that because I needed help in a bad way. Through what's happened, it's turning my life around.''
He was asked whether he deserves to be back in the Cards' booth.
"I don't necessarily know if I should, because I hold a position of which I represent not just myself but many,'' he said. "I respect those people and I understand this is a very hard decision for them. I can only hope for forgiveness and the chance to … gain their trust back.''
FSM said in a statement Friday that "no decision has been made" about McLaughlin returning. "What's most important is that Dan continue to focus on his wellness."
BUCK'S BEAT
St. Louisan Joe Buck, the Fox network's lead NFL and MLB play-by-play broadcaster, came down with a vocal cord ailment shortly after calling the Super Bowl, and it lingered for much of the baseball season. He even took singing lessons from local vocalist Erin Bode to strengthen his voice.
But he was back in stride during the World Series and capped Game 6, as the Cards came back after trailing by two runs in the ninth and 10th innings and twice being down to their last strike. Buck described the winning hit in the 11th thusly: "(David) Freese hits it into center. WE WILL SEE YOU TOMORROW NIGHT!"
Twenty years and one day earlier his dad, Jack Buck, was on CBS when Kirby Puckett homered, also in the 11th and also in Game 6, to give Minnesota a 4-3 victory over Atlanta. Jack Buck, working his last Series on national TV, said on the air then, "into deep left center … AND WE'LL SEE YOU TOMORROW NIGHT!"
"I started my career through nepotism, connections, and early on I tried everything to sound different from my dad,'' Joe Buck said the day after his call. "But in the best game I ever witnessed, ever called, my first thing was to go back to my dad.''
He said he never will use the line again.
"That was the perfect time, and the last time,'' Buck said.
ON THE MOVE
Mizzou radio football analyst John Kadlec retired this season after 16 seasons in the booth. His replacement, former Mizzou and NFL offensive lineman Howard Richards, took perhaps the most unusual path to sportscasting in history. He previously had spent 13 years working for the CIA, the most notable assignment being on the VIP protection staff for four directors of the agency — a job that took him to hot spots around the world.
• There were several notable on-air moves on sports-talk radio (aren't there always?), notably tell-it-like-it-is former longtime NFL coach Jim Hanifan being sacked from the Rams' postgame show at WXOS (101.1 FM). Also:
• KMOX, with the Cards back, made its nighttime lineup all sports and does a good job with its informative approach.
• Ashlee Feldman, a former reality-TV actress who was 24, was paired with outspoken host Kevin Slaten on KFNS (590 AM). After a curious start, she settled into a role that played well off Slaten's jackhammer approach.
• Chris Duncan was added by WXOS to replace Jack Clark, who was not retained as a baseball analyst, moved to KTRS (550 AM) and continued to speak his mind. And Duncan, son of Cards pitching coach Dave Duncan, surprisingly was not afraid to rip the team or even the pitchers led by his dad and made many pointed, insightful comments.
• Also at 101, Zach McCrite and Rick Venturi replaced Bob Stelton on midmornings after he left in March. They, along with the holdovers, have helped WXOS strengthen its grip as the local leader in sports talk.
• And KSLG (1380 AM) retooled by dropping low-rated syndicated shows in favor of local programs featuring Mike "Z-Man" Zarrick and Adam Spitz. And Ron Godier replaced Jeff Vernetti on the afternoon drive-time show, with Vernetti moving to late nights at sister station KFNS (590 AM).
