Baseball Tonight is a program that airs on SC. The show, which recapitulates the day's MLB action, has been on the air since 1990
Air times[]
Baseball Tonight usually appears nightly on SC throughout the baseball season @ 10:00 PM ET & 12:00 AM ET (the show may air on SC-2 when there are conflicts with college football or the NBA). Following the cancellation of The Sports Block in late of 2006, the 12:00 AM run of Baseball Tonight was expanded to a full 40 minutes. The show has permission from the MLB to show in-progress highlights. The show is also seen @ 12:30 & 7:00 PM ET on Sundays, the latter show leading up to the MLB Sunday Night telecast. The late-night edition on Sundays is usually just a re-air of the 7:00 show, with a SportsCenter anchor providing highlights of the Sunday night game in place of a game preview segment that airs during the LIVE broadcast. The midnight edition usually re-airs @ 12:00 PM ET, the following day (excluding Saturday, when the show is usually a full-hour in length)
LIVE, on-location episodes[]
The show also appears LIVE @ events throughout the year, such as spring training, the MLB All-Star Game @ World Series sites & occasionally has remote stunts, i.e. shows from rooftops @ Fenway Park & Wrigley Field in 2005. It aired LIVE from the field @ Fenway Park on April 26th, 2009 before the Sunday Night Baseball game between the Yankees-Red Sox game, which featured an interview with Dustin Pedroia. On June 28th 2009, it aired from Citi Field in anticipation of that night's Subway Series game between the Mets & the Yankees
History[]
On January 3rd 2000, the segment "Web Gems" was coined & created. The segment originally featured great defensive plays followed by viewer internet voting on the "web". The phrase "web gem" is now common vernacular in baseball broadcasts & circles to describe outstanding glove-work.
In 2002, the home run segment "Going, Going, Gone", complete with the immensely popular "screaming baseball" animation was replaced with a tamer segment "Touch 'Em All" sans screaming baseball.
Beginning with the 2005 season, Baseball Tonight has been broadcast in HD on SC-HD from the opposite side of the studio used for Countdown to NFL Sunday, NBA Shows & College Football shows, albeit with a baseball demonstration field laid on top of the NFL floor. Airing begins in March during spring training & ends after the World Series in October.
In 2006, Baseball Tonight introduced new graphics. The opening sequence features players on baseball cards moving & a ball going from 1 to another via a throw or off a bat. A much longer variation of this is also used to open SC's LIVE baseball telecasts. The theme music also was updated from the normal orchestral treatment to a livelier rock vamp.
In 2007, a new segment entitled "That's Nasty!" was introduced. The new segment featured top pitching performances of the day, including the best individual pitches. These clips often include extremely high velocity fastballs, 12 - 6 curveballs or change-ups that completely fool the opposing batters. Prior to the 2007 All-Star Game, a modified version of the opening sequence was used which featured various San Francisco landmarks, including the Golden Gate Bridge.
In 2008, they replaced Roger Clemens with Josh Beckett in the baseball card opening sequence.
In 2009, they brought back the "screamin' baseball" graphic with the "Touch 'Em All" segment
Featured segments[]
Baseball Tonight is split into a number of segments, each of which focuses on a particular aspect of baseball. These segments include:
- 3 up, 3 down: 3 players/teams each that are either on the uprise or downside of their seasons or careers (in the case of players)
- Analysis: a more in-depth look @ baseball topics, players & upcoming games
- Diamond Cuts: Airs on the Sunday edition which shows a montage of the week's best plays set
- Extra Bases: a more in-depth look @ a particular game after the highlights have aired
- Highlights: the most important happenings from the day's MLB play, occasionally also featuring other baseball competitions such as the World Baseball Classic, the College World Series, Minor League Baseball or the Little League World Series. Virtually every MLB game is shown @ least once, more if there are in-progress highlights to report on
- Inside Baseball: This segment usually features a SC MLB analyst giving his insight on the latest news & rumors from around baseball
- Topping the MLB: usually the 1st segment of the show, giving the day's most significant baseball news, for example, trades, injury updates & hirings or firings of managers
- The Most Important Thing: Analysts' comments on the most important story from the day's happenings in MLB. This is usually the final segment of the show
- The MLB Hotline: a LIVE phone interview with an MLB player, coach or GM, usually regarding the most recent game played & outlooks on the future of the team
- Out of the Box: This segment is similar to Leading Off, where they preview what is coming up on the show
- Stat of the Night: an interesting baseball statistic from the day's happenings in MLB
- That's Nasty: New in 2007, a segment showing the best pitches, usually with the most movement of the night
- Touch 'Em All: significant home runs of the day
- The Best HR: The most significant home run of the day. Usually the longest or biggest scorer like a "Grand Slam"
- Web Gems: the day's 5 best defensive plays. On Sundays, the best defensive plays of the entire week air. On July 1st 2007, the day's 10 best defensive plays were shown; there were too many for that day. Prior to the 2007 All-Star Game, the season's 10 worst defensive plays were featured in a similar segment. Points are given to each player & @ the end of the season, the player with the most points wins a trophy
- The Greatest HR's: begun as a temporary segment in honor of Barry Bonds' ascension to the all-time MLB home run champion. Featured the greatest 5 home runs in the history of a different franchise every day for the duration of the segment; on August 26 (the final day of the segment), the Top 10 Home Runs of All-Time were featured
See also[]
- MLB GameDay LIVE
- The MLB on SC
- MLB Sunday Night
- MLB Monday Night
- MLB Wednesday Night
- The MLB on SC Radio