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ESPN's awful Home Run Derby coverage won't be missed after MLB split

Prince J. Grimes   For The Win

Congratulations to Cal Raleigh, the MLB home-run leader who continued his slugging ways last night in the Home Run Derby where he became the first catcher in league history to win the competition. I hope he had a lot more fun winning it than we did watching at home because whew, the broadcast was some rough viewing.

I came away from the Derby thinking it was too long, and I don't think I've ever felt that way about watching dudes hit dingers. But after dedicating almost three hours of my night squinting to see a white blur that ESPN's cameras could barely track, I couldn't help but feel like there was a better way I could've spent that time.

Don't get me wrong. There were some high moments. Junior Caminero put on a show with his surprise run to the final. Oneil Cruz hit moonshot after moonshot. And Raleigh delivered the dramatics. But it was a three-hour show! That's longer than the average baseball game. And I repeat, ESPN's cameras barely provided the thing we came to see. Which made the long derby so much harder to stomach.

HR THIEVERY: Here's the kid who nearly robbed Caminero

The obvious issue with ESPN's coverage was the split-screen view, which was supposed to provide a shot of the batter on one side and a shot of where his hits were traveling on the other. But far too often, the ball-tracking cameras were left staring into space at nothing in particular... or locked in too long on an outfield spot where a non-dinger may or may not have landed... or showing player and fan reactions to home runs we never actually got to see at home -- which actually became my preferred view over the bad ball-tracking.

But that wasn't the only issue. The coverage was a turn-off from the start when ESPN used Pat McAfee to do player introductions despite him having no apparent connection to baseball or the host city, Atlanta. The network used the Derby as another venue to force its high-cost former punter personality down our throats. And bruh, who asked for this?

Then, there was the moment in the semifinals when the in-house audio at Truist Park began overpowering the broadcast audio, causing intermittent bursts of music to drown out Karl Ravech's commentary as Raleigh made his push past Cruz. Suddenly, the broadcast was hard to watch and listen. And by that point, the only thing that kept me around was a desire to see the thing through after suffering through so much already.

Several people across social media pointed out how the Statcast broadcast on ESPN2 was better. I gave that a try, but better didn't mean it was perfect.

The digital home run tracker on ESPN2 was a massive improvement over what was happening on the main broadcast, and there were some cool camera angles too. Kevin Brown had a delightful call of Cruz's 513-foot blast. But the "stat" cast predictably didn't have the same pageantry and spectator views of the main broadcast. A marriage of the two would have made for a better experience over both.

So, what's the solution to making a three-hour home run derby easier to watch? That'll be a question for whichever network picks it up next, as ESPN's coverage of MLB ends after this season after the sides agreed to opt out of their contract together. Thankfully for whoever's next, the bar for improvement hasn't been set very high.

Is UNO coming to a casino near you?

This is a question people have apparently been asking after the popular card game's manufacturer, Mattel, announced the Friday debut of its new UNO Social Club at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, and that more social clubs would be opening across the country.

And if I'm being honest, security concerns aside, it didn't sound like the worst idea in the world. I would absolutely lay a few bucks down to draw-four a stranger to death. But that's not exactly what's happening, as UNO explained this morning in an Instagram post clearing up the confusion:

"We hate to be the bearers of bad news but the casino floor isn't ready for us yet. We've been told that while they do have tight security, it's not robust enough for UNO at this time."

Well, that's a bummer. I guess there's hope in that "yet" word. Here's Charles Curtis with more of UNO's response.

Quick Hits: Emmy nominations ... Johnny Furphy's poster ... and more

Thanks for reading. We'll be back with more tomorrow.

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