The comment stemmed from an incident in which Placido Polanco of the Phillies was nearly hit by a pitch from the Mets’ Mike Pelfrey. Polanco wears an elbow guard, and Pelfrey got hot because he thought the guarded-up Polanco purposely leaned towards an off-speed pitch. Everyone’s backs went up, including Matthews’, who’s seen enough vitriol between these two hated rivals in the last few years to feel right at home in denigrating the Mets with some good old-fashioned name-calling.

After his on-air comments, a reporter with the Daily News (N.Y.) spoke with Matthews outside the booth and asked him about it. Matthews, as you’d expect, didn’t shy away from what he said.

“Tell them Sarge said it – the Mets are crybabies,” Matthews said. “That’s why they lose.”

Ouch. After Matthews and the reporter separated, Matthews reportedly doubled back. He closed his fists and made crying motions under his eyes.

“Make sure you have tears, like this,” he said.

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The nationally-syndicated Sporting News Radio program will air live weekdays from 10:00 am-1:00pm ET.

“We’re thrilled to be launching ‘The Tim Brando Show’ on CBS Sports Network. This show, along with several other enhancements we’re making, will significantly increase the live, daily, topical programming for our fans,” said David Berson, executive vice president, CBS Sports and president, CBS Sports Network. “Tim is a well known and respected sports personality and valued member of the CBS Sports family who adds to our already strong line-up of talent.”

The Tim Brando Show also features co-host Rogers Hampton and the TV version will include a CBS Sports Network reporter for hourly updates.

“CBS Sports Network will expose the show to a new audience, and produce a high-quality, entertaining telecast that I know fans will enjoy,” said Tim Brando. “It’s thrilling for me every day to be talking about sports in this format and I’m lucky to now have two great media partners on board.”

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“As we continue to expand the number of 3D events on the channel, it made sense operationally to transition ESPN 3D to a 24-7 network,” said Sean Bratches, executive vice president, sales and marketing for Disney and ESPN Media Networks. “We’ve been very pleased with the rate at which our affiliates have adopted ESPN 3D in its first year and we continue to look for new ways to serve fans, advertisers and affiliates with the best 3D sports content available.” continued…

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His conclusion? Absolutely.

Comcast will spend whatever it takes to keep the Olympics on NBC when bidding for the 2014 and 2016 Games kicks off next year. ESPN may force it to pay more, but Comcast will top ESPN’s bid on every round as the International Olympic Committee considers each side’s latest offers.

Part of the Comcast takeover deal was that the new owners wouldn’t alter the network’s big-time sports efforts. In short, new NBCU CEO Steve Burke can’t afford to lose the Games, even if they might lose money. (A consulting firm predicts the 2014 Games will break even, while the 2012 ones will lose $100M.)

Goetzl mentions that ESPN will eventually stop bidding because “the consistently top-rated Olympic events appeal to women, a group not in the ESPN wheelhouse.” But wait, didn’t the Worldwide Leader just launch a site for women? continued…

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The man to credit (or blame): Dietrich Mateschitz.

Sports Business International named the executive the “Most Influential person in the business of sport for 2010.”

Staying under the radar is all part of Mateschitz’s plan. “Unlike many of his contemporaries, Mateschitz has managed to remain almost an unknown figure behind the Red Bull brand; [Richard] Branson and [Bill] Gates, by contrast, have become in many ways the faces of their respective Virgin and Microsoft brands,” Simon Chadwick of Coventry University’s Centre for the International Business of Sport tells SBI. Mateschitz, though, prefers to remain behind the scenes, encouraging greater attention on the brand and the properties themselves, a strategy which to date has paid dividends.”

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For the The St. Petersburg Times TV and media critic, ‘it is small surprise that some of the highest-profile members of the Fourth Estate have now begun to get chewed up in the same buzzsaw once reserved for those making millions on the field.”

And later, “Still, it feels like a theme here. Opinionators whose brash, bold words entertain, amuse and anger, brought low when they go too far, sliced and diced by the very media which pushed them to prominence in the first place.” continued…

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