Los Angeles Angels owner Arte Moreno disagrees with 28 other MLB franchises about the value of having radio announcers travel with the team.
For the fourth consecutive season, the Angels’ radio broadcast duo of Terry Smith and Mark Langston will have to call road games remotely from inside Angels Stadium. The Toronto Blue Jays are the only other MLB team with the same arrangement.
Moreno confirmed the plans earlier this month.
“We found out that it’s not changing — we love our radio people, they do a great job,” he said. “We just found that the economics — 40,000-50,000 miles is not going to change that experience.”
An industry expert who is in charge of the financial budget for a different MLB team’s radio crew told Sam Blum of The Athletic that the cost for his team is between $185,000 and $200,000 for the season. That includes hotel expenses and a per diem that covers food and other necessities. That does not seem like a significant issue for an MLB team, and 28 other teams obviously feel it is not.
Both Smith and Langston declined to comment about the remote arrangement. It goes without saying that there are disadvantages to calling a game remotely. Aside from potential technical issues that could arise, broadcasters are unable to see anything else at the ballpark that is not shown on a television feed. They also lose their valuable access to the team.
Of course, Angels fans probably are not surprised. Moreno teased them this offseason about selling the franchise only to change his mind. His decision to remain in charge may have one huge consequence for the Angels. It could also hurt the product they put out on the radio.
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