ESPN announced a new coverage strategy for Sunday Night Baseball, their exclusive game of the week, as it begins the first year of a long-term MLB rights extension.
As part of ESPN’s strategy, it’s launching Sunday Night Baseball with Kay-Rod — a special viewing presentation to air on ESPN2 alongside the traditional ESPN game telecast for eight Sunday Night Baseball games during the 2022 season.
Similar to ESPN’s “Manningcast with Peyton and Eli” for Monday night NFL games, “Sunday Night Baseball with Kay-Rod” features former New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez and ESPN radio host and YES Network play-by-play voice Michael Kay.
In addition to their discussion and analysis, the telecasts will integrate fantasy baseball, predictive analytics and special guests tied to the game.
The coverage will take place on ESPN2 and the duo will be live for eight of the highest-profile rivalry games throughout the season, including Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox. It would not be surprising to see the Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Francisco Giants featured on the new broadcast.
“The innovative Sunday Night Baseball with Kay-Rod presentations will be informative and entertaining and play a crucial role in our overall Sunday Night Baseball content offerings,” ESPN executive vice president and executive editor Norby Williamson said in a statement.
“We’re grateful for the collaboration with the YES Network and look forward to starting the 2022 season.”
Rodriguez and Kay will appear on site for select games and broadcast live from their home studios for other games. Rodriguez and Kay will also serve as ESPN’s main broadcast team for two exclusive ESPN MLB regular-season games.
Rodriguez also reached a multi-year contract extension with ESPN as he returns for his fifth season as an analyst.
For their primary coverage of Sunday Night Baseball, former Yankees pitcher and YES Network analyst David Cone and former player and coach Eduardo Perez join Karl Ravech, who becomes the fourth-ever Sunday Night Baseball play-by-play voice, to form ESPN’s new Sunday broadcast booth.
“We welcome David Cone to ESPN and believe he and Eduardo Perez will offer a master class in contemporary analysis, including Statcast-driven data and discussion,” Williamson said. “Karl Ravech, who has been our “Mr. Baseball” for three decades, will lead the booth with the command and credibility that he’s displayed throughout his career.”
ESPN featured all-female broadcast crew last season
Last season, ESPN nationally televised a matchup between the Dodgers and San Diego Padres that made history.
Jessica Mendoza and Melanie Newman were on the call as part of the network’s first all-female broadcast team during an MLB, NBA or NFL regular season or playoff telecast.
The duo additionally made history as the first all-female broadcast team for a nationally televised MLB game.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
