Bad Sports: MLB Gets Mom To Explain Baseball To Women

A new series of Dodgers baseball broadcasts, which began with the team’s game against the NY Mets last night, are being “aimed at women.” And, thank the ghost of Ty Cobb, a mom will be doing the announcing!*

According to the LA Daily News, the game broadcasts are designed to involve women in baseball. Part of the team’s Women’s Initiatives Network, they involve a play-by-play by Fox Sports pre-game host Jeanne Zelasko, who, says the team’s EO, “as a mother (will) be able to bring a unique perspective to our WIN broadcasts and help spread her love of baseball to fans around the world.”

And how does a mother’s broadcast differ, from, say, a father’s? Well, (longtime Fox pre-game commentator and respected analyst, but more importantly, MOM!) Zelasko explains, it will be “more instructive” than the typical broadcast, which assumes a level of understanding. Says she, “I like to look at our broadcast as we’re not afraid to explain something most people might take for granted,” adding, “we’re not going to talk down to people.” She and her co-host, Dodger assistant coach Mark Sweeney, will also take email questions and keep a Twitter of the game (although one hopes there’s some underling to help out with that level of multitask.)

We are very glad to see anything happening that gets more people into the awesome that is baseball. We are glad to see women announcers. We are glad to see competent announcers, period. We are happy to know that some broadcasts will help include those who might find the (sorry) inside-baseball nature of commenting impenetrable. And it’s nice that the Dodgers want to reach out to women.

And: thank you.

We’re really glad the Dodgers understand that, as women, we feel uncomfortable learning anything that’s not coming from a Mom’s perspective. In college, whenever a professor tried to teach us Heidegger or Calculus, we found it necessary to ascertain her Mom credentials before we could comprehend anything. Last time I was in traffic court, I know I stared blankly at the judge and said, “excuse me, I’m really going to need a mom to explain that to me.” I mean, if a mom’s not available, I guess we’ll settle for any woman – as long as they explain things really slowly. And, obviously, Twitter. Says Zelasko, “Sometimes as broadcasters we almost lose touch with the people that are actually out there watching and listening to the game…I’ll have an ear to the ground, just being a mom and being out there.”

*(This would not have happened in Brooklyn!)

Dodgers To Begin Female Broadcasts Tonight [LA Daily News]