I cant take much more Thom Brennaman

[Griffey012]

Does he drive anyone else nuts with his nonstop negativity during a game in which the reds are losing. He gets stuck on a topic, usually going on and on about a player, a move, or some bonehead play and will not drop it. It is depressing enough watching the reds get blown out, but he just makes it unbearable to watch.

I feel bad for Grande, at least he tries to look at the bright side of things sometimes. After watching today an listening to Thom I would guess the reds had a worse record than the nationals.

[GIDP]

Nah I like Thom because he know hes broadcasting the Reds and not telling us about how great some guy on the other teams little sister is at ping pong or something.

[Griffey012]

Nah I like Thom because he know hes broadcasting the Reds and not telling us about how great some guy on the other teams little sister is at ping pong or something.

Haha, on a day like today I would almost rather forget I was watching the reds though

[GIDP]

Haha, on a day like today I would almost rather forget I was watching the reds though

just turn it off then. Why candy coat it, is Grande really going to make you forget the score is 150 - 1? If anything he would just be ticking me off reminding me about the most useless info.

[Griffey012]

just turn it off then. Why candy coat it, is Grande really going to make you forget the score is 150 - 1? If anything he would just be ticking me off reminding me about the most useless info.

I wasn't applauding Grande, I simply stated at least he looks at some positives sometimes. Everything about Thom's nature from what he talks about to the tone of voice is just depressing on long days. And he get stuck on a topic for innings at a time, such as today when talking about trading for a Holiday type he was reiterating his same points over at least an inning before i shut it off.

[bgwilly31]

So you want somebody to throw sprinkles on a turd>?

[GIDP]

I wasn't applauding Grande, I simply stated at least he looks at some positives sometimes. Everything about Thom's nature from what he talks about to the tone of voice is just depressing on long days. And he get stuck on a topic for innings at a time, such as today when talking about trading for a Holiday type he was reiterating his same points over at least an inning before i shut it off.

Id still rather listen to him talk about how we will never sign Holliday than George telling us how great another city is.

[redsfanmia]

Like father like son. I absolutey can not listen when it Thom and Franchester on the radio side.

[lidspinner]

I love him...and his dad....I dont need someone to cheer me up, I am an adult...I dont need someone to hold my hand while I make an opinion about the reds.....I want someone to call a spade a spade and let me see the game the way the game is being played. Thom and Dad both speak highly when the reds are playing great baseball. They are not homers, they call it like it is...Its OK to dislike him because he sounds stupid or because he is whiny or because he gets stuck on a topic..I so get ya there, but he is only speaking what the majority of us are thinking.

[PhillipsHead]

I love him...and his dad....I dont need someone to cheer me up, I am an adult...I dont need someone to hold my hand while I make an opinion about the reds.....I want someone to call a spade a spade and let me see the game the way the game is being played. Thom and Dad both speak highly when the reds are playing great baseball. They are not homers, they call it like it is...Its OK to dislike him because he sounds stupid or because he is whiny or because he gets stuck on a topic..I so get ya there, but he is only speaking what the majority of us are thinking.

Excellent post.

My thoughts exactly...

Quit being babies, they are excellent announcers. If you want sugar coating bull****, change it to WGN and watch that garbage. I want an announcer who tells me the truth -- even when it's bad...

[Griffey012]

When I mentioned Grande at least looks at the positives sometimes I am not referring to trying to lift my spirits during an 10-1 loss, its that if someone makes a nice play in the field he will talk about it being a nice play regardless of the situation. Thom will basically just say "and Bruce makes the diving stab" and then get back onto some rant about how much we suck and can't compete with this team when just the day before he is talking about how this team competes and can make things interesting.

Its kinda like the old quote about how in baseball you can never get to high and never get too low, Thom just seems like he gets way to low. I love him during 10-1 victories and close wins and losses, but not a fan of him during a blowout loss.

[GIDP]

The differnce between George and Thom is this
George
A player on the other team got a hit in an 0-2 pitch because hes a great player and it was a great AB.
Thom
A player got a hit because it was a ball right down the middle on a 0-2 strike count and was an awful pitch.

George never says anything negative about a player he just says the other player did something great.

Both can be annoying I think a large majority can handle someone telling us the truth.

[Griffey012]

The differnce between George and Thom is this
George
A player on the other team got a hit in an 0-2 pitch because hes a great player and it was a great AB.
Thom
A player got a hit because it was a ball right down the middle on a 0-2 strike count and was an awful pitch.

George never says anything negative about a player he just says the other player did something great.

Both can be annoying I think a large majority can handle someone telling us the truth.

I guess I am missing where I said I don't like Thom because he will tell the truth. That was not at all the point I was making.

[GIDP]

I guess I am missing where I said I don't like Thom because he will tell the truth. That was not at all the point I was making.

Nah I understand what you are saying its just he tends to be negative when negative things happen. He can roll on it for a while but hes also trying to appeal to a large audience not fans who know more about the game than the average fan. He tries to kill time at times because the game is dragging on or tries to hit a subject that some fans might want to know just so they can get some information out there.

[Griffey012]

Nah I understand what you are saying its just he tends to be negative when negative things happen. He can roll on it for a while but hes also trying to appeal to a large audience not fans who know more about the game than the average fan. He tries to kill time at times because the game is dragging on or tries to hit a subject that some fans might want to know just so they can get some information out there.

Looking at it from that perspective makes more sense. It's hard to remember that not everyone watching the broadcast is constantly breathing reds baseball from rookie ball to the bigs and every trade rumor real or completely fake.

[mroby85]

I really have no gripes with any of their announcers, I think they're all pretty good. Welsh is the least annoying, and Brantley is probably the most in my opinion. Grande and Thom just fall somewhere in between for me, but I still like both.

[FlightRick]

Quit being babies, they are excellent announcers.

I second (or, given the way this thread has gone, eleventh) the "quit being babies" part, I guess. Nothing about being a "true fan" requires one to also be oblivious or ignorant. When good stuff happens: feel good. But when bad stuff happens: this ain't the remedial class, nobody rode the short bus to get to the stadium, and there are no Gold-Stars-For-All handed out based on effort. So talk about it. Be upset about it.

But: don't go overboard about it. This is still a game, not international political intrigue.

And that's where I have a problem with the "excellent announcers" part. Marty's actually cool on this front (he's got more of a jaded sense of resignation to him, which I can relate to), but Thom gets serious minus-points on the "excellent announcer" scorecard for being a shrill hyperbole-spewer.

I don't quite have the wordsmithing capabilities to describe it accurately, but at least once per game, Thom just gets that one tone to his voice, and you have no choice but to brace for The Suck. I guess maybe I could say it usually starts with "You know [Dad/Chris/Cowboy]...." but that'd be the best I could do by way of tipping you off.

Then once it starts, it could last just the half-inning, or it could linger for 20 minutes. He just gets very shout-y and indignant over something that basically amounts to him stating the obvious. In a very loud voice. Repeatedly and with no attempt at genuine insight or illumination beyond the self-apparent truth he's hammering upon. Which is too bad, because if he just stated his point and handed it off to Brantley or Welsh to expand upon briefly (given their experiences), he'd actually be facilitating an interesting broadcast.

That's no fun. It's BAD announcing, if you ask me. And it's actually kind of hacky. If I wanted to listen to moronic sports-talk-radio where arguments are won by decibels and repetitiveness, I'd -- you know? -- listen to sports-talk-radio.


Rick

[CentralKYRedfan]

Folks, Marty Brennaman is an absolute broadcasting giant that tells it like it is. In that sense, he's very similar to former Kentucky play-by-play man Cawood Ledford. Ledford was the biggest Kentucky fan in the world, but if they played poorly, he lit into them.

Thom appears to be the exact same way and I love it. He was preaching the truth today when he was dogging Arroyo. Arroyo is getting pounded like Eric Milton each time out. At this point, I say stretch Massett out and let him start. Put Arroyo in the long relief role.

[Griffey012]

I second (or, given the way this thread has gone, eleventh) the "quit being babies" part, I guess. Nothing about being a "true fan" requires one to also be oblivious or ignorant. When good stuff happens: feel good. But when bad stuff happens: this ain't the remedial class, nobody rode the short bus to get to the stadium, and there are no Gold-Stars-For-All handed out based on effort. So talk about it. Be upset about it.

But: don't go overboard about it. This is still a game, not international political intrigue.

And that's where I have a problem with the "excellent announcers" part. Marty's actually cool on this front (he's got more of a jaded sense of resignation to him, which I can relate to), but Thom gets serious minus-points on the "excellent announcer" scorecard for being a shrill hyperbole-spewer.

I don't quite have the wordsmithing capabilities to describe it accurately, but at least once per game, Thom just gets that one tone to his voice, and you have no choice but to brace for The Suck. I guess maybe I could say it usually starts with "You know [Dad/Chris/Cowboy]...." but that'd be the best I could do by way of tipping you off.

Then once it starts, it could last just the half-inning, or it could linger for 20 minutes. He just gets very shout-y and indignant over something that basically amounts to him stating the obvious. In a very loud voice. Repeatedly and with no attempt at genuine insight or illumination beyond the self-apparent truth he's hammering upon. Which is too bad, because if he just stated his point and handed it off to Brantley or Welsh to expand upon briefly (given their experiences), he'd actually be facilitating an interesting broadcast.

That's no fun. It's BAD announcing, if you ask me. And it's actually kind of hacky. If I wanted to listen to moronic sports-talk-radio where arguments are won by decibels and repetitiveness, I'd -- you know? -- listen to sports-talk-radio.


Rick

You hit the nail on the head, that is exactly the scenario I was originally trying to describe, it just drives me up a wall to sit and listen to it to where now i just shut it off.

[Maldez]

I think Thom prides himself, like his dad, in having the backbone to bash the Reds, in spite of getting a paycheck from them. I have no problem with that in small doses when needed, but they both go overboard once they get going and it just ends up being an obnoxious rant.

Case in point was today's game against the Cards, when the Reds had runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out. Thom commences to launch into his spiel:

"I've said it time, and time and time again.....the Reds are simply awful when it comes to scoring runs with a man on third and less than two out......blah-blah-blah.....yammer-yammer-yammer....."

I know this is likely to be another long rant, so I hit the Mute button and wait 30 seconds.

"......are the 4th worst team in the National Lea......"

MUTE

Wait 30 seconds.


"......can not expect to win when time after time af......"

MUTE

Wait 30 seconds.

"......continue to say it until we start to see some semblance of improvement in this depart...."

MUTE

Change channels

[Orodle]

I'd rather listen to him then listen to Grande act like things are still all well even when getting whipped.

[BRM13]

I really have no gripes with any of their announcers, I think they're all pretty good. Welsh is the least annoying, and Brantley is probably the most in my opinion. Grande and Thom just fall somewhere in between for me, but I still like both.

I agree, especially Brantley. I can barely listen to him when he has the main play by play. I think Marty really brings out the worst in him sometimes, too. It's as if Marty keeps telling him during commercial breaks, 'we aren't objective if we aren't ripping somebody.'

[BRM13]

just turn it off then. Why candy coat it, is Grande really going to make you forget the score is 150 - 1? If anything he would just be ticking me off reminding me about the most useless info.

You guys have to learn how to appreciate George. :D He's terminally nice. When he can't say something good about the Reds he starts saying something good about something (some restaurant, hotel, etc) or someone (any great, scrappy, veteran ballplayer for example) else. That's his version of ripping the Reds--not talking about them.

Marty and Thom take a more direct approach. Both roads get you to the same place. When EE tosses one in the front row Marty and Thom launch into a 3 inning rant about it. George starts talking about the how the guy hustled out of the box. To a Reds media aficionado such as myself ;) I know George is telling Chris Welsh and the rest of us EE sucks so bad he can't say anything about him without violating the no-negativity gene he was born with.

I actually prefer Marty and Thom's way, but as the OP noted, it does get tiresome after a while.

[LouisvilleCARDS]

The funny thing is, I don't think Thom or Marty even are ever unfair. When things are going well, they call it that way. When they're not, they're not.

Unfortunately for Reds fans, we have a franchise that hasn't had a winning record in 9 years, and hasn't made the playoffs in 15. Which side of the coin do you think we've had more of?

This past series, I don't know how many times I heard Thom praise the team's ability to come back after adversity. How many times they "get off the mat." Listening to the final game against Arizona, nothing but praise from both Thom and Marty about the way Votto and Bruce had played.

So really, I don't see where this is coming from. You listen to what you WANT to listen to. Things like that being said, you obviously selectively ignore. Ironically, the fact you focus on the negative parts of their commentating and then come here and be negative about it, says more about you than them.

[Stormy Weathers]

I agree Thom is horrible. I cant stand listening to him. It isnt just because he is negative because when Marty does it i dont dislike it. There is just something about thom going on and on and on about the same thing. He nags about something negative all game long like a mom does their child. Marty doesnt live on the same topic the whole time.

[bleedsred]

Thom didn't say anything worse than I did about Bronson, Thank God I'm not an announcer...I would have lost my job today with his performance combined with EE's def...errrr...attempt at fielding a baseball.

[Moosie52]

Thom pontificates.

[CySeymour]

To me, Thom isn't natural. He seems very canned in his approach. He seems to use this fake, announcers voice and goes out of his way to over pronounce words.

[JoeyGears76]

It's better than GG's never-ending love affair with St. Louis. Plus TB doesn't repeat every piece of information during every game of a series. It's almost like GG writes a script for the first game and repeats it for every game of the series.

[Plus Plus]

I would much rather hear that someone is playing like trash when it is true than hear that they are just having bad luck or missing a tiny bit or whatever. Thom is fine because he will call players out for sucking, just like Marty will. I don't want to hear a terrible baserunning error having excuses made for it- I want to hear it as it happened.

George only frustrates me when the Reds play the Cardinals, for reasons that do not need to be explained.

[improbus]

What bothers me about Thom isn't the negativity, it is when he plays manager in the press-box. Whenever he is calling games with Chris, I can just see Welsh rolling his eyes when Thom gets started. You are and announcer, not a manager, Thom.

[Griffey012]

So I paid extra attention to Grande tonight during a close game, and geez I understand now. He spent half the game talking about cheesesteaks and JTMs, and how they were better. I guess I have been good at tuning him out.

Either way I suppose I cant really complain with what we have, they compliment each other well and both have their pros and cons.

[LouisvilleCARDS]

Also Grande seems to casually bring up people that only he and Chris know in crappy jokes that Chris doesn't seem to think much of.

"Hey if so and so was, I'm sure he would!" That is, referring to some random FSN employee or something that no one knows who the hell is.

He also is hokey as heck. Last night on their text poll, he said he was voting for Marty like 3 times. WE GET IT GEORGE. LOL.

[CRedsLarkin11]

I guess I see both sides here. Grande is one of the most annoying announcers I have ever heard. He didn't use to bother me but after years of watching him I can hardly stand him. All the sayings...the oh shucks persona, LouisvilleCARDS even pointed out his stories that involve only people that work at FSN know, I always just shake my head when he does that, everyone is a great hitter and pitcher, even guys with 6 ERA's and .157 batting averages, just some bad luck at this level, you know the rest

I liked Thom at first and I think he is one of those guys that you have to take the good with the bad...when he actually is announcing, he's decent (he tends to assume something is going to happen before it does which is annoying... " and there's a 6-4-3 double play, my goodness...oh, he beat out the throw") but when he's goes on these tirades about players swinging at the first pitch it just annoys me to no end. He acts like he is the man when it comes to baseball like he is a hall of fame player. Sometimes he tells it the way it is, which is good because Grande never will but I don't want to hear about why your philosophy on pitch selection and fielding ground balls is better than professional baseball players.

[reds77]

I'm fine with Thom, but mark me down for the anti-Grande list. I'm just glad I don't have to hear Grande go on and on anymore about the Ruthian like play of one Jim Edmonds.

[GIDP]

My problem with george is 1 thing and one thing only. He seems to have no understand of which team hes calling the game for.

Howard hit a homer tonight and he went into this big long speech about how great Howard is, and how great he does in batting practice.

Then Phillips hit one and all he pretty much said was "its gooooooooonnnneee". Then silence, until the next batter came up.

I dont mind George calling the game but he candy coats it all so much that if the reds are doing bad hes pretty much flat out cheering for the other team.

[bounty37h]

Does he drive anyone else nuts with his nonstop negativity during a game in which the reds are losing. He gets stuck on a topic, usually going on and on about a player, a move, or some bonehead play and will not drop it. It is depressing enough watching the reds get blown out, but he just makes it unbearable to watch.

I feel bad for Grande, at least he tries to look at the bright side of things sometimes. After watching today an listening to Thom I would guess the reds had a worse record than the nationals.

Haha, irony, a negative post complaining about negativity.

[bounty37h]

I love him...and his dad....I dont need someone to cheer me up, I am an adult...I dont need someone to hold my hand while I make an opinion about the reds.....I want someone to call a spade a spade and let me see the game the way the game is being played. Thom and Dad both speak highly when the reds are playing great baseball. They are not homers, they call it like it is...Its OK to dislike him because he sounds stupid or because he is whiny or because he gets stuck on a topic..I so get ya there, but he is only speaking what the majority of us are thinking.

I am not lucky enough to listen to them down here, but we have a similar situation, Woody Durham, the Voice of the Tar Heels. Many think he is old, negative, etc, but when it boils down he is a fan, but keeps it real and says what he see's, what I want out of someone broadcasting a game, whether its good or bad.

[arkimadee]

Is it me or is Thom hitting nerves more and more each game. All he does is complain about EVERYTHING. I hate how he disputes EVERY questionable strike call. The umpires are paid pretty good and are right most of the time. But if they are not Thom goes on about it for the next two batters. You're complaining isn't going to change anything! Just call the darn game!

[cbowen2112]

I don't mind the complaints, when it costs the Reds runs.

[bgwilly31]

Thom is the man.

I doubt your going to get much love from this crowd.

[BigRed75]

Dislike both Brennaman's...always have and always will. The only person worth listening to either on the radio or on the TV is Chris Welsh. Outside of his goofy smiles, Chris does an amazing job.

[arkimadee]

I like Thom as an announer. I just hate when he plays umpire for every play. We are lucky to have the guy. I just get in a complaining mood when the reds are losing!!

[Vottomatic]

I'm in the minority. I like Brantley. He has good insight especially when it comes to pitchers.

[RedLakerFan24]

I Like Thom, i dont know why?

[NorrisHopper30]

Thom is awesome

[sabometrics]

I was never a fan of Grande and his always look on the bright side of everything way of casting each game. Thom can be abrasive at times but I like the fact that he isn't afraid to call managers, umpires, or whoever else into question. Of course his approach leads to him being wrong sometimes, but its refreshing that he actually brings those questions to mind instead of not mentioning them at all.

He and his old man have always had that somewhat divisive way of calling games and it's a matter of personal taste. Personally I enjoy having that critical voice to listen to and validate concerns/gripes we're all thinking about at times during games.

[redlegs2370]

I think that Thom is, presently, the best play-by-play in all of sports. He studies the game, players and not to mention has an outstanding voice. He may ruffle some feathers but personally I like it. I even think he has brought out the best in Chris Welsh, because he will ask why questions and Chris will try to explain to the fan why a pitcher may have thrown this pitch or a batter did something, etc..

As a Reds fan I can't express how lucky we are to have him announcing the majority of our games!

[DaytonFlyer]

Yeah, I definitely think Thom and Welsh are the best TV combo. I like Brantley too, but his pbp on radio makes my ears bleed.

[BigPoppa]

Thom and Marty could say the exact same words, in the exact same tone, about the exact same situation.

With Thom - it would annoy and frustrate me

With Marty - I would be "heck yeah, you tell 'em Marty !"

I don't know why the disconnect.

[jhc2010]

The umpires are paid pretty good and are right most of the time. But if they are not Thom goes on about it for the next two batters. You're complaining isn't going to change anything! Just call the darn game!He has had a pretty good case every time.

Why not talk about it when everyone watching is thinking about it?

[mroby85]

He has had a pretty good case every time.

Why not talk about it when everyone watching is thinking about it?

I agree, just as the umpires are paid to make the calls he's paid to announce/analyze the game, and that is part of the game. I have no issue with it, and have agreed with him most times. I like both Marty and Thom.

[bgwilly31]

Also agreed. if i was just listenign to the game. I would like to know whether or not the last pitch was a questionable call or not.

Other than just ignoring it.

Disputing umpires judgements are a part of a baseball.

[bounty37h]

Not to mention it must be hard to announce that many games and keep coming up with interesting/relevent stuff to talk about during such a long game as baseball, with lots of dead time in there.

[markymark69]

Didn't this board bang the heck out of George Grande because he was way too positive? Now Thom is going get banged for being negative? Gotta love message boards!

[redsfan_12]

I like listening to THom. Grande on the other hand...

[mroby85]

Didn't this board bang the heck out of George Grande because he was way too positive? Now Thom is going get banged for being negative? Gotta love message boards!

I prefer some negativity, instead of all sunshine and rainbows all the time. When Mike Lincoln comes into the game, I don't care to hear about how amazing his curveball is all the time, i'd prefer them to discuss his pathetic results. I'm not saying to be negative all the time, or positive all the time, I like some balance. When I listen to Thom I don't feel like everything he says is negative, he seems to say a lot of positive things to me, just some negative things as well.

[roby]

I think we are all spoiled with some of the best announcers in baseball...Thom and Marty being right at the top. You can't please everybody all the time. But these guys are GOOD!

[redsfan_12]

I think we are all spoiled with some of the best announcers in baseball...Thom and Marty being right at the top. You can't please everybody all the time. But these guys are GOOD!

+1

[Jerome]

There are two types of announcer: Vin Scully and everyone else.

[ukwazoo]

He is ultra-negative, but then again, Marty has gotten that way, as well. That being said, can you blame them? This organization is god-awful. 15 years without a playoff appearance is unbelievably horrible.

The guy that is the hardest for me to listen to is Jeff Brantley. The dude talks directly through his nose, a la Skip Caray. Only Caray didn't have that annoying twang to go along with it.