SI

Joe Buck Trended on Twitter During the All-Star Game Because Fans Missed Him

Also in Traina Thoughts: a new SI Media Podcast, a truly terrible MLB fan, an Aaron Judge interview that is so awkward and much more.

Jimmy Traina

1. I’ve always said that all sports fans are … off. Some sports fans are way off and some are just a little off, but we are all off in some way.

I point this out because after years of Joe Buck getting unfairly maligned on Twitter, the veteran play-by-play guy was trending all night Tuesday because he was gone and … fans actually missed him!

Buck had called the past 22 All-Star Games for Fox, but Tuesday night, Joe Davis stepped into the role since Buck is now an ESPN employee.

And fans were feeling sentimental.

Talk about being fickle! Talk about a case of absence making the heart grow fonder! Talk about a 180!

Many intelligent people realized long ago that bashing Joe Buck on Twitter was just a thing that everybody did to enjoy a pile-on, and the hate for Buck has gone down considerably over the years. But there is still a contingency that refuses to acknowledge that Buck is a great play-by-play caller.

Funny enough, many of the fans who admitted to missing Buck did so reluctantly and added statements like, “I had to admit this …” to their confession.

A lot of fans also realized that despite their feelings for Buck, they associate his voice with big events.

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If fans missed Buck calling a fake game, I look forward to seeing what they say when Buck is absent from the World Series this year for the first time since 1996.

2. Since this is a sloooooow time in sports, we dropped this week’s SI Media Podcast a day early, and it’s a good one. Peter Schrager from Fox Sports and Good Morning Football joins me for a conversation about a wide range of topics that include:

• The changes at Good Morning Football with Jamie Erdahl are set to take over for Kay Adams as host.

• How the pandemic affected the show and why August is such a big month for GMFB.

• How close Rams coach Sean McVay was to leaving the sidelines for a job with Amazon calling Thursday Night Football.

• Behind-the-scenes stories about Schrager attending McVay’s recent wedding.

• Reaction to the Zach Wilson story.

• Current NFL players who would make good broadcasters.

• ESPN’s docuseries on Derek Jeter.

• The death of the comedy genre in movies.

• Succession.

You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.

3. Shaming someone on the internet is a dicey thing to do, so we’re glad Blue Jays pitcher Kevin Gausman did it for us and called out this disgusting behavior exhibited by an overly aggressive autograph seeker.

4. If you like awkward interviews, you will love this moment between ESPN’s Marly Rivera and Yankee outfielder Aaron Judge.

5. Lane Kiffin makes $7.25 million a year as Ole Miss football coach, but he still isn’t a fan of his daughter going on a $700 shopping spree.

6. The LIV Tour is a hot topic, so WFAN morning host Gregg Giannotti gave us a taste of what it would sound like if former New York radio host Mike Francesa took the LIV money and did sports talk in Saudi Arabia.

7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: The ESPYS take place tonight so this is a good day to watch the memorable 1998 monologue from the late Norm MacDonald.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.

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Jimmy Traina
JIMMY TRAINA

Jimmy Traina is a staff writer and podcast host for Sports Illustrated. A 20-year veteran in the industry, he’s been covering the sports media landscape for seven years and writes a daily column, Traina Thoughts. Traina has hosted the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast since 2018, a show known for interviews with some of the most important and powerful people in sports media. He also was the creator and writer of SI’s Hot Clicks feature from 2007 to '13.

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