Karros Conflicted On Manny’s Return

FOX SPORTS NOTES, QUOTES & ANECDOTES

MLB on FOX Celebrates the 4^th of July with Dodgers/Padres, Mets/Phillies and Tigers/Twins

Karros Conflicted On Manny’s Return

Rosenthal To Answer Viewer Questions During 2009 MLB All-Star Game Via Twitter

FOX SPORTS JULY 4^th SPECIAL FROM U.S. BIRTHPLACE – This Saturday at 4:00 PM ET, the FOX SATURDAY BASEBALL GAME OF THE WEEK spends Fourth of July in historic Philadelphia as Chase Utley and the World Champion Phillies welcome David Wright and the Mets. NL West rivals meet as the team with the NL’s best record, the Dodgers, take on Adrian Gonzalez and the Padres in San Diego. Also, Joe Mauer and the hard-hitting Twins host Miguel Cabrera and the homer-happy Tigers. This week, the pregame show originates live from Petco Park in San Diego with host Chris Rose.  Once game action begins, Rose joins the game crew of Dick Stockton, Eric Karros and Ken Rosenthal as a field reporter.  For instant updates during the week and games from the entire MLB on FOX crew, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/MLBONFOX.

GAME PLAY-BY-PLAY/ANALYST COV.

Los Angeles Dodgers at San Diego Padres                Dick Stockton, Eric Karros                                             46%

& Ken Rosenthal

Petco Park – San Diego, CA

MARKETS INCLUDE: Albuquerque, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Memphis, Milwaukee, Nashville, New Orleans, Oklahoma City, Phoenix, Portland, Providence, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Tulsa

Probable Pitchers: Randy Wolf, LHP (3-3, 3.61 ERA) vs. Josh Geer, RHP (1-3, 5.68 ERA)

New York Mets at Philadelphia Phillies                        Kenny Albert & Tim McCarver                                        42%

Citizens Bank Park – Philadelphia, PA

MARKETS INCLUDE: Atlanta, Baltimore, Birmingham, Buffalo, Charlotte, Columbus, Dayton, Fort Myers, Greensboro, Greenville, Hartford, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Knoxville, Louisville, Miami, New York, Norfolk, Orlando, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Richmond, Tampa, Washington, West Palm Beach

Probable Pitchers: Fernando Nieve, RHP (3-1, 2.25 ERA) vs. TBA

Detroit Tigers at Minnesota Twins                                Dick Bremer & Mark Grace                                            11%

Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome – Minneapolis, MN

MARKETS INCLUDE: Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Minneapolis

Probable Pitchers:  Edwin Jackson, RHP (6-4, 2.49 ERA) vs. Francisco Liriano. LHP (4-8, 5.62 ERA)

KARROS CONFLICTED ABOUT MANNY’S RETURN – On Saturday, former Dodger and MLB on FOX commentator Eric Karros, joins Dick Stockton in the booth in San Diego as the NL best Dodgers take on their division rivals, the Padres.  Controversial Dodger slugger Manny Ramirez, who Karros currently describes as both an attraction and a major disappointment, will make his series debut on the heels of his 50-game suspension for testing positive for performance enhancing drugs.  “On Friday I’m going to the game and looking forward to watching him hit again and seeing the energy as he is back in the line-up.  On Saturday, as I work in the booth as a former player, I’m disappointed.  His action perpetuates the myth that every player in the 90′s and early 2000′s cheated.  It adds fuel to guilty until proven innocent.”

MLB ON FOX PLANS EXTENSIVE COVERAGE VIA TWEETS FROM ST. LOUIS – As communication via Twitter continues to grow, MLB on FOX plans extensive coverage of the 80^th MLB All-Star Game via the Internet-driven messaging service.  FOX Sports’ coverage of the Mid-Summer Classic begins at 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, July 14, live from Busch Stadium in St. Louis.  In addition to “tweets” generated by the MLB on FOX on-air team and FOXSports.com in the days and hours leading up sports’ most-popular all-star event, MLB on FOX reporter and FOXSports.com MLB Insider extraordinaire Ken Rosenthal answers Twitter-submitted questions from fans as the game progresses.

BOOGITY! BOOGITY! BOOGITY! DW NOMINATED FOR NASCAR HALL OF FAME – NASCAR on FOX mainstay and three-time NASCAR Champion Darrell Waltrip is among the first nominees vying for a spot in the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s inaugural class, it was announced today on NASCAR.com.  Long before flourishing in his current role as the cornerstone of NASCAR on FOX’s broadcast team, Waltrip became one of the sport’s most legendary drivers recording a total of 84 career wins (third all-time) and was Winston Cup Champion in 1981, 1982 and 1985. “My whole career, I’ve always thought it was cool that other big league sports would refer to their guys as ‘Hall of Famers,’” said Waltrip from his home in Franklin, TN.  “I hoped that one day someone would refer to me that way.  It’s the greatest honor a driver can receive, to be in the NASCAR Hall of Fame. It means you must have been pretty good at what you do.  I am humbled and excited that my name would be under consideration for a spot in the Hall.”

Additional nominees will be identified tomorrow and Thursday, July 2, before the rest are announced Thursday night during an hour-long special on SPEED at 8:00 PM ET.

– FOX SPORTS -