Yesterday, WFAN’s Mike Francesa discussed how Mets broadcasters Howie Rose and Gary Cohen were “out of line” during this past weekend’s Subway Series.
Francesa said that it’s great that the Mets have fans as announcers, but that they sometimes take it too far in rooting for their team, especially against the Yankees.
Frankly, I love that Rose and Cohen are as die-hard of Mets fans as I am. Yes, I agree that there should be unbiased announcing if the opposing team wins or hits a home run. However, I love the excitement when we hear “It’s Outta Here!” from Cohen or “Put It in the Books” from Rose.
Is it so bad for a fan of the team to be an announcer?
I could see how a Yankees fan would be upset after listening to the Mets broadcast from the weekend. Rose talked about Nick Swisher’s antics after the back-to-back-to-back home runs, and Cohen was not shy about saying that Russell Martin’s first home run was a cheap Yankee Stadium homer.
Gary Cohen and Kevin Burkhardt
But here’s the thing: If Yankee fans are upset about it, go listen to John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman on 880. That’s their radio broadcast anyway. Rather than complain about the Mets broadcasters, Yankees fans should have enough to complain about with that interesting duo.
The whole point of radio is to attract an audience. Die-hard Mets fans enjoy Rose and
Cohen because they believe that the announcers are in the same boat. When a Met gets a clutch hit, it’s made that much more special when Rose or Cohen presents the call.Along the same lines, when the Mets blow a save or suffer a heartbreaking defeat—not too uncommon in our team’s history—Rose and Cohen are right their with the fanbase suffering.It’s not like they show up to work, call the game and say goodbye. These guys genuinely care about what they do, and it shows in their passion for the team.
While other teams or fanbases may have a problem with what Rose and Cohen are doing in the booth, they should simply be worried about what Mets fans think. Everyone I know loves them, and I’m sure the vast majority of Mets fans would agree.
