Late Thursday Night Linx

Ok, I wasn’t going to provide an update, but since I have no schedule, why not?

First, Neil Best of Newsday has found out a bit more on MLB punishing ESPN for breaking the All-Star Game announcement embargo while TBS was doing it on the official MLB show on Sunday. He got an update late Thursday afternoon and while ESPN wouldn’t own up to it, the Alleged Worldwide Leader’s reporters will not have a set inside AT&T Park as it usually does as a network partner, but reporters will have to do stand-ups or have the set outside the park. As someone who has been in the news business as a reporter, when someone tells you there’s an embargo, you don’t go and break it in the guise of breaking news. You adhere to it because you’ve been asked and so you do. This is part of ESPN’s arrogance as it thinks it’s the Sports almighty. I really think ESPN has to be knocked down a peg.

The Sports Media Watch blog suggests that with all of the Dan Patrick Leaving ESPN speculation, he might be heading to NBC to pair up with Keith Olbermann on Football Night in America. Olbermann is already joining the show to add some much needed energy. Having Patrick there would reunite him with Keithy on TV and give NBC’s show some juice. That would leave Bob Costas out in the loop, but while he’s been a very good host in MLB and the Olympics for NBC, the new Football Night in America isn’t what he’s cut out for, strangely.

Also from the Sports Media Watch blog, ESPN plans to overhype …. errrrrrrr…. promote David Beckham’s first game with the MLS’ Los Angeles Galaxy on July 21st.

Variety reports on NBC’s renewal of rights to Wimbledon, including what? Yes, digital rights. The Hollywood Reporter’s Paul Gough has his version of the story and ESPN looks like it will renew its deal as well, but nothing official as of yet.

Gough also reports on MLB’s TV partners planning for Barry Bonds’ chase of the all-time home run record.

And a very good column in the OBR or The Orange and Brown Report, which is devoted to my favorite NFL team, the Cleveland Browns, about the danger of blogs and cyberjournalists selling out, plus more on the silly NFL policy restricting independent websites to soundbites totaling no more than 45 seconds a day and not being made available for more than 24 hours. This is one of the dumbest policies I have seen, along the lines of restricting local TV stations from being on the sidelines of games recording game action for highlights on news programs. That policy was relaxed for this coming season. I’m hoping after negative media and blog backlash, this new policy will also be relaxed.

NBC Sports is busy in London with Wimbledon this week, but it’s also doing another USGA event, the U.S. Senior Open, from Wisconsin.

The New Haven (CT)Register’s David Borges has a story on NESN director Mike Narracci who does great work in calling the shots on Red Sox TV games.

We’ll have lots of Friday links in the morning. For now, enjoy the links tonight.