Tag Archives: Fox Sports

Dany Garcia & Dwayne Johnson Reveal United Football League Plans

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Dany Garcia is springing forward with a football merger…

The 55-year-old Cuban American businesswoman, professional bodybuilder and producer and her ex-husband Dwayne Johnson have revealed plans for the United Football League, the new spring pro football league born from the merger of the XFL and USFL.

Dany Garcia, Dwayne Johnson, United Football League, UFLDuring an appearance this morning on Fox’s NFL on Fox, Garcia and Johnson announced that the UFL’s debut season will begin March 30, 2024 with a game between the Arlington Renegades and Birmingham Stallions, the previous champions from each league.

More details are expected soon regarding teams and markets.

Last year was Johnson and Garcia’s only season as co-owners with RedBird Capital Partners of the resurrected XFL, which was competing with the USFL for NFL-offseason eyeballs.

The USFL itself was in its second season of its own revival, operating with a joint broadcast deal with both NBC and Fox, with the latter also holding a minority stake in the league.

A release today noted five UFL partners: former XFL owners Johnson, Garcia and RedBird’s Gerry Cardinale, Fox Sports (led by CEO Erik Shanks) and ESPN (led by chairman Jimmy Pitaro). ESPN was the XFL’s broadcast partner last season.

Russ Brandon, former president and CEO of the XFL, will be president and CEO of the UFL. Daryl Johnston, former USFL President of Football Operations, will lead football ops.

A promo logo suggests games will be played on ABC, ESPN, Fox and FS1.

The XFL and USFL originally announced their intent to merge in September after low-key seasons for each.

The USFL Championship game in July drew about 1.16 million viewers on NBC, while the XFL title game a few weeks later pulled in 1.43 million viewers on ABC.

Alex Rodriguez Joins the Team for ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball Broadcasts

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Alex Rodriguez is heading back to the diamond…

The 42-year-old Dominican-American former professional baseball player and New York Yankees star will join the ESPN team this season to work on Sunday Night Baseball telecasts.

Alex Rodriguez

A-Rod joins the broadcast team of Jessica Mendoza, Buster Olney and new play-by-play man Matt Vasgersian.

Rodriguez joined Fox Sports as a full-time MLB analyst in March 2017 after working as a guest for some telecasts — including the 2015 World Series. He’ll continue to work for Fox during the postseason. ESPN’s parent company, Disney, has agreed to acquire part of 21st Century Fox, including regional sports networks.

“I’m looking forward to this new chapter in my broadcasting career,” Rodriguez said in a statement. “It’s an exciting time in baseball and now I get that front row seat to tell that story every Sunday night on ESPN as well as calling my fourth post season on Fox where I started this journey.”

Rodriguez replaces analyst Aaron Boone, who was named manager of the New York Yankees this offseason.

Rodriguez last played in the majors in 2016, for the Yankees. He played 22 years in the big leagues, making 14 All-Star Games and winning the MVP three times. But his image took a hit when he admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs and was suspended for the entire 2014 season.

Rodriguez will also appear in and serve as executive producer of several ESPN specials, the network announced.

He has started to rebuild his image with his analysis of baseball on Fox broadcasts. He’s also remained in the spotlight because of his romance with Jennifer Lopez.

“I am incredibly excited to work with both Alex and Matt,” Mendoza said in the statement. “Matt has been a friend for a long time and someone whose work I’ve long admired. Alex’s achievements as a player speak for themselves, and I’ve been greatly impressed by the passion and dedication he has put into his broadcasting career. We’re going to have a lot of fun.”

Vasgersian is only the third voice of Sunday Night Baseball, following Jon Miller and Dan Shulman. The program is entering its 29th season.

“Jon and Dan set the bar super high for Sunday Night Baseball play-by-play, so it’s a real thrill for someone who still remembers his first minor league bus trip in 1991 to have a chair like this one,” Vasgersian said in the statement. “I know firsthand how passionate both Alex and Jessica are about baseball, and I can’t wait to get started with them.”

Rodriguez to Serve as Full-Time Analyst After Signing Multi-Year Deal with Fox Sports

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Alex Rodriguez is miking up…

The 41-year-old Dominican American former New York Yankees slugger has agreed to a multi-year deal to be a full-time analyst for Fox Sports.

Alex Rodriguez

Among other things, A-Rod—a 14-time All-Star and three-time American League Most Valuable Player—will break down the game for some Fox MLB Saturday games, serve as a feature reporter for Fox’s pre-game shows, and appear on FS1’s MLB Whiparound.

“Bringing Alex back was a priority of ours and we are fortunate to have him as a key contributor to our baseball coverage,” says Fox Sports President of Production & Executive Producer John Entz. “His potential is off the charts and he’s been an incredibly quick learner in the world of television. He even understands the complexities of sales units.”

Major League Baseball suspended A-Rod for the 2014 season after it was revealed that he used performance enhancing drugs between 2000 and 2003, and received human growth hormone treatments in 2013.

This is the last year of his decade-long $275 million contract with the Yankees. The team let him go as a player last August, after a prolonged slump, although it remained on the hook for his contract.

But his encyclopedic knowledge of the game made him an impressive analyst in guest stints on-air analyzing the 2015 World Series and the 2016 postseason.

He ended his playing career as the game’s leading grand-slam hitter with 25 in 2,784 games. He’s also the No. 4 home run hitter, with 696, as well as No. 20 in hits with 3,115, and No. 3 in runs batted in with 2,086.

Rodriguez played with the Seattle Mariners and the Texas Rangers prior to joining the Yankees in 2004.

Romo Nearing Two Year, $15M Deal with the San Francisco Giants

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Sergio Romo isn’t planning to leave San Francisco…

The 31-year-old Mexican-American professional baseball relief pitcher is reportedly finalizing a two-year, $15 million deal with the San Francisco Giants, according to ESPN.

Sergio Romo

Romo could earn an additional $1 million in bonuses for games finished, a source tells ESPN.

His pending deal with the reigning World Series champions was reported earlier Wednesday by Fox Sports.

Romo is 31-21 with a 2.58 ERA over seven seasons with the Giants. He recorded 38 saves in 2013 and saved 23 games last season. After Romo blew three saves in five opportunities in late June, Santiago Casilla replaced him in the closer role.

The New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers reportedly had expressed interest in Romo as a free agent this offseason.

Romo pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings in the World Series for the Giants and is 3-1 with a 2.11 ERA and four saves in 25 career postseason appearances, helping San Francisco win three World Series championships.