John Smoltz to replace Tom Verducci and Harold Reynolds during Fox’s baseball coverage
Former pitcher John Smoltz speaks to the media in Atlanta after his election to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Jan. 6.
Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz apparently made the most of what amounted to an impromptu audition for a spot in the booth during Fox’s World Series coverage in the fall.
The pitcher-turned-commentator will join play-by-play man Joe Buck as the network’s lead baseball broadcast team, replacing Tom Verducci and Harold Reynolds, Fox announced Tuesday.
The New York Daily News was first to report the news Tuesday morning.
When Fox’s coverage of Game 1 of this year’s World Series between the Kansas City Royals and New York Mets cut out due to power loss in the broadcast truck, U.S. viewers were switched over to the MLB International feed, which featured Smoltz as commentator alongside play-by-play man Matt Vasgersian.
Eventually, the trio of Buck, Verducci and Reynolds replaced Smoltz and Vasgersian in the international booth. But now Smoltz will be replacing Verducci and Reynolds as Fox attempts to switch back to a two-man booth after experimenting with three men the last two seasons.
Verducci and Reynolds are discussing different roles with Fox, network spokesman Dan Bell said.
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