Kids Get Big League Treatment

Except for the players, who are 11 and 12 years old, there is nothing little about Little League.

It’s a big business involving big money. The television exposure is massive -- and growing.

This is the third year of a six-year, $7-million television contract with ABC and ESPN.

And Disney, which owns those networks, reportedly contributed toward the construction of a $20-million stadium at Williamsport, Pa.

By the time ESPN and ABC conclude their Little League World Series coverage Sunday, there will have been 35 games televised, counting the regional championships on ESPN and ESPN2 leading up to the Series.

On Saturday, ESPN will televise the international championship game at noon and ABC will show the U.S. championship at 4:30 p.m.

On Sunday, ESPN has the consolation game at 10 a.m., ABC the championship game at 3:30 p.m.

This is the 40th anniversary of ABC’s first telecast of the Little League World Series championship game. Until 1982, when ESPN got involved, the championship was the only game televised.

The coverage has been growing rapidly in recent years. The 35 telecasts this year are 10 more than there were only two years ago.

Where is it going to end?

Some critics say that training 13 cameras on vulnerable youngsters in pressure situations is wrong.

That point can be argued.

Curt Gowdy Jr., ABC’s senior coordinating producer, said kids grow up faster these days and that they are oblivious to the cameras.

ABC and ESPN commentator Harold Reynolds said the kids love being on television.

“And there are grandparents who live across the country, who have never seen their grandson play, and they are thrilled to see him on television,” he said.

Good points, but what about zeroing in on a youngster who has just given up a game-winning home run or the one who has committed a crucial error?

Often, such setbacks generate tears.

There may be no crying in baseball, but there is crying in Little League baseball.

“We are not going to hang on a youngster who is emotional,” Gowdy said. “We’re going to be sensitive and give them their space.”

Play-by-play announcer Brent Musburger said, “Tears are a part of growing up.”

Said Reynolds, “What viewers don’t see is the balance. One minute a youngster is crying after losing a game, the next he is asking who is hosting the ice cream party.”

But the Little League World Series is no picnic, except maybe for the eventual winners. There is pressure to win, even though those who attend the event say the kids also have a lot of fun.

Does national television add to the pressure or to the fun? It’s a debate that may never be settled. The only thing certain is that television will continue to televise Little League baseball as long as people will watch and sponsors will pay.

Tennis News

USA Network has hired Anna Kournikova, who is out because of an injury, to work on its more than 95 hours of U.S. Open coverage. But instead of being a tennis commentator, she’ll do celebrity interviews and the like, which is more up her alley.... John McEnroe, CBS’ lead commentator, has signed a multiyear contract to continue with USA.

The popular “Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day” show, featuring musical stars and top names in tennis, will be on CBS on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. as a prelude to the Open, which begins Monday. This is the eighth year that the show, which pays tribute to the late Arthur Ashe, is being televised.

McEnroe and his brother Patrick, a CBS colleague, will ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Monday.... CBS’ late-night U.S. Open highlight shows, following David Letterman, begin Monday.

CBS decided months ago to move the start of its coverage of the USTA Pilot Pen final Saturday at New Haven, Conn., to an hour earlier to make room for golf. Problem is, CBS did not inform tournament officials until this week. To say the officials were angry is an understatement.... For Time Warner and Cox subscribers who get the Tennis Channel, “Center Court With Chris Myers” makes its debut Sunday at 4 p.m. Chris Myers’ first guest will be legendary tennis coach Robert Lansdorp, whose students have included Tracy Austin, Lindsay Davenport and Pete Sampras. The half-hour show will repeat at 9 p.m.

College Football

Former UCLA linebacker Jamir Miller is among the candidates to join Ernie Johnson on an expanded college football studio show on TBS, which televises Pacific 10 and Big 12 games. Other candidates are Keith Jackson, the former Oklahoma and NFL tight end, Bo Jackson, Brian Bosworth and former Fox announcer Ray Bentley.... Billy Ray Smith has been added to Fox Sports Net’s college football studio show. He will join new host Mike Goldberg and returning commentator Kellen Winslow.

Former studio analyst Craig James has returned to ESPN as a college football game commentator. He’ll work Saturday evening telecasts on ESPN2 with Dave Barnett and Bill Curry.... ESPN has hired former Heisman Trophy winner Andre Ware as a game commentator and paired him with play-by-play announcer Jeff Hullinger.... Former USC coach Larry Smith, who lives in Tempe, Ariz., is Fox Sports Net Arizona’s new commentator on Arizona football. Smith coached at Arizona before coming to USC.

Lofty Goal

Rich Perelman, author of “Unforgettable: The 100 Greatest Moments in Los Angeles Sports History,” and L.A. sports expert Bruce Tenen are planning to do a weekly one-hour show radio show on KPLS (830) beginning Oct. 5.

They say they will model the show, which will air Sundays at 10 a.m., after the late Jim Healy’s. Good luck. Others have tried to imitate Healy and failed.

Perelman and Tenen said they needed to line up a few more sponsors.

Boxing on Radio

Rich Marotta will revive boxing on radio, at least for one night, on Oct. 3 when he will provide blow-by-blow coverage of the Cedric Boswell-Jameel McCline fight in Las Vegas on his “Neutral Corner” show on XTRA (690 and 1150).

Short Waves

ESPN announced Thursday that the debut of the network’s first scripted dramatic series, “Playmakers,” will be shown without commercial interruption.... ESPN’s Dan Patrick, while continuing to do his daily radio show, which by the way is the best of its kind, next week begins anchoring the 3 p.m. edition of “SportsCenter.”

KSPN (710) has renewed its contract with the Kings and will remain the team’s flagship station through the 2005-06 season.... Fox Sports Net will televise 65 King games and 40 Mighty Duck games. Maybe someone should tell Fox Sports Net that the Ducks went to the Stanley Cup finals.

It was reported in this space last week that comedian and impressionist Frank Caliendo was the leading candidate to replace Jimmy Kimmel on Fox’s NFL pregame show. Thursday, Fox announced Caliendo as the guy.

Attention football fans: Lisa Guerrero is the host of a one-hour special on ABC on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. The special is titled “Monday Night’s Hungriest Players.” ... Two NFL shows produced by Players Inc., one featuring top rookies and the other focusing on unsung heroes, are being shown at various times on Fox Sports Net. The next two showings will be Saturday at 2 and 3 p.m.

Here’s more proof of the NFL’s popularity: Even though much of the Northeast had no power on Aug. 14, Fox’s first NFL exhibition game, Oakland at San Francisco, got an impressive 4.6 national Nielsen rating. That was higher than the 4.1 Fox drew for its first NFL exhibition game last year, Chicago at St. Louis, when the whole nation was able to watch.

Teenager Michelle Wie is competing in the Bay Mills Open, a men’s tournament on the Canadian Tour. The Golf Channel is televising the tournament.... MSNBC takes a behind-the-scenes look at horse racing in a one-hour special, “Thoroughbred: Stable to Stardom,” Sunday and 7 and 10 p.m.

In Closing

The good and bad about televising Little League baseball can be debated, but there is no debate about this: Putting the Olympic qualifying basketball games on pay per view is a really bad idea.

NBC won’t be charging people to watch in the Olympic tournament at Athens next year. So why charge money for a lesser tournament?