Reynolds Fired

[countdorkula]

Harold Reynolds is a classy guy, and has a great personality. He was always one of my favorites on espn. He will be missed.

[dfwabel]

Deadspin.com reports that they've had multiple emails saying the word in Bristol is sexual harrassment.

They say it's been occuring with females around the studio for some time, he's been warned, and one finally turned him in on it.

Deadspin doesn't report this with full confidence, but they do say it's the only explaination they've gotten from anyone and a bunch of people who were hearing the rumblings out of Bristol were the ones that emailed them.

And then there's the more severe possibility as seen on forums but not on deadspin that he sexually harrassed and perhaps date-raped Bonnie Bernstein.

Reynolds is married with at least one new child.

I always like to give guys the benefit of the doubt and believe the good side until there's lots of evidence to prove the bad. For now I'll hold out on believing the harrassment charges, but it is possible.

I have heard the same issue, sexual harrassment. I hvae a friend who is on the ESPN Radio side, but they are not commenting about it. Da#nit! I wish him the best, but if it is true, then I feel sorry for him, Unwanted advances are still unwanted. Imagine if it was your daughter.

Remember, Bonnie just came back to ESPN this month, so if it involved her, and now it is surely spectulative, HR may have been warned before. Especially if his termination is this shocking. She was at CBS for 8 years before she left last year to start consulting (guess those checks were smaller than expected).

Regardless, the "Bristol Campus" has long been a bastion for maleness and poor behavior. Ironically, the stroies you hear most involve the African-American talent. Mike Tirico was suspended for a long period for harrassment before anchoring ABC's golf coverage.

ESPN: The Uncensored History

Amazon.com page for ESPN:The Uncensored History

[Coast2CoastAM2006]

as far as the harrasment charges, far as i'm concerned i reserve judgement until all facts are present. interestingly, my neighbor's son was just fired from his job on so called harrassment charges in which was nothing more than giving a nice compliment to a female coworker and asked her out for dinner. apparantly she was one of these feminists that freaked out and got him fired. i've heard many a story of women getting guys fired from the job on so called harrassment charges. so who knows.

as for HR himself, i generally don't watch baseball but i do every now and then i catch a baseball tonight episode to see whats going on and from what i have gathered, he's really one of the black personalities that i like on there. i suppose he wasn't hip and cool enough and doesn't appeal to the MTV rap crowd. btw, wheres the jessie jacksons, al sharptons, the national black caucases, the naacp etc? you would think they would be front and center in creating a controversy over the firing of a black man. i fully expect HR to get another job and hopefully on Versus, which i expect to be legit competitor to ESPN.

[HedleyLamarr]

Reynolds' last appearance on Baseball Tonight

[Eye]

ESPN sucks nowadays. It ain't what it used to be. That's for damn sure. They try to appeal to people around my age. With their stupid catch phrases, and overhyped theatrics. I hate that s***. It's like with that jack*** John Sterling, contstantly screaming. All ESPN is now is screaming. ****ing stupid. Reynolds was the only good guy on Baseball Tonight besides Gammons. With them both gone, I doubt I'll watch ESPN for a long time. I hope Reynolds can get another job and I'm sure he will. He's a knowledgeable guy with what seems as a genuine passion for the game of baseball. He probably is better off without ESPN anyway. I hope these charges aren't true because Reynolds is one of the few good guys out there IMO, but I'll wait and see.

[sacker12]

I was shocked to hear about Reynolds getting fired. Then again, I've been missing out on a lot of developments at ESPN, like Gammons' health problems and Bonnie Bernstein going to ESPN. Speaking of sideline reporters, what happened to Jill Arrington?

[Brass]

I honestly don't believe the whole 'sexual harrassment' thing.

Sounds more like a cover so they don't have to explain the real reason he got fired. Probably him getting screwed by ESPN or something to that extent.

[dfwabel]

ESPN sucks nowadays. It ain't what it used to be. That's for damn sure. They try to appeal to people around my age. With their stupid catch phrases, and overhyped theatrics. I hate that s***. It's like with that jack*** John Sterling, contstantly screaming. All ESPN is now is screaming. ****ing stupid. Reynolds was the only good guy on Baseball Tonight besides Gammons. With them both gone, I doubt I'll watch ESPN for a long time. I hope Reynolds can get another job and I'm sure he will. He's a knowledgeable guy with what seems as a genuine passion for the game of baseball. He probably is better off without ESPN anyway. I hope these charges aren't true because Reynolds is one of the few good guys out there IMO, but I'll wait and see.

If it was SH, it was investigated by human Resources and well documented. Look, even a series of emails can be seen as harrassment and violation of policy. Pay attention to what you say and how you act at work.

To take this topic and veer for a moment, you are right, ESPN has changed and IMO for the worse. Sadly, outisde of wire sources, they're the source. FSn cannot get ratings and neither did CNN/SI. By gobbling up nationally known writers like Gammons and Mortensen, they try to keep journalistis integrity. On the other hand, their anchors are no longer journalists, but only hosts. Brokaw, Rather, Jennings or Chronkitw would never do commercials (although David Brinkley shilled for ADM who underwrited "This Week").

SportsCenter is a launching program for any new entertainment venture (Disney or not) which has the 18-34 male as a target audience. Around the Horn has surprisingly good number with the 18-24 demo, including women, mainly since it is quick bursts. Cold Pizza on the other hand is/was bad from Day 1 and I am glad Rich Eisen did nto take the gig.

ESPNRadio has the same premise. I am not saying that FSR or SNR have a better premise, since caller driven sports radio SUCKS! I have enjoyed listening to 1310 The Ticket in Dallas or WIP over any other local station since it is more guy talk and less "hardcore sports talk".

[Eye]

ESPN sucks nowadays. It ain't what it used to be. That's for damn sure. They try to appeal to people around my age. With their stupid catch phrases, and overhyped theatrics. I hate that s***. It's like with that jack*** John Sterling, contstantly screaming. All ESPN is now is screaming. ****ing stupid. Reynolds was the only good guy on Baseball Tonight besides Gammons. With them both gone, I doubt I'll watch ESPN for a long time. I hope Reynolds can get another job and I'm sure he will. He's a knowledgeable guy with what seems as a genuine passion for the game of baseball. He probably is better off without ESPN anyway. I hope these charges aren't true because Reynolds is one of the few good guys out there IMO, but I'll wait and see.

If it was SH, it was investigated by human Resources and well documented. Look, even a series of emails can be seen as harrassment and violation of policy. Pay attention to what you say and how you act at work.

To take this topic and veer for a moment, you are right, ESPN has changed and IMO for the worse. Sadly, outisde of wire sources, they're the source. FSn cannot get ratings and neither did CNN/SI. By gobbling up nationally known writers like Gammons and Mortensen, they try to keep journalistis integrity. On the other hand, their anchors are no longer journalists, but only hosts. Brokaw, Rather, Jennings or Chronkitw would never do commercials (although David Brinkley shilled for ADM who underwrited "This Week").

SportsCenter is a launching program for any new entertainment venture (Disney or not) which has the 18-34 male as a target audience. Around the Horn has surprisingly good number with the 18-24 demo, including women, mainly since it is quick bursts. Cold Pizza on the other hand is/was bad from Day 1 and I am glad Rich Eisen did nto take the gig.

ESPNRadio has the same premise. I am not saying that FSR or SNR have a better premise, since caller driven sports radio SUCKS! I have enjoyed listening to 1310 The Ticket in Dallas or WIP over any other local station since it is more guy talk and less "hardcore sports talk".

Exactly, I couldn't agree with you more. All ESPN does is try to appeal to my age group with their unnecessary theatrics. Well, it doesn't work on me and I loathe that s***. Sportscenter is a waste. It's not even sports now. Sportscenter used to be good, ya know, when they, I don't know talked about sports accurately, and kept the viewers well informed. Nowadays, it's all about the anchor. IMO if you can make something a litle funny, do it, but please, for the love of god don't go on some tangent, adding your own catch phrases, completely getting away from the story at hand. ESPN go to hell.

[BaltimoreFan]

Whatever he did, I have to think it was something serious. They kept Michael Irvin after his whole drug or alcohol incident (i don't remember what exactly happened). I'm thinking it probably was sexual harrasment.

As for ESPN, it is getting pretty bad. I'm tired of hearing about the same stupid stuff every 5 minutes. All they want to talk about is Yankees, Red Sox, Barry Bonds, T.O., the Lakers. I want coverage of all the sports not just the best teams and the biggest a-holes. Some of the segments are getting stupid too. Recently they did the NFL ultimate depth chart, except they didn't even take into consideration the actual depth of the team. In some cases they did, but for most they only cared about the starters. The stupidest thing they ever did was the Steve Phillips press conferences. Where he pretended to be each team's GM and had a fake press conference. I hope another network can come in and compete with ESPN because it is getting hard to watch.

[WSU151]

what happened to Jill Arrington?

Doesn't she do sideline reporting for CBS college football (probably basketball too)...?? If I remember correctly, she's completes the trifecta for the Verne Lundquist games. Bonnie B. did that too. Hell, I dunno...

[pcgd]

Don't Watch!

I only watch ESPN for live sports. There are a million other resources that are quicker than ESPN for reporting and analysis.

I do freqent the ESPN webpage however. I think its out of habit more than good reporting or anything...although I do enjoy Simmons even though he can't let go of the Boston Nipple.

[marlinfan]

Update on Deadspin:

(UPDATE: Another reader, with "contacts on the inside," refutes the sexual harassment whispers: "Anyone who is saying sexual harassment either has been given bad third-hand info or is lying. Harold has had a couple of rather heated arguments with the producers at "Baseball Tonight," and some of the suits at ESPN over the program's coverage of Alex Rodriguez. At the last production meeting, when it was made clear they were going to really play up the A-Rod angle during coverage of the Yankees-Texas series, Harold had a colossal meltdown, which led to his dismissal. The sexual harassment allegations are even more laughable when you consider that he is being replaced by Steve Phillips -- a man who has never met a skirt he wouldn't chase and who was caught in one of the more embarrassing front office sexual harassment scandals in MLB history."

True? Not true? This, like the rest of it, just reinforces our point: We don't know. And the longer ESPN pretends like nothing happened, like they're a corner shop with three employees, believing this stuff can possibly remain private, the more talk there will be. Still, this is the lone "it's not sexual harassment email" we've received.)

If this is true, ESPN sucks more than I thought when hearing he was fired.

[NJTank]

ESPN is on a steep decline just look at what they are showing tonight darts and poker

[DEAD!]

ESPN is on a steep decline just look at what they are showing tonight darts and poker

Hey, don't knock darts.... who doesn't like "ONNNNEEE HUUNNNDDREDDD AAAAAAAND EEIIIGHTTTTYYYYY!!!!"

[Fred T. Jane]

Hey, don't knock darts.... who doesn't like "ONNNNEEE HUUNNNDDREDDD AAAAAAAND EEIIIGHTTTTYYYYY!!!!"

*raises his hand*

[nyk]

Anyone besides me miss the day when FOX SPORTS NET was accually competing (or at least tried) with ESPN's sportscenter and there was accually options of which Sports News Show you wanted to watch.

As for Harold Reynolds, I was shocked when I heard. Theres always one analyst for each sport i enjoy hearing talk about the sport on ESPN. With the NBA its Greg Anthony, with the NFL its Tom Jackson, With the MLB it was Harold Reynold. I really enjoyed seeing him last week on cold pizza when Woody Paige was absent and Harold was talking about Golf. He is really one classy individual and i hope he bounces back with a network that will accually use his talent especially if TBS get the baseball package foe next season. I'm afraid if he goes to FOX, he may not be used like suppose to.

[Fred T. Jane]

Update on Deadspin:

(UPDATE: Another reader, with "contacts on the inside," refutes the sexual harassment whispers: "Anyone who is saying sexual harassment either has been given bad third-hand info or is lying. Harold has had a couple of rather heated arguments with the producers at "Baseball Tonight," and some of the suits at ESPN over the program's coverage of Alex Rodriguez. At the last production meeting, when it was made clear they were going to really play up the A-Rod angle during coverage of the Yankees-Texas series, Harold had a colossal meltdown, which led to his dismissal. The sexual harassment allegations are even more laughable when you consider that he is being replaced by Steve Phillips -- a man who has never met a skirt he wouldn't chase and who was caught in one of the more embarrassing front office sexual harassment scandals in MLB history."

True? Not true? This, like the rest of it, just reinforces our point: We don't know. And the longer ESPN pretends like nothing happened, like they're a corner shop with three employees, believing this stuff can possibly remain private, the more talk there will be. Still, this is the lone "it's not sexual harassment email" we've received.)

If this is true, ESPN sucks more than I thought when hearing he was fired.

Well, here's something for you...

If that's true, thenits' pretty plain to see that a lot of the A-Rod "crisis" was spun up rather than ESPN just reporting the angst of Yankee fans. Not that I would be surprised with the Worldwide Leader or anything, but it's worth thinking about...

[HedleyLamarr]

I would love to see Harold Reynolds replace Marc Fein on TBS. If they need a guy in a suit to give updates, why not use a former MLB player with plenty of TV experience? He is very insightful in giving out baseball info, and when he was performing for entertainment purposes (the softball games, the Little League WS), he did a stellar job.

I think he and Chip Caray would make an awesome pair on TBS' playoff baseball studio next season.

[jkrdevil]

Update on Deadspin:

(UPDATE: Another reader, with "contacts on the inside," refutes the sexual harassment whispers: "Anyone who is saying sexual harassment either has been given bad third-hand info or is lying. Harold has had a couple of rather heated arguments with the producers at "Baseball Tonight," and some of the suits at ESPN over the program's coverage of Alex Rodriguez. At the last production meeting, when it was made clear they were going to really play up the A-Rod angle during coverage of the Yankees-Texas series, Harold had a colossal meltdown, which led to his dismissal. The sexual harassment allegations are even more laughable when you consider that he is being replaced by Steve Phillips -- a man who has never met a skirt he wouldn't chase and who was caught in one of the more embarrassing front office sexual harassment scandals in MLB history."

True? Not true? This, like the rest of it, just reinforces our point: We don't know. And the longer ESPN pretends like nothing happened, like they're a corner shop with three employees, believing this stuff can possibly remain private, the more talk there will be. Still, this is the lone "it's not sexual harassment email" we've received.)

If this is true, ESPN sucks more than I thought when hearing he was fired.

Well, here's something for you...

If that's true, thenits' pretty plain to see that a lot of the A-Rod "crisis" was spun up rather than ESPN just reporting the angst of Yankee fans. Not that I would be surprised with the Worldwide Leader or anything, but it's worth thinking about...

That's entirely true.

It's true that A-Rod has been getting booed in NY but there isn't this trade A-Rod movement ESPN is making it out. I listening to WFAN online last week (because I'm sick of tired of the Jim Rome, FSR radio crap they have in Tampa) and it was the day after Baseball Tonight said the Yankees might trade A-Rod. All the radio host up there were basically making fun of the talk. I'm sure a few people that are up there can confirm this they are closer than I am in "NYC, Florida".

ESPN basically made up the A-Rod trade rumors. Sure he's being booed and the papers are on him (and that's mostly because he keeps adding fuel to the fire with his comments) but there isn't a trade A-Rod movement.

As for an ESPN competitor, if OLN/Versus get the other LCS it will coem with a regular season package and a Baseball Tonight type show that would be in part produced by MLB. I'm sure that would be focused on more teams although it would be all positive all the time. If they do get the package my guess is Reynolds lands there.

Also if they get the package ESPN would have a full blown compititor. With the hockey and Baseball package plus Comcast money OLN/Versus would be the strongest compitition ESPN has ever had. FSN couldn't get national programming because of it's regional obligations. CNN/SI was news only with no live games so the demand for it wasn't high and couldn't gain homes. If VS gets the LCS it's demand would equals ESPN's as it would have a very important key baseball playoff series.