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The Giants can be hard to watch a lot of the time, but they’re always, always, always a perfect aural experience. As the Giants rebuild over the next four years, consider turning off the TV and simply listening to Jon Miller and Dave Flemming on KNBR. It’ll change your life.
Flemming and Miller make a great pairing of young(ish) and old, meme-knowledgeable and meme-naive, and simply talking about the Giants in a less immediate way than what happens over on the TV side. That rapport is so strong that the Giants have re-signed Flemming to a 4-year deal, per reports.
While he’ll still be doing national telecasts for ESPN, he’s actually upped his season commitment to the Giants from 130 games to 140 games. He’s here to stay, folks. No need to bombard him with concern tweets after he takes a week off.
Good broadcasting elevates a moment largely by staying out of the way. Bad broadcasting sounds like homeristic sophistry. The best of the best, on TV or radio, beome intertwined with the big moments and over the long bend of history, become as much a part of a team’s DNA as the players who pass through the clubhouse.
It’s hard to believe that we’ve been listening to Dave Flemming for 15 years — we truly are hurdling forward through time at an alarming rate! The Giants won the World Series in Detroit over six years ago! — but now it’s even harder to imagine him not being a part of our fandom. He’s as much a voice of the team as Miller, Krukow, Kuiper, and Brisbee (RIP).
Back in August, Larry Baer was interviewed by Tim Kawakami of The Athletic and was asked point blank about his plans for the broadcasting team over the next few years. Miller, Krukow, and Kuiper won’t be around forever, but the idea of replacing them or transitioning in new blood was an uncomfortable subject for the CEO.
It’s a relief that the team won’t transform into something new overnight. Whatever happens on the field over the next few years (spoiler: it won’t be winning) will be covered by some old friends, members of the family, really. That’s warm and pleasing comfort in this cold and boring winter.