Meet The Mets: SportsNet New York fires up

SportsNet New York, the new TV home of the New York Mets (and the official year-round home of the New York Jets), has been launched and Jon Litner, network president says the network is committed to becoming the firsts place New Yorkers go for their sports news.
The network is still working out carriage deals with certain multichannnel providers, including Cablevision, DirecTV, and Dish Network. But the new network is optimistic it can work out deals and become the news soruce for area sports fans. Part of that push includes nightly sports newscasts at 6 p.m. and 10 p.m.
“SportsNet
New York will be the destination network for sports fans in New York
and the Tri-State area,” he says. “The network will reach out to all New Yorkers,
and we will cover all of their teams and the events that are important
to them.”

SNY, founded by Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, Time Warner and
Comcast, will be available to viewers in New York, Connecticut, most of
New Jersey and northeastern Pennsylvania.

The network will televise 125 Mets games in 2006, starting with the
April 3 opener at Shea Stadium against the Washington Nationals, and
finishing on Oct. 1 in the regular-season finale against that same club
at RFK Stadium. In between is expected to be a regular season filled
with high drama for a Mets club whose additions include Billy Wagner,
Carlos Delgado and Paul LoDuca, and are projected by many baseball
prognosticators to end the Atlanta Braves’ run of 14 consecutive
division titles. SNY is where you can see how it all plays out, and all
home games as well as select road games will be broadcast in high
definition.

Keith Hernandez and Ron Darling, key members of the Mets’ World Series
champions of 20 years ago, will serve as analysts for the network’s
coverage of the team. Gary Cohen will provide play-by-play, and Siafa
Lewis will serve as the pregame and postgame reporter on all
SNY-produced Mets telecasts.

“Gary is one of baseball’s pre-eminent play-by-play announcers,” Litner
said, “and our viewers can look forward to enjoying his knowledge,
unique perspective and passion for Mets baseball, each and every game.”

Hernandez, who previously served as a Mets game analyst for MSG
Networks, earned a record 11 consecutive Gold Gloves from 1977-88 as a
first baseman, batted over .300 in six different seasons and put in 17
years in the bigs.
“I am thrilled to join SportsNet New York, and continue working with
the Mets organization — especially as we near the 20th anniversary of
the ’86 championship team,” Hernandez said. “The Mets have had a
terrific offseason, and are without a doubt one of the top teams in the
league. It’s going to be very exciting covering this team with Gary and
Ron, two good friends whom I have great respect for.”

Darling served as color commentator for Nationals games last season on
the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network, and also appeared on other programs,
including FOX’s “Best Damn Sports Show Period.” He spent nine seasons
as a Mets pitcher, going 15-6 with a 2.81 ERA for the ’86 champs.
“As we approach the 20-year anniversary of the Mets’ 1986 World
Championship, it’s such a great gift for me to start with a new network
that covers the Mets in the city where I literally grew up,” Darling
said. “I am very excited to work with Gary, an extremely talented
play-by-play announcer who has a long history with the Mets, as well as
my good friend and former teammate, Mex, whose company and candor I
have always enjoyed.”

“The addition of Keith and Ron to our television booth gives us one of
baseball’s elite on-air teams,” said Curt Gowdy Jr., vice president and
executive producer of SNY. “We feel their intimate knowledge of the
game combined with their impressive playing credentials will provide
Mets fans with exceptional analysis, unique insight and strong
story-telling.”

SNY also is the official year-round home of the New York Jets, the
result of a three-year TV and marketing agreement. SNY will telecast
more than 230 hours of Jets-related content, including: exclusive
in-season and offseason programming with unprecedented access to Jets
players, coaches and management; comprehensive pregame and postgame
coverage; and news and nightly programming in its nightly “Sportsnite”
and daily “SportsRise” shows, which will be telecast in HD from the SNY
studios.

SNY and the Jets also will work together on several extensive joint
marketing programs, utilizing SNY’s multimedia platforms and studio
location. The Jets will provide signage, on-site promotion initiatives,
and various Jets radio, print and online components. SNY also will be a
presenting sponsor of the Jets’ training camp.

Jets president L. Jay Cross said the team is “creating more total
access programming to connect with our knowledgeable and passionate
fans, and we want them to know they can find the most comprehensive
coverage of the Jets on SportsNet New York. In the ever-expanding
universe of sports television, we wanted to provide our fans a channel
that is unquestionably the year-round home of the New York Jets.”

SNY will be the exclusive regional sports network providing
unprecedented coverage through a variety of content, including “Jets
Nation,” an original studio-based show that kicks off with the NFL
Draft and runs through the start of the Jets’ preseason. “Jets Nation”
will provide viewers with an in-depth look at Jets players, coaches and
team personnel throughout the offseason and leading up to training camp.

SNY also will feature “Jets Playbook,” an exclusive weekly studio-based
show previewing each upcoming Jets game, and featuring detailed
analysis of the Jets and their opponents, player matchups and game
strategies. Look for pre- and post-Draft shows to get it all started,
watch for re-airs of all Jets preseason games, and turn to SNY for
exclusive live coverage of coach Eric Mangini’s weekly press
conferences, among other comprehensive team coverage.

The SNY programming schedule is packed with entertaining and
informative shows, and one of the highlights will be “Daily News Live,”
broadcast in high-definition from SNY’s studio. The hour-long program
will feature fast-paced, roundtable discussions covering news and
important stories to New York sports fans. Utilizing sports media and
personalities, the show will offer analysis and hot debate on the
topics of the day, with opinions from all sides of the issue. Panelists
will join host and SNY sports news anchor Gary Apple in the studio.

“We are excited to partner with the Daily News
and to provide fans with a lively, debate-driven show viewers can count
on five nights a week,” Litner said. “We look forward to debuting
‘Daily News Live’ as we feature the top journalists and media
personalities in the industry who will discuss the sports issues of the
day.”

“You’ve read the best sports writers, columnists and editors in the
country. Now you’ll get to hear and see them, too,” said Martin Dunn,
the Daily News’
deputy publisher and editor-in-chief. “‘Daily News Live’ continues the
tradition of great sports coverage by some of the country’s best sports
writers, columnists and editors. From Bill Madden, Frank Isola and Sam
Borden, to Lisa Olson, Mike Lupica and Leon Carter, the Daily News
has always had Major League talent covering our teams, whether
first-place champs or last-place losers. We are proud to partner with
SportsNet New York on ‘Daily News Live’ to bring the best in sports
journalism from the back pages of New York’s Hometown Paper into the
homes of the most dedicated sports fans in the world.”

Starting this fall, SNY also will be the home for up to 30 college
football games and up to 85 college basketball games featuring teams
from the nation’s leading conferences, including the Big East and the
Big Ten.

SNY will become a multi-platform way of life for many New York sports
fans, as the network has partnered with Major League Baseball Advanced
Media to provide a website at SNY.TV to deliver robust content. The
site will feature multimedia pertaining to the teams the network
covers, and will serve as a gateway for sports fans looking for the
latest headlines from New York-area newspaper sites. The site also
provides the TV programming schedule, and it will help with any
information about making sure SNY is on your local cable menu.

As another new baseball season approaches, the first pitch will be
thrown by SportsNet New York with Wednesday’s launch. SNY will be a new
place to point that TV remote if you’re looking for the Mets, the Jets,
and constant news and score updates to capture the whole picture of New
York sports. It will be a new kind of network that emphasizes player
access and personalities, and incorporates fan interaction, as well as
covers breaking news. It will continue to grow into a New York sports
fan’s best friend.