Get ready to see much more of Barry Bonds on ESPN.

The Associated Press reports that the network has announced that it will be cut-in on all programming to show all of Bonds' at-bats, unless it is a show covered by a national network-rights holder.

While it was not reported by the AP, there have been discussions recently by FOX to do possibly the same during their weekend MLB national telecasts.

On top of who will be announcing, MLB has now set forth regulations for transmitting home run highlights as Bonds approaches the all-time home run records. Below is edict sent out on what is, and is not, permitted for broadcasters:

The following are regulations regarding the transmission within the United States of highlights of Barry Bonds’ at-bats during his pursuit of the all-time home run record:

Starting today, July 20th, Major League Baseball’s rightsholders and their affiliated networks are permitted to air up to a 60-second, taped highlight, in any programming, immediately following each at-bat of Barry Bonds through the at-bat in which he hits home run #756. Entities permitted to air such highlights are: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN News, ESPN on ABC, FOX, FOX News Channel, FOX Sports Net, FX, TBS, TNT and CNN.

All other television networks (local, regional or national) are permitted to air up to a 60-second taped highlight of Bonds’ home runs #755 and #756 (i.e., only those two at-bats) in any programming.

This advisory does not authorize any live cut-ins by any network or any live or taped highlights by any on-line media.

For anyone that has seen the ESPN Fantasy Baseball commercial, here's a still image that you can click on to see this odd grouping in all its funky detail.

Sometimes, a picture is worth a thousand words...  What Geddy Lee won't do for his love of baseball/the Blue Jay.

Geddy's playing a Fender Jazz bass.

10 points to anyone that can comment on what kind of odd-rod Gammons is playing.

Click on the above image to see it in a large high-resolution format.
 

ESPN will be adding more programming to their Fall line-up come October.

The "Worldwide Leader In Sports" plans to launch a prime-time newsmagazine tentatively titled ESPN Reports according to Mediaweek.

The show is slated to launch on Tuesday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m. ET.

ESPN says the show will  be a "combination of investigative features, profiles of sports personalities, and stories on innovations in the sports world."

On Weds. June 27th, MLB sent an advisory to members of the media announcing that the All-Star player selections would be made available in advance to the media at approximately 3:30 p.m. (EDT), with an embargo to last until The 2007 Major League Baseball All-Star Game Selection Show Presented by Chevrolet, had been concluded on TBS later in the day. The reason for releasing the names in advance of the televised announcement was to allow “local news-gathering organizations to obtain player reactions after games that day.”

The release had the following in bolded section within it:

AS A CONDITION OF THE EMBARGO, ALL OUTLETS ARE PROHIBITED FROM SHARING THIS INFORMATION PUBLICLY VIA PRINT, RADIO, TELEVISION, INTERNET OR ANY OTHER DISTRIBUTION METHODS, INCLUDING MOBILE TECHNOLOGY, UNTIL THE CONCLUSION OF THE TBS BROADCAST.

ESPN, however, released the names of the players selected for the All-Star Game on SportsCenter in the midst of the TBS selection show, much to the consternation of MLB Headquarters.

Now, MLB is making its displeasure known... with actions. As Neil Best of Newsday reported earlier today:

The punishment was the loss of special consideration Tuesday night in the form of one of those spiffy on-site sets that ESPN usually uses at major events even when it is not the rights-holder for said event. Basically, that means you will see the usual commentators covering the game for ESPN in San Francisco, but presumably they will be standing up instead of sitting down, unless they are back on the set in Bristol, where they will be able to sit down behind a desk, as usual.

This may seem trivial on one level, and yet is much larger on another. MLB sent numerous releases mentioning the TBS show, which was the unofficial coming out party for TBS with MLB under a new broadcast agreement. MLB might have been upset on their own, but the addition of TBS into the mix might have raised the ire a notch or two further.

It will be interesting to see if this action impacts how the announcement is made next year.

With the World Series Champion St. Louis Cardinals sitting 9.5 games out of first place in a lack-luster NL Central, fan interest – at least on the television – has been dropping.

Ratings on “FSN Midwest are down 10 percent in the ratings over the same date last year, and contests on over-the-air TV have dipped 4 percent. (That package was on KPLR, Channel 11, last year and is on KSDK, Channel 5, this season),” according to Nielsen Media Research by way of Dan Ceasar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Ceasar reports that 7.6 percent of television homes in the St. Louis area are tuning into Cardinals game this season. That’s a drop from 8.4 percent compared to the same time last year.

Part of the reason for the drop might be attributed to the declining number of games available to Cardinals fans, as compared to last year. The Cardinals have 21 games scheduled on KSDK (Channel 5), 19 fewer than the club had on KPLR (Channel 11) last season and 58 fewer than the 79 games the club had on over-the-air TV in 1991-93.

Below are the ratings for the Cardinals based on Nielsen Media Research.

* 2007 figures though Thursday

• Over-the-air games are on KSDK (Channel 5) this season after being on KPLR (Channel 11) previous years. Cable telecasts were on Prime Sports in 1996-97, but have been on FSN Midwest since.
• Each ratings point represents 1 percent of the homes in the St. Louis market that have a TV set.

Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch