1. When NBC aired Thursday Night Football A few years ago, the network wanted to use Mike Tirico for play-by-play. Roger Goodell and the NFL stepped in and said no. The league told NBC it had to use Al Michaels because it wanted the No. 1 vote in those games.

It would be nice if Rob Manfred cared half as much about his postseason telecasts as Goodell does Thursday Night Footballbecause TBS and Bob Costas are a complete mess when it comes to the Yankees-Royals ALDS.

Yes, whether you like his style or not, Costas is a sports media legend. Great interviewer. Great essayist. Many in the industry love Costas and bow down to him so no one will tell the truth and say this. But Bob Costas should no longer do play-by-play during the playoffs.

We don’t need lectures during playoff games. We don’t need three hours of monotonous phone calls in a row. We don’t need constant history lessons.

Let me clarify. The problems with the Yankees-Royals broadcasts aren’t just Costas’s. The entire production is a mess. For some nonsensical reason, TBS muffles the crowd noise during games, killing the atmosphere and excitement in the stadium.

There are bizarre camera angles. And an obsession with George Brett.

After showing Brett a million times in Game 2, TBS interviewed the Royals legend in Game 3. FOR A WHOLE HALF-INNING. FROM THE STANDS.

When I had a fight with ESPN for doing a Falcons-Eagles game Monday Night Football Play in the Jason Kelce Showat least Kelce analyzed some of the plays and was in the locker room. Someone at TBS thought this was what viewers wanted last night.

Even Yankees radio analyst Suzyn Waldman had to join in on TBS’s love affair with Brett, using an excellent Taylor Swift reference.

Anyway, back to Costas. Aside from having absolutely no juice on his calls, he also has absolutely no chemistry with Ron Darling (who is a very good analyst). At the end of Game 3 on Wednesday, Costas tried to explain Giancarlo Stanton’s big night. Darling agreed that Stanton also had a shocking stolen base. The two talked about each other and then Costas ignored Darling’s note and just carried on. Unpleasant.

Speaking of embarrassing, Costas also said that.

But make no mistake, the biggest problem is the lack of excitement on the calls. Just listen to this.

And that.

And that.

It’s funny. The play-by-play voices for the other three LDS games – Brian Anderson, Joe Davis and Adam Amin – scream and shout (and in the case of Davis and Anderson, even scream) on all the big plays. Costas calls the game like it’s mid-June.

The good news I can give you is that Anderson gets the play-by-play assignment for the ALCS on TBS.

And who did that?

2. Here’s a palate cleanser after all those Costas clips. Mets radio voice Howie Rose had another legendary call during New York’s decisive Game 4 win over the Phillies, thanks to a grand slam from Francisco Lindor.

Amin’s call on the TV side was also excellent.

3. A brand new episode of SI Media with Jimmy Traina Published this morning and features an outstanding conversation with ESPN’s Paul Finebaum.

Finebaum talks about what it’s like to cover SEC football and deal with those fans, what it means to do a four-hour solo radio show every day, his interview philosophy and his favorite job of all time.

Finebaum also discusses how the expanded playoffs will impact college football’s regular season and why he’s not a starter college game day, how he once got Lane Kiffin fired, his feud with wrestling legend Ric Flair, why college football needs to start its season earlier, whether coaches cover the point spread for boosters, the craziest moment of his career and much more.

After Finebaum, I’m joined by Sal Licata from WFAN Radio and SNY TV in New York in our weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week, Sal explains what it’s like when big breaking news happens during the broadcast, the problem with MLB postseason broadcasters, the Jets’ firing of Robert Saleh and more.

You can listen to this SI Media with Jimmy Traina below or on Apple and Spotify.

You can also watch SI Media with Jimmy Traina To Sports Illustrated YouTube channel.

4. Here’s how one Phillies fan reacted to their team’s loss to the Mets on Wednesday.

5. I’m not sure if the middle of a dangerous and life-threatening hurricane is the time for jokes, but this meteorologist somehow made the connection between Hurricane Milton and the Patriots-Falcons’ 28-3 Super Bowl.

6. If you’re a wrestling fan, you have to suspend your disbelief, even though we all know it’s scripted. But since we all know it’s scripted, I would love it if WWE would post more outtakes/bloopers like this. Great stuff here.

7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: Since I took Costas to task at the top of this column, in fairness let’s remember one of his best moments: fighting Vince McMahon in a heated and riveting interview.

Make sure you do it Check out previous editions of Traina Thoughts and take a look at them Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy Twitter And Instagram.