There may be a Greek God in the Red Sox announcers booth this season -- assuming there is a season, of course.
Kevin Youkilis, who started working for NESN last year as a studio analyst, could pick up some reps as a color man this summer, writes the Globe’s Chad Finn. He says Youkilis could work somewhere in the vicinity of 50 games.
This will be the first Red Sox season since 1987 without Jerry Remy’s familiar chuckle serving as one of the main soundtracks. The iconic broadcaster died of cancer last October at age 68.
The Globe reports Dennis Eckersley is expected to take the bulk of Remy’s workload. The Hall of Famer has been a regular presence in the booth for years, and has ingratiated himself to fans with his sharp wit and colorful "Eck-isms."
Youkilis was one of four former Red Sox whom NESN hired for its studio shows in 2021, alongside Jonathan Papelbon, Mo Vaughn and Ellis Burks. The latter called multiple games last season.
It would be great to see Papelbon receive color opportunities this season, assuming he’s interested. A three-man booth involving Eckersley and Papelbon could be highly entertaining.
As a contemporary player, Youkilis possesses an intrinsic amount of insight about how the game is played today. He is uniquely positioned to talk about the increased emphasis on analytics, given his “Moneyball” cred.
Billy Beane lustfully referred to Youkilis as the “Greek God of Walks” when he was rising through the Red Sox’ system. Youkilis slashed .287/.388/.487 with 133 home runs in nine seasons with the Red Sox.