Suzyn Waldman rips critics, calling them 'sexist'
Well, folks, here is the latest in the saga of Suzyn Waldman, who cried in the Yankees' clubhouse after Monday night's loss and has been paying for it ever since in the media funhouse mirror.
I didn't mention this in the story linked above because it wasn't the place, but I did tell Waldman when we spoke Wednesday that I have been critical of her myself, and as you can see here I did call her brief breakdown "unprofessional'' in my newspaper column Tuesday and poked some fun at her in a related sidebar.
Still, in Waldman's partial defense she was not crying specifically because the Yankees lost a game, as has been suggested in some places on the air and the Internet. She was crying in response to the emotional scene she witnessed in Joe Torre's office after the Yanks were eliminated, and the sense that the end of an era was at hand.
Waldman's tone in discussing Monday's incident was far different from when I talked to her about her famously over-the-top reaction to Roger Clemens' return in May.
Then she was defensive and terse, and the conversation lasted less than 10 minutes. This time she was eager and expansive in lambasting the media reaction to her and calling it sexist, and we talked for more than a half hour.
Waldman is one of the most complicated, controversial figures in New York sports media, and one of the most reliable lightning rods for people who do what I do for a living. Same goes for her partner, John Sterling.
Feel free to comment here or on the newspaper article itself. You also can vote on the Web site for what you think of Waldman's on-air crying.
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Comments (22)
Sorry, Suzyn, but this was totally unprofessional, and if it were the first time it happened, I might understand. You wept openly in 1995 when the Yanks got KO'd in Seattle. You are way too close to this team to ever be taken seriously again.
I usually give Suzyn the benefit of the doubt, but I don't see how she can defend this. It really wasn't a time to cry.
Living in New England, you should hear WEEI in Boston/RI. They're having a field day with the crying.
It just astounds me how an organization as esteemed and respected as the Yankees can continue to associate themselves with Waldman and Sterling. They're flat-out embarrassing. As a lifelong Mets fan who might be accused of being jealous of the Yanks' record of on-field success, the same can NEVER be said of their broadcast booth. Thank you Ralph, Murph, Lindsey, Gary, Keith, Ron, Howie and Tom for calling the game all these years with professionalism, insight and well-timed humor. Right now, Yankees fans are left asking themselves, "Where's Mel Allen when we really need him?"
It amazes me how people can dump on Waldman for getting caught up in the emotions of the Yankee coaching straff and give a pass to the hate speech of Keith Hernandez on how women shouldn't be allowed to be doctors. Waldman worked her way to a job no woman ever has achieved, Hernandez threw away a Hall of Fame career to snort cocaine and was the captain of a team of drug addicts and wife beaters. The most reprehensible gang of criminals this side of Madison Square Garden and the NFL that threw away a number of championships. Shows you how sports fans are the most narrow minded people around.
Neil, I have worked in radio for over 20 years. I was taken aback that waldman cried during the postgame. I was always told, there is no crying in radio. I have stuck to that and I am going to continue to do that. It's not a sexist thing. I think that it's baloney. Waldman has her own style, so for her - I guess she had to do what she had to do. There are certainly situations where one would get a frog stuck in their throat. If a president was shot and a newscaster was reporting it - I can see the emotion in that. But this! There is no excuse for this!
She should resign. There is no excuse for this.
Neil I hope you ran home and took a shower after talking to her. I know I'd feel dirty.
She has accomplished something I never thought possible. She knocked Chip Caray down to second in the worst announcer in the play-off rankings.
Maybe we shouldn't be condemming her for crying, but asking why did she cry? It seems to me from this incident and the previous one with Roger Clemens that Suzyn is too close to the team, or certain members of it, to handle things objectively. Personally, I don't need a "homer" as the broadcaster of my favorite team, but that is the decision her bosses have made and I think this is the result of that decision.
i laughed out loud when she said what she was reporting was poetic. no chance that was poetic.
i laughed out loud when she said what she was reporting was poetic. no chance that was poetic.
The biggest "complaint" with Suzyn is that she is way to close to the team. The Torre and Clemens incidents are the tip of the iceberg.
I remember back to Chuck Knoblauch's first press conference when he became a Yankee. Mike Francesa and Chris Russo were trying to get Knoblauch to address whether he was going to request a trade from the Yankees since he was dealt by Minnesota after re-signing with them.
Suszyn defended Knoblauch with such zeal that it was apparent that she was doing so because he was now a Yankee and it "seemed" like that was "her job" to do.
Does this piss anyone else off that she IMMIDATELY played the 'sexist' card? Doesn't this diminish the next time a REAL sexist issue comes up, like oh I don't know, the disgrace that happened at MSG? This is a terrible job by her.
PPL are getting on Suszyn b/c crying on the air was ridiculous and un-professional. Playing the 'I'm a woman, that why you hate me' care so quickly should be an afront to all woman, IMO.
I'd also like to know, which coaches were crying? Larry Bowa? He's been with Torre only one year, so I doubt it was him. Tony Pena? Same deal. It couldn't have been Mattingly because he was outside talking to the press. So who exactly was crying? Only Suzyn, I suspect.
You people should get a life.Suzyn came a long way with Joe Torre. Both survived cancer & went through a lot together.She put's her heart into the Yankees, something you so called yankees fans should be doing.Give her a break
I agree that playing the sex card is lame. As soon as John Sterling starts to cry I'm sure he'll get laughed at and criticized twice as much.
Well said, "other" Ben. Seriously, sexism couldn't be farther from the truth. If a man cried on the air like she did, he'd be tortured by the fans and media 10 times as much. Oh my goodness gracious.
One of the worst announcers. EVER.
Thanks for reading, Eric Compton. Are you THE Eric Compton, writer of my all-time favorite back-page sports headline?
This is the second time in less than one season that she has done something to humiliate herself within her profession. What she doesn't say here is that she seems to be well-liked within her profession, and when she was on WFAN she was regarded as a professional.
She is horrible in her job as "color analyst" for Yankee broadcasts and she couldn't do play-by-play. She acts out as a fan, first over-the-top with Roger then crying for Joe, and there should be no cheering in the press box.
To avoid getting humiliated in the future, Suzyn should just resign from her present job and go back to taking calls on WFAN and being their Yankee beat reporter, where she excelled.
As far as that guy being the "REAL" Eric Compton, he is bitter and acerbic, traits of a typical sportswriter, if that gives you a clue. I say he is that Eric Compton.
Yes, I am the "Coke Free Sugar" Eric Compton, Neil. What, you thought I'd forget? E-mail me sometime.
To anonymous: I may be acerbic but I am far from bitter. I have had a great life following and writing about sports and have enjoyed every second of it. Bitter? Not in the least, my friend.
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