Wayne Randazzo, Eddie C set to join Mets radio team in 2019

by Tim Reilly January 02, 2019 0 Comments

There’s been a lot of moving parts for the Mets this offseason. Between the front office, members of the coaching staff and roster, 2019 will be full of new faces. On top of those we’ll be seeing on camera, there are changes in the radio voices you'll hear, too. 

A few weeks back we learned the unfortunate news that Josh Lewin won’t be returning. Losing Lewin hurts, no doubt about it. Howie Rose and Lewin had chemistry together that was an absolute joy to listen to – and Lewin always went the extra mile to connect with fans in person (like at T7LA tailgates) whenever he could. At the end of the day, Lewin made a decision he felt was best for him and joined the Padres radio booth. We wish him nothing but the best moving forward.  

According to the NY Post, Wayne Randazzo has been named as Lewin’s replacement. It’s great to see someone in-house getting the nod to move up the ladder. Randazzo has been a fixture on the pre-and-post game show for a while now and has done some play-by-play duties on SNY for Spring Training games. I’ve always thought Randazzo did a great job in his former role, so I have no reason to believe this transition won’t go smoothly.

Wayne Randazzo only gets one-year deal as new Mets booth is on a short leash https://t.co/bK0hPQtWF6

— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) January 2, 2019

However, there is one tidbit I found alarming in the NY Post report. Randazzo is being given a “short leash” by signing a one-year deal, and we could hear some new voices mixed in throughout the year. 

“During the upcoming season, when Rose or Randazzo are off, CBS is expected to bring in some play-by-players for what will be auditions. Chernoff will be able to see if he favors these voices over Randazzo going forward.”

I can understand not handing out a long-term deal, but how about we give the guy a real look before talking like this? It’s not like Randazzo is a complete newbie here. He’s been an established presence on the broadcast team for some time now and has called games before. We all have a pretty good idea on what he’s going to sound like. No need to be talking about trying out replacements before his first day on the job. 

Part of the reason people love Gary, Keith and Ron is because they have been together for so long and we can look forward to seeing them year after year. Even when Lewin was locked in, it felt like every offseason we heard rumblings about potential replacements for the radio team. It would be great to put some trust in the guys and leave them be. But I suppose this is just the nature of the business these days. 

Replacing Randazzo on the pre-and-post game is none other than Eddie Coleman. He decided to put off retirement for another year to rejoin the broadcast in the role he once held before Randazzo took over. Eddie C might be the most underrated member of the Mets broadcast/beat. He’s one of my personal favorites and is one of the most respected voices around. 

Now that the broadcast crew has been finalized, let’s put some final touches on the roster to give Randazzo a championship team to call in his rookie season. 

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