Scott Franzke

WASHINGTON - Scott Franzke was hired by the Phillies shortly before the 2006 season. That first year, he hosted pre- and postgame shows and did a little play-by-play in the middle innings. He had barely landed in Florida when he found himself sitting next to Harry Kalas on his first day on the job, doing an exhibition game against the Astros in Kissimmee. "I knew his national reputation," Franzke, struggling to control his emotions, recalled yesterday. "I might have known him more from hearing him on NFL Films.

When your paycheck comes from the team you are broadcasting for, Larry Andersen concedes that it can be a fine line between being "honest" and "too honest" in your analysis of the game. But in 13 years in the Phillies booth, Andersen has walked that fine line with a light touch that has endeared him to what can be a demanding public. In a survey conducted by the Daily News in conjunction with the Sport Industry Research Center at Temple University, Andersen was chosen by the fans as the No. 1 color commentator in Philadelphia.

The Phanatic, ballgirls, broadcasters, former players and some media notables will be touring downtown in a trolley today, pumping up Phillies fans and handing out thousands of rally towels and cheer cards. The excursion was to begin by noon at Citizens Bank Park, head up Broad Street, loop around Rittenhouse Square, then take Chestnut toward Old City, before hitting Front and Broad Streets on the return trip home. It's all to build excitement for the decisive Game 5 of the National League Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Phillies have made minor adjustments to their broadcasting rotation this year that will once again center on Hall of Famer Harry Kalas calling the first three and last three innings on television. The biggest change has Scott Graham joining the television broadcasts for the middle three innings of play-by-play. "I think this is great for Scott," Kalas said by phone from Clearwater, Fla. "He has proven himself, and I'm sure he will do a great job. " Graham, who had a heavy television schedule this winter broadcasting college basketball for the Atlantic Ten Network, CN8, and ESPN, said he would be looking forward to the season regardless of his duties.

Harry Kalas is back. The Phillies announced yesterday that Kalas has signed a three-year contract to remain in their broadcast booth. Larry Andersen, Chris Wheeler and Scott Franzke also are back. Scott Graham's contract wasn't renewed, and the Phillies have hired former Phillies outfielder Gary Matthews to take his place. The Phillies also are looking to hire a pregame and postgame host, which is the job Franzke held last season. Kalas, 70, has been in the Phillies' broadcast booth since 1971.

In a business known for lack of security, Scott Graham had never been fired. Until now. After nine seasons with the Phillies, including seven primarily doing radio play-by-play, Graham's contract was not renewed. During the winter, Graham, 41, will continue calling college basketball for CN8 and ESPN. He also does voice-overs for NFL Films. After that? "We're looking at the landscape to see what's best," Graham said yesterday from his South Jersey home. "That process is going to take a while.

Why Phillies fans should worry: As if it wasn't bad enough that the offense has gone stagnant again, the next three games are in San Diego against the best pitching staff in the majors in spacious Petco Park. Then they go to Dodger Stadium, where they're 3-8 during the regular season over the last 3 years. Then they have to parachute into Denver for a make-up game against the Rockies. Then they come home and, after playing 17 straight games without a day off, play seven games in 6 days.

When the Phillies won it all and wanted to sell a recording of how it happened in 1980, Harry Kalas called the last out. It just wasn't the real thing. Kalas re-created the greatest moment in Phillies history since the Phils' broadcast team wasn't on the air to announce it in real time. In those years, Major League Baseball had only a national radio broadcast for the World Series. "I was familiar with re-creation," Kalas said before Game 2 of the World Series in St. Petersburg.

Harry Kalas has no plans to leave the broadcast booth anytime soon, and that seems to be fine with the Phillies. "They've indicated I can be there as long as I want and as long as I'm still enjoying it," Kalas said yesterday. "I'm taking it year by year. We'll see how I feel. I have no timetable, really. " Still, it appears the Phillies are grooming his successor. They announced yesterday that Tom McCarthy, who spent the last two seasons as the play-by-play announcer for the New York Mets on WFAN-AM (660)

Editor's note: Inquirer staff writer Mike Jensen doesn't blog, doesn't tweet, doesn't Facebook. If he's got something to say, he'll think out loud on Page 2. Rain helps Philly fans With the Sixers and Flyers both playing crucial first-round playoff games Monday night, it raises the question: Didn't the NHL and NBA use to cooperate on this stuff for playoff games, trying to avoid forcing viewers in a city to choose? It's just good business sense for the leagues not to divide markets.

The Phanatic, ballgirls, broadcasters, former players and some media notables will be touring downtown in a trolley today, pumping up Phillies fans and handing out thousands of rally towels and cheer cards. The excursion was to begin by noon at Citizens Bank Park, head up Broad Street, loop around Rittenhouse Square, then take Chestnut toward Old City, before hitting Front and Broad Streets on the return trip home. It's all to build excitement for the decisive Game 5 of the National League Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals.

WAY BACK on April 1, on the road to their 102-win season, the Phillies played their home opener. It was a game in which they hit the ball - but always right at the Astros and often for easy outs. And, until the final inning, the game lacked the anticipated energy of a home opener and that of a team picked by most to be in the World Series. Down 4-2 in the bottom of the ninth, they put together a come-from-behind win with a John Mayberry walk-off single that confirmed what we all expected - that our team would be playing for a World Championship and that they would, in the end, be able to do what it takes to win. For me and countless other fans, that first win - and this entire season - has been transformative.

Editor's note: Inquirer staff writer Mike Jensen doesn't blog, doesn't tweet, doesn't Facebook. If he's got something to say, he'll think out loud on Page 2. Rain helps Philly fans With the Sixers and Flyers both playing crucial first-round playoff games Monday night, it raises the question: Didn't the NHL and NBA use to cooperate on this stuff for playoff games, trying to avoid forcing viewers in a city to choose? It's just good business sense for the leagues not to divide markets.

TELEVISION   Game broadcasts: Comcast SportsNet is scheduled to air 105 games (all in high definition). Games aired at 7 p.m. will replay at 10:30. MyPHL17 will air 45 games, nine games will be on Fox and three on ESPN. Six games will be simultaneously broadcast on MLB Network. Flyers and Sixers playoff games could change the schedule and the Phillies could be shown on more national broadcasts. Broadcast team: Tom McCarthy returns to do play-by-play, and Gary "Sarge" Matthews and Chris Wheeler will serve as color commentators.

FORT MYERS, Fla. - The 130-mile bus trip and the split-squad games the day before and another long trip to Kissimmee coming up and the hour of sleep lost to daylight saving time making the necessary early wake-up call that much more daunting provided all the pretext necessary. So the Phillies sent a traveling squad to Hammond Stadium full of players who have one thing in common: All still have something to prove. Major League Baseball suggests a minimum of four regulars for all spring-training exhibitions, a good rule of thumb considering the price of exhibition tickets.

When your paycheck comes from the team you are broadcasting for, Larry Andersen concedes that it can be a fine line between being "honest" and "too honest" in your analysis of the game. But in 13 years in the Phillies booth, Andersen has walked that fine line with a light touch that has endeared him to what can be a demanding public. In a survey conducted by the Daily News in conjunction with the Sport Industry Research Center at Temple University, Andersen was chosen by the fans as the No. 1 color commentator in Philadelphia.

Why Phillies fans should worry: As if it wasn't bad enough that the offense has gone stagnant again, the next three games are in San Diego against the best pitching staff in the majors in spacious Petco Park. Then they go to Dodger Stadium, where they're 3-8 during the regular season over the last 3 years. Then they have to parachute into Denver for a make-up game against the Rockies. Then they come home and, after playing 17 straight games without a day off, play seven games in 6 days.

PHILLIES shortstop Jimmy Rollins lives for the moment - as does the team's radio play-by-play announcer, Scott Franzke. In the bottom of the ninth inning with two men on, two outs and the Phils trailing by a run, 4-3, in Game 4 of the 2009 NLCS, Rollins stepped up to the plate against Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton with a chance to seize it. The count was 1-1 and Franzke had the call . . . The call will forever remain in Phillies lore...

Even at the World Series, at the big moments, the question comes up: How would Harry have called it? "I think about it," said Scott Franzke, the radio voice of the Phillies and Harry Kalas' successor for the game-ending moments. "After, not during. " From a certain angle - up in the broadcast booth - last season was about getting a World Series final out for Kalas to describe. In 1980, local broadcasters were shut out from doing radio in the Series. The outcry from Phillies fans who couldn't hear Kalas helped change that policy, but even the play-by-play man's children said Kalas really wanted to have that moment to climax his career.

Harry Kalas would have hated it. The broadcaster's sudden death has put his beloved Phillies in a delicate position, one they've never really occupied before: They are a franchise looking for a face. In an era when players and managers move from city to city like FedEx parcels, a baseball team's broadcasters often are its steadiest, most direct link to the public. Men and women spend their evenings with them. Kids fall asleep to them. Some of life's best moments are revealed by them.