Nowadays, when baseball fans turn on a broadcast, they can typically anticipate specific things. High definition images, sleek visuals, a K Zone, a scorebug full of statistics, and more.
However, that was not always the case, as NESN went back in time this past week to provide Red Sox fans with a new viewing experience.
For Tuesday’s Red Sox vs. Cincinnati Reds game, NESN created a special vintage broadcast that aims to capture the style and atmosphere of the 1975 World Series in honor of its 50th anniversary. All of the network’s on-screen personnel wore period-appropriate attire, and the program included music, graphics, and interviews with 75 Red Sox players.
It was really popular.
Going back to the top 75 retro from last night-twitter.com/tv1IYEl1r1 -castpic
NESN July 2, 2025 (@NESN)
According to Amy Kaplan, NESN’s coordinating producer for the Red Sox, “it was great to get the reaction we got from the broadcast, especially from people I talked to from that generation, how excited they were about watching it as a kid and getting to see it on Tuesday.” There, it seemed as though we had caught something.
“Man, it’s been unbelievable,” sideline reporter Jahmai Webster remarked. It has been insane. I didn’t anticipate it becoming as well-known as it did.
Last November, the concept for the retro broadcast was originally proposed. Kaplan stated that NESN’s administration circled the series as a chance to commemorate the 75 Red Sox because they were aware that the Reds will be visiting Fenway Park and that 2025 would be the 50th anniversary of the two teams’ World Series matchup.
According to Kaplan, “it really started very simple and very basic and we kind of built on top of it.” Thus, we decided to perform two innings in the manner of a broadcast from the 1970s.
During spring training, development on the initiative accelerated, and Kaplan claimed that as soon as news spread, everyone at the network became enthusiastic and started contributing their own ideas to further elevate the broadcast.
Because it was based on baseball and part of this team’s amazing history, we all fell in love with it immediately once, host Tom Caron remarked. Now was the ideal moment to do it.
According to Kaplan, technical director Michelle Schlickman collaborated with the graphics department to produce realistic film effects, wipes, and visuals that were reminiscent of the norm at the time in order to replicate the technicolor feel of an old broadcast from the 1970s. The choice to continuously display the scorebug, which wasn’t standard in the 1970s, is the most noteworthy example of the care taken to strike a balance between historical accuracy and catering to contemporary sensibilities.
When it came to designing the costumes, NESN also had the ideal person on staff.
Longtime NESN designer Thomas Csizmadia also owns Picker Packer & Grumb, a vintage clothing company where he purchases and sells items from the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.
One of my coworkers came up with the idea because he knows I make antique clothes on the side. We were at a meeting when we began discussing whether it would be entertaining if they wore the part. “Csizmadia said.” Since I work as a designer at NESN and my other passion is retro, it seemed like a logical fit. “Hey, wouldn’t it be cool if these two things could connect?”
Csizmadia set out to get the required clothing for the broadcast using his extensive understanding of the fashion of the day and what sportscasters wore. Finding outfits that Howard Cosell could have worn on Monday Night Football was not the only thing he had to do; he also had to make sure everything fit.
Then there was coming up with something for Webster, who wanted his suit to be a little more unique.
I emailed Amy a photo of Jimi Hendrix in 1975 when it was handed to me, and I said, “If it’s not like this, I’m not wearing it,” Webster said. And they fulfilled that commitment. (Editor’s Note: In 1970, Hendrix passed away.)
With the help of his personal collection, inventory, and industry contacts, Csizmadia assembled the clothing and created a unique red flowery button-up shirt for Webster.
My wife liked it and it fit rather well, so I thought, “Okay, let’s do it,” Webster said.
According to Kaplan, that clothing was intended for Jahmai.
In a surprising turn of events, thunderstorms blew into the area before the fourth inning started, causing a protracted rain delay. Originally, the retro broadcast was supposed to include the third and fourth innings. Given that Game 6 of the 1975 World Series was famously postponed by three days due to heavy rain, the NESN crew was not blind to the irony. However, it did allow the broadcast to continue and gave commentators Lou Merloni and Dave O. Brien the opportunity to interview colleague Jim Rice, a member of the 75 Red Sox, in the booth.
“Normally, I don’t like rain delays, but this one kind of worked out well because we were able to talk to Jim,” Kaplan remarked.
Later, Rice went back to the centerfield studio of NESN, where he and Caron played until the game was postponed until the next afternoon.
I thought, “Didn’t you get wet?” The line was excellent. Caron said that the broadcast was eventually improved by the rain delay. “And he said sugar don’t melt, which is the perfect Jim Rice line,” Caron remarked. In the end, it stretched it over to another day, allowing the graphics to continue, allowing for a bit longer storyline, and giving Jim some excellent insight into what was happening in 75.
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The retro broadcast took up where it left off when play resumed on Wednesday and continued as scheduled until the end of the fourth inning. The program created a lot of excitement by the conclusion, from senior viewers who grew up in that era to younger followers who were fascinated by the aesthetics.
Particularly from our younger demographic, some of the social media reactions have been funny, Webster added. However, several of the older people also mentioned how it brought them back to that era, so I believe we were spot on in that respect.
“A lot of what we have now is built on that 1975 team, whether you were alive for it or not. It was a really important season in revitalizing and building the passion for the Red Sox in Boston,” Caron said. There was some frivolity and a lot of fun, but it was all based on baseball and the amazing history of the Red Sox, so I was thrilled that it resonated with people.
This season, NESN will be implementing other unique initiatives in addition to the throwback broadcast. The Green Monster will be the main attraction of Monster Week, which the network is organizing this week. Merloni and O Brien will be broadcasting the entire Monday series opener against the Colorado Rockies from atop the wall.
Would NESN think about hosting another throwback show in the future, maybe one with an 80s theme to celebrate the 86 team’s 40th anniversary the following year? Although Kaplan stated that they have not yet discussed ideas for the upcoming season, she has found the entire process of producing this week’s broadcast to be fulfilling and is appreciative that people found it enjoyable.
According to Kaplan, a lot of individuals worked to make this happen, and many of them were thrilled about the challenge. Behind the scenes, we had just as much fun as most people had watching it.
Although the Red Sox did not have any position players selected as starters, it is likely that left-handers Garrett Crochet and Aroldis Chapman will be among the American League’s pitchers when the full MLB All-Star rosters are revealed on Sunday.
Are any of their teammates going to accompany them? There is a good chance that three other Red Sox players will be named All-Stars.
Despite having now missed more than a month due to injury, Alex Bregman was the runner-up in the AL third base voting and continues to rank among the league’s best performers at the position in Wins Above Replacement (2.9), home runs (11), RBI (35) and OPS (.938). Even if he were able to make a comeback before the All-Star Break, Bregman probably wouldn’t play, but it wouldn’t be strange to see him get the nod from his peers nevertheless, even if he ended up merely giving the roster place to the next most worthy applicant.
After Seattle’s Cal Raleigh, Carlos Narvaez has a good chance of finishing as the AL’s second-best catcher. In addition to having an OPS of about.800 and some impressive defensive numbers, he is ranked second among AL catchers in WAR. Will that be sufficient to give him the advantage against Alejandro Kirk of Toronto? Even if Narvaez has a superior case on paper, he may still have a long way to go because Kirk was the runner-up in the fan poll, has previously been named an All-Star, and plays for a club higher in the standings.
Wilyer Abreu, who is having a fantastic season but has fierce competition in an AL outfield that is packed, is the most unlikely of the viable contenders. Abreu is on pace to approach 30 home runs and still ranks as one of the top defensive right fielders in the game, but he ll have to crack a reserve unit that will almost certainly include Mike Trout and Steven Kwan, leaving perhaps one spot up for grabs. Would Abreu defeat Toronto’s George Springer, Seattle’s Julio Rodriguez and Randy Arozarena, or Minnesota’s Byron Buxton? It’s unlikely.
At 5 p.m. on Sunday, the complete MLB All-Star rosters will be revealed.
Joshua Baez was one of the area s top prep standouts a few years back, becoming a two-time Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year at Dexter Southfield before signing with the St. Louis Cardinals out of high school. But since being chosen in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft, the Boston native has taken some time to find his footing in the professional ranks.
However, he is now beginning to gain momentum.
Baez is enjoying a breakout season, and at the time of was batting .291 with 10 home runs, 49 RBI, 31 stolen bases and an .885 OPS through his first 66 games split between High-A and Double-A. Baez was promoted at the end of May and has continued to produce with the Springfield Cardinals, maintaining a consistent OPS to what he had at High-A while hitting six homers in his first 28 games at Double-A.
Still only 22, Baez now ranks as St. Louis No. 12 prospect according to MLB Pipeline. The outlet notes that while Baez has long struggled to make enough contact to allow his plus power to play, he s now significantly cut down on his whiff rate and has flourished as a result.
