Orioles hire ESPN's Kevin Brown to handle radio play-by-play

(DRAFT)

SARASOTA, Fla. - ESPN broadcaster Kevin Brown is joining the Orioles Radio Network in 2019, serving as a play-by-play announcer for about 50 games this season.

Brown's hiring comes on the heels of Joe Angel's retirement after 19 seasons as the radio play-by-play voice of the Orioles. Angel spent more than four decades calling major league games, including two World Series, 44 postseason games and seven no-hitters.

Brown currently serves as a play-by-play commentator on ESPN's coverage of high school football and college football, basketball, and hockey. He previously served as lead broadcaster with the Syracuse Chiefs, the Triple-A affiliate of the Nationals, while serving as the Chiefs' director of broadcasting and media relations.

Other changes include "MASN All-Access" host Sara Perlman becoming the network's sideline reporter, providing on-field reports for all regular season Orioles games. She joined MASN in 2017 and has provided coverage of the Orioles and Nationals.

Rob Long is joining the "O's Xtra" pregame and postgame shows as weekend host. Long currently serves as a co-host for Baltimore's Big Bad Morning Show on the 105.7 The Fan. He's also worked for MASN since 2009.

Returning to their previous in-game roles are veteran broadcasters Gary Thorne, who enters his 13th season as MASN's lead play-by-play announcer, and Jim Hunter, who returns for his 23rd year as a member of the Orioles broadcast team. Hunter will serve as the Orioles Radio Network's play-by-play announcer for a majority of games and also will continue to appear on MASN's broadcasts for about 40 games.

Hall of Famer Jim Palmer returns for his 27th season as lead analyst on MASN and his 56th season as a member of the Orioles organization.

Analysts on MASN and the Orioles Radio Network include former Orioles Mike Bordick, Ben McDonald and Brian Roberts.

Former Orioles pitchers Dave Johnson and Gregg Olson also will provide analysis during radio broadcasts.

Bordick enters his eighth season as an analyst and McDonald begins his fourth on the radio side and first with MASN. Olson and Roberts are expanding their slate of games in their second seasons in the radio booth and the former second baseman also is going to make appearances on MASN. Johnson returns to the Orioles Radio Network as a regular in-game analyst in 2019.

Former catcher Rick Dempsey, MVP of the 1983 World Series, returns for his 13th season as a member of the Orioles broadcast team, continuing his role on the "O's Xtra" pregame and postgame show. Tom Davis is serving as host for a fourth season and returns for his 21st year on Orioles telecasts, working as co-host for all Monday through Thursday games.

Meanwhile, I'll continuing to cover the team for MASNsports.com, but also will become a more regular contributor pregame and in-game on MASN and radio broadcasts.