Brian Kenny (sportscaster)

Brian Kenny
Born (1963-10-18) October 18, 1963
New York City, New York, U.S.
Nationality American
Education New York Institute of Technology
St. John's University
Notable credit(s) MLB Network
ESPN
WTZA-TV
NBC Sports Radio
Title SportsCenter Anchor; ESPN Radio & ESPN2 Friday Night Fights Studio Host
Children 5

Brian Kenny (born October 18, 1963 in New York City) is a studio host for MLB Network and a presenter on NBC Sports Radio. He previously worked for ESPN, and had his own show on ESPN Radio named The Brian Kenny Show.

Early career

Kenny has a BFA from New York Institute of Technology and also attended St. John's University (New York City).[1] He got his start as a journalist at Long Island News Tonight at NY Tech.[2]

Before working for ESPN, he worked for WTZA in Kingston, New York.[3]

ESPN

Kenny anchored the 6:00 pm Eastern Time Zone SportsCenter, and was the host of Friday Night Fights on ESPN2. On Friday Night Fights, he was known for his heated debates with some of the best boxers in the world, particularly Floyd Mayweather.[4] He also previously hosted Baseball Tonight[5], and The Hot List on ESPNEWS. Kenny also hosted the ESPN Classic series The Top 5 Reasons You Can't Blame..., which debuted in 2005.[6]

In 2005, he hosted a special series called Ringside (2005 TV series).[7] It runs three to six hours long an episode and featured on each episode one great boxer.

Kenny appears as himself in the 2006 film Rocky Balboa and in the 2007 film Resurrecting the Champ,[8] and also served with fellow ESPN personality John Saunders as the "announcing team" for a home demolition during an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition that aired on November 2, 2008. (The episode involved a project in which the Extreme Makeover team built a new home and gym for a family that operated a youth boxing gym in Geneva, New York).[9]

Prior to hosting The Brian Kenny Show on ESPN Radio, he co-hosted Kellerman and Kenny with Max Kellerman on ESPN Radio in New York City.[10]

MLB Network

Kenny announced on the August 31, 2011 edition of The Brian Kenny Show that he was leaving ESPN to become an anchor with MLB Network. His final show was on September 2, 2011, with the 6 p.m. edition of SportsCenter alongside Jonathan Coachman. Kenny made his debut on MLB Tonight on September 19, 2011.[11] Kenny also hosted his own show on the network entitled Clubhouse Confidential. He also has done commentary on Top Rank's Pay Per View boxing in Brandon Rios's controversial split points win over Cuban Lightweight Richard Abril and Manny Pacquiao versus Jessie Vargas. In September 2012, Kenny was named host of Showtime Championship Boxing.[12]

MLB Network announced it will host a new debate show pitting Kenny against Harold Reynolds beginning April 1, 2013, called MLB Now. On the show, Kenny will represent a "new school", sabermetric-oriented point of view, while Reynolds will represent a more traditional, "old school" point of view.[13] The show has since evolved, replacing Reynolds with three guest panelists, typically sportswriters from various sources such as Ken Rosenthal and Henry Schulman.

Since 2017, Kenny has served as the Master of Ceremonies for the Baseball Hall of Fame induction.[14]

NBC Sports Radio Network

On March 21, 2013, Kenny was named as the host of The Brian Kenny Show on NBC Sports Radio. The show made its debut with the network's other weekday daytime programs on April 1, 2013. It airs from 9 a.m. to noon eastern.[15]

Joined by his producer Lou Pellegrino and Peter Kenny (Kenny's son), the head of the show's Analytics Department, Kenny takes on the day's sports news by going beyond the scores and delving into the data, breaking down the analytics of the games. Regular segments on the program include Click or Don't Click, where Kenny leads the trio through deciding which of the top sports stories of the morning to read based solely on the headline. This segment is meant to reflect how the modern person consumes online news media.

Regular guests include Joe Sheehan of Sports Illustrated, Bobby Valentine and Stan Van Gundy.

Awards and nominations

Brian won a National Sports Emmy for Baseball Tonight in 2003[16], was named Sports Illustrated's Media Personality of the Year in 2004, and received the 2005 Sam Taub Award as the Boxing Writers Association's "Boxing Broadcaster of the Year".[17] He also received ESPN's "Volunteer of the Year" award in 2007.[18]

Personal

Kenny is married to the former Nicole Jacqueline Desy. They have five children.[19]

References

  1. ↑ "Brian Kenny-MLB Network". MLB.com. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  2. ↑ "MLB Network host Brian Kenny, NYIT Class of '85, to headline Feb. 26 First-Pitch Dinner". nyitbears.com. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
  3. ↑ Career references from CyberBoxingZone Journal.
  4. ↑ Christ, Scott. "Friday Night Fights Studio Host Brian Kenny Leaving ESPN". SB Nation. Vox Media. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  5. ↑ "Throwing In The Towel: Brian Kenny Leaving ESPN In September". SportsBusiness Daily. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
  6. ↑ "The Top 5 Reasons You Can't Blame...(TV Series 1999-)". IMDb. IMDB. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  7. ↑ McCarthy, Michael. "Sugar Ray Leonard, Brian Kenny in talks to call DAZN fights, sources say". SportingNews.com. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  8. ↑ Appearance in Rocky Balboa: Filmography at the Internet Movie Database.
  9. ↑ Poe, Margaret. "'Extreme Makeover' tackles Geneva house". mpmnow.com. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  10. ↑ Yoder, Matt. "The rise, fall, and rise of Max Kellerman at ESPN". Awfulannouncing.com. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  11. ↑ Michael McCarthy (September 14, 2011). "One-on-one with Brian Kenny as he joins MLB Network". USA Today. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
  12. ↑ "Brian Kenny-MIT Sloan Analytics Conference". SloanSportsConference.com. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  13. ↑ MLB Now debuts April 1st. MLB.com. March 1, 2013. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
  14. ↑ Francis, Bill. "Induction Weekend Begins With Ozzie Smith's PLAY BALL". Baseballhall.org. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  15. ↑ "Brian Kenny Premieres New Show on NBC Sports Radio". NBC Sports Group Press Box. NBC. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  16. ↑ "MLB Network host Brian Kenny, NYIT Class of '85, to headline Feb. 26 First-Pitch Dinner". NYITBears.com. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  17. ↑ "Brian Kenny-MLB Network". MLB.com. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
  18. ↑ Gall, Braden. "25 Greatest SportsCenter Anchors of All-Time". AthlonSports.com. Retrieved August 19, 2018.
  19. ↑ Rosner, Ron. "Former Kingston resident, MLB Network host Brian Kenny 'Ahead of the Curve' with book on Sabermetrics". DailyFreeman.com. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
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