Braves TBS Baseball network's rights fee payments to Major League Baseball. In turn, national sponsors could fulfill their advertising commitments by purchasing ads on TBS, in addition to ESPN or Fox. The move was strongly criticized by Braves fans, Atlanta area media outlets and team manager Bobby Cox. Over 90% of Braves fans who voted in an online poll conducted by the "Atlanta Journal-Constitution" newspaper preferred the team of Caray and Van Wieren to the more neutral broadcasts. The move backfired, and ratings for the TBS broadcasts declined sharply. After that year's All-Star break, TBS brought back Caray and Van Wieren to work
Steve Cox (baseball) Steve Cox (baseball) Charles Steven Cox (born October 31, 1974) is an American former professional baseball first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and in Nippon Professional Baseball for the Yokohama BayStars. Cox attended Monache High School in Porterville, California, graduating in 1992. was chosen in the fifth round of the 1992 Major League Baseball Draft by the Oakland Athletics. He played in their organization for six seasons without appearing in the major leagues. He was selected by the Devil Rays with the 46th pick in the 1997 MLB Expansion Draft. Cox was