Fox baseball sportscaster Tim McCarver is one of the better talking jocks. He’s a fairly bright and articulate fellow. He usually doesn’t prattle too badly on air. And from time to time he actually says something insightful or entertaining about the game. But he did his reputation great harm Saturday during a Milwaukee Brewers/St. Louis Cardinals game when he said that global warming is causing more home runs in baseball.

Here’s the direct quote: “It has not been proven, but I think ultimately it will be proven that the air is thinner now, there has been climatic changes over the past 60 years in the world, and I think that’s one of the reasons balls are carrying much better now than I can remember.”

Before ascending to the broadcast booth, McCarver put together a fine 21-year career as a major league catcher. This uncharacteristic but really dumb observation makes me wonder how many of Tim’s 1900+ games he caught without wearing a mask.

Stick to color and game strategy, Tim.