Rory Markas approaching anniversary of suffering blood clot

Angels fans have every right to cry “foul ball” over the TBS broadcast team assigned to the Angels-Red Sox series -- Boston Red Sox announcer Don Orsillo on play-by-play and Buck Martinez, who joined Orsillo this season in calling a Red Sox series, as analyst.

So maybe fans here will instead tune in to AM 830 and listen to their guys, Rory Markas and Terry Smith.

For Markas, an anniversary is coming. On Nov. 1, 2008, he suffered a blood clot in his brain and was in intensive care for 10 days after surgery.

“Yesterday I happened to turn on the radio and Vin [Scully] was doing the early innings of the Dodger game,” Markas said Thursday before calling the Angels’ Game 1.

“When I heard his voice I said, ‘God, what a treasure this guy has been my whole life.’ I just appreciated what he’s doing, the standard he sets and hope I can do that just a little. I think I get a little more sentimental these days.

“Nov. 1, 2008, was the day I fell down and when it comes up this year all I want to be doing is thinking about the World Series and I hope we’re in it. Otherwise, it doesn’t do me any good to think about what happened except to say I am a bit proud of myself that I did 162 games this year.”

Markas said his doctors told him he’d need to take things easy this year. “I said, guys, I’m covering baseball. Taking it easy isn’t really doable.”

So Markas worked -- and would like to keep working for about four more weeks. The World Series begins Oct. 28.

Finding NASCAR

Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup Pepsi 500 at California Motor Speedway in Fontana will begin at 12:15 on Sunday and be televised by Channel 7. Next year more races will begin earlier -- 21 Sunday races will begin at 10 a.m. PDT, five will begin at noon and nine Saturday broadcasts will be at 4:30 p.m.

“We’ve been going later in the [Sunday] broadcast window and we haven’t been as consistent as we can,” NASCAR chairman and chief executive Brian France said in a conference call this week.

David Hill, chairman of Fox Sports, which also broadcasts some NASCAR events, said “Guilty,” when explaining that in a ratings points chase, television executives instead drove away the most loyal fans. “We tried to tamper with something we shouldn’t have,” Hill said.

France says the later the broadcast time, the more television sets are turned on.

“But we had a fan council, 25,000 dedicated fans,” France said. “The feedback was pretty clear that earlier start times fit their lifestyles and viewing habits better.”

Good on Friday

The Golf Channel’s Presidents Cup coverage begins at 11 a.m. Fred Couples is captain of the U.S. team that includes Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. Greg Norman is captain of the International Team, which has 18-year-old Japanese sensation Ryo Ishikawa.

Good on Saturday

For bull riding fans that get DirecTV, here’s what you’re missing as the contract dispute with the Comcast-owned Versus continues: the PBR BFTS Cooper Tires Invitational at 5 p.m.; for football fans you’ll miss Iowa State at Kansas. For the rest of us, the glamour national football matchup is No. 1 Florida at No. 4 LSU at 5 p.m. on Channel 2 with Verne Lundquist and Gary Danielson on the call. Oregon is at UCLA on Channel 7 at 12:30.

Good on Sunday

The final day of the Presidents Cup golf tournament is on Channel 4 at 9 a.m. Dan Hicks and Johnny Miller will anchor the coverage of the singles matches. For NFL fans, the continuing awfulness of the Raiders (against the Giants) will be showcased at 10 a.m. on Channel 2. Better is the 1:15 game between Denver and New England, also on Channel 2. New York Jets rookie quarterback and USC alum Mark Sanchez will be interviewed by another former Trojan, Keyshawn Johnson, for the “Sunday Conversation” portion of the 8 p.m. “SportsCenter” on ESPN.

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