Pitarresi: Farewell to Bud & The Manchild

 

One of my favorite radio personalities, Jim Lerch, host of the “Bud & The Manchild” sports-talk radio show on 620-WHEN in Syracuse, has been let go by Clear Channel Communications, Inc.. That means the six-year-old program, co-hosted by Syracuse Post-Standard sports columnist Bud Poliquin, has come to an end. Clear Channel reportedly cut 10 percent of its staff nationwide.

 

Lerch ran an interesting, upbeat show. I would disagree with him and Poliquin from time to time, sometimes vehemently, and they certainly disagreed with each other often enough, but it made for good listening. Since I cover Syracuse football and basketball and so did they in a very big way, it was always informative to hear what they and their listeners had to say about the Orange. I also liked Perry Noun, their golf guru, who knew his stuff and had an offbeat, genial delivery.

 

“Bud & The Manchild” is being replaced by a national show, of which we have too many. I have to laugh when I hear people say the nationally syndicated sports-talk shows are better than local. They aren’t, for three reasons – one, they can’t discuss local sports, you have little chance of getting a call in, and many of those guys a big blowhards talking through their hats because there is no way some guy sitting in Los Angeles can really know much about every pro league and college basketball and football.

 

I’ll miss the show. Its demise is a loss for Central New York sports fans. My best wishes and good luck to Jim Lerch. I hope he finds something very soon.