Morrissey moves to Sun-Times; McNeil to Tribune; What about Mariotti?

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: In his sports media blog today, Ed Sherman also looks at the recent newspaper switches, especially in the Sports Departments. He then wonders why Jay Mariotti hasn't yet joined the Tribune after so much speculation that he would. : : ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ : Morrissey moves to Sun-Times; McNeil to Tribune; What about Mariotti? : Posted by Ed S. at 12/7/2009 7:15 AM CST on Chicago Business : If there was such a thing as sports-newspaper-section talk radio, the phones would be flying off the hook after what happened last week. : Friday, Dan McNeil, the host of the 9 a.m.-1 p.m. show on WSCR-AM 670, moved his once-a-week column from the Sun-Times to the Tribune. The shocker then hit when Rick Morrissey decided to jump from the Tribune to the Sun-Times. : Such a move doesn't happen often in local newspaper circles. All traffic usually flows to the Tribune Tower. The paper routinely picks off staffers from the Sun-Times, who are all too eager to jump aboard. : However, it is a new world over at the Sun-Times. With its sale to James Tyree complete, and questions about its immediate future answered, the paper is looking to make a splash. It set its sights on Mr. Morrissey. : Mr. Morrissey had been a Tribune sports columnist since 2000 and thought he would be there for life. : "The Tribune had been the place where I always wanted to work," Mr. Morrissey said. "The Sun-Times started to pursue me. The more I talked, the more I realized their commitment." : Mr. Morrissey said the Sun-Times made him "a generous offer, and I decided to pull the trigger." : "They got me excited," he said. "They're serious." : As a former longtime Tribune sportswriter, I have to admit I was surprised by Mr. Morrissey's decision. The Tribune always was the place that offered stability from a financial standpoint. : But as a former Tribune colleague noted over the weekend, both papers have slashed staff and are trying to re-emerge from bankruptcy. : "There's not much difference between them now," the former colleague said. : Indeed, that's probably true. You've got to get the money while you can these days, and Mr. Morrissey did. : As for his replacement, obviously there's going to be speculation about Jay Mariotti. The former Sun-Times columnist now writes for AOL Fanhouse and appears on ESPN's "Around the Horn." During the summer, he seemed on the verge of becoming a part of the Tribune's ChicagoNow blog network, but that never happened. : Randy Michaels, recently appointed Tribune Co. CEO, reportedly likes Mr. Mariotti. If he wanted to make his own splash, hiring Mr. Mariotti would be one way to do it. : Mr. Mariotti seems open to the possibility. He said in an e-mail Monday morning: : "I have two great national jobs. Seen around the world daily on a very fun and successful ESPN show, read by tens of millions on AOL, which sends me to major events of my choice every week — a job unlike any in business in this day and age. That said, I think this city needs a potent sports columnist. I don't see one. I've enjoyed my meetings with Trib executives." : As for Mr. McNeil, who teamed with me to write "The Great Book of Chicago Sports Lists," his arrival will add to the "Smack" level in the Tribune sports section to go along with Steve Rosenbloom. Mr. McNeil's main gig is radio, but he has done well in translating his passion and anger into print. : "When the Chicago Tribune called, I was flattered and jumped at the chance," Mr. McNeil said. "It's one of the most prestigious publications in the world, and it's a privilege to be get a shot here. They asked if I'd write for Fridays, which was a perfect fit for me. I'm sort of a 'Let's get ready for a tailgate this weekend' kind of guy, so it's a perfect position for me." : Mr. McNeil noted that this is his "second uniform change" in a year. He joined WSCR in June after a long run at WMVP-AM 1000. : "It's good to change the backdrop to avoid becoming rote," he said. "This has been a challenging, but very exciting year for me."

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