Marquee Sports Network gives Boog Sciambi and Jim Deshaies multi-year contract extensions

At the moment, we don’t yet know when the next Chicago Cubs TV broadcast will be.

But we do know, from an announcement today from Marquee Sports Network, that Jon “Boog” Sciambi and Jim Deshaies were given multi-year contract extensions to remain play-by-play commentator and analyst, respectively.

“We’re pleased to announce multiyear extensions with ‘Boog’ and JD, a tremendous partnership that was apparent from their first broadcast together last season and will only continue growing stronger in the years to come,” said Marquee Sports Network General Manager, Mike McCarthy, in a statement. “The duo share not only a genuine love for baseball, but also a distinct sense of humor and quick wit, making for an entertaining broadcast all summer long.”

“I could not be more excited to continue being part of both the Marquee and Cubs families going forward,” said Sciambi in a statement. “Getting to work with my buddy JD, as well as Taylor, Elise and the entire production crew has been an absolute blast and there is nothing better than calling Wrigley Field home and broadcasting for the best fans in the game. I look forward to one day even meeting JD’s cousin Randy.”

“I’m thrilled to continue my relationship with Marquee Sports Network and the Cubs,” said Deshaies in a statement. “This has been and continues to be a dream job for me and it is a joy to saddle up alongside Boog, Taylor, Elise, our great production team, the leadership at Marquee and the Cubs, and everyone else that makes our group so special.”

“Boog and JD have been a superb pairing for us and we’re excited to have them continue leading our game broadcasts moving forward,” said Marquee Sports Network SVP of Programming and Production, Mike Santini in a statement. “The Cubs broadcast booth has always been extremely important to Cubs fans, and we’re proud to have Boog and JD continuing this legacy.”

Santini is correct. Cubs games have been televised in larger numbers than any other team’s in MLB history and 2022 will be the 75th season the Cubs have appeared on TV, beginning with the 1948 season on WGN-TV. The relationship between Cubs broadcast channels and Cubs fans has thus always been important, especially when WGN-TV began to be distributed on national cable in 1978, creating more generations of Cubs fans who had never lived in Chicago, but liked the way the team was presented to them by Jack Brickhouse and Harry Caray. You can read more about WGN’s history of televising Cubs games in this five-part series I posted here in September 2019.

I look forward to seeing the Cubs on TV again... whenever the 2022 season begins. I should mention here that I spoke with Mike McCarthy when the 2021 season ended and had planned on posting an article about that last fall... but time got away from me. I do still intend to post some thoughts on Marquee’s coverage of the Cubs sometime before the 2022 season begins.