At this point, Chris Carlin likely wishes he had just stayed in Philadelphia.
Itâs been four months since Carlin left SportsRadio 94.1 WIP to join former Jets linebacker Bart Scott and SI Now host Maggie Gray as part of a three-person team tasked with replacing retiring sports radio legend Mike Francesa.
But in a move that has shocked sports media pundits and taken the sports radio industry by storm, Francesa is reportedly returning to WFAN and will reclaim his seat hosting afternoon drive time on the station. Heâll even be recording his show each day from the Mike Francesa Studio, which WFAN renamed on Francesaâs second-to-last day at the station.
On Tuesday, WFAN would only confirm that it is having âongoing discussionsâ with Francesa about returning, with Newsdayâs Neil Best reporting the move could happen as early as next week. A source with knowledge of the situation said the current plan (which could change) is for Francesa to return to his former drive-time spot, hosting from 3 or 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Carlin, Scott and Gray would be bumped to a lower-rated timeslot, hosting from 1 to 3 or 3:30 p.m.
> Francesa called Jason Kelce a âmoron.â Then he suddenly changed his tune
âWe are very proud of our current lineup at WFAN and that any potential future engagement with Mike will not result in any talent departures,â WFAN said in a statement.
Carlin and Francesa didnât have a great relationship to begin with, with Carlin admitting he hadnât spoken to Francesa since 2010. Last month, Francesa and his former WFAN partner, SirusXM Radioâs Chris Russo, mocked WFANâs ratings struggles under the new three-person team. According to multiple reports, that evoked a strongly worded text message from Carlin to both men, something Russo addressed on his show Tuesday.
âYouâre 45 years of age, let it roll off your back,â Russo said of Carlin, who started his career as a producer working for both Russo and Francesa on Mike & the Mad Dog. âThatâs completely out of line. I didnât care. It didnât bother me⦠Mike didnât feel that way.â
Regardless of the content of the texts, Carlin took the high road on his show on Tuesday.
âThis is a business. Youâre talking about someone in Mike who was widely successful for 30 years. So it only makes business sense to welcome something like that into the fold,â Carlin said to open Afternoon Drive on Tuesday. âIs it awkward? Of course itâs awkward.â
âWeâre going to keep doing our show, whenever it is,â Carlin added. âThere is room for all of us here, and weâre all going to be here.â
Carlin, Maggie and Bart Show Open https://t.co/W23OHGHC8S
â Afternoon Drive with Carlin, Maggie and Bart (@CMBWFAN) April 24, 2018
But longtime New York sports media critic Bob Raissman wrote in Wednesdayâs New York Daily News that no one should believe the comments coming out of WFAN that Carlin, Scott and Gray are just moving to another time slot.
âAfter two years, someone/ones will be out the door,â Raissman wrote, claiming the station is âburyingâ Carlin, Scott and Grayâs show and that Francesaâs decision to return to the station in such a manner was âpathetic.â
Itâs worth pointing out that in the latest ratings book, Carlin, Scott and Gray lost in the ratings to ESPNâs Michael Kay, something that never happened during Francesaâs tenure (which led to a bit of gloating from ESPNâs PR team). On his show Tuesday, Kay compared Francesa to Jay Leno stealing back The Tonightâs Show from Conan OâBrien and called WFANâs actions âdisgraceful.â
Carlin was hired by WIP in November 2016 to replace outspoken host Josh Innes, who was fired after sharing a photo of a performer in blackface in response to a controversy over a fake caller at 97.5 The Fanatic. Carlin was paired with Ike Reese, and though the duo was able to increase WIPâs ratings during the year they hosted together, they were never able to overtake The Fanaticâs Mike Missanelli (Reese and new co-host Jon Marks did defeat Missanelli in the latest quarterly book, thanks in no small part to the Eaglesâ Super Bowl win).
Raissman and Kay werenât the only people to criticize Francesaâs decision to return. Russo said it was a bad look for Francesa to crawl back to WFAN looking for just â60 cents on the dollar.â
âIf you change your mind [about retiring], you look like a horseâs fanny,â Russo said Tuesday. âWhen itâs time to go, just sense in your own gut and go.â