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A’s Hire Townsend; Work to Finalize Broadcast Partner

Oakland A's

The Oakland A’s have named Chris Townsend radio host and senior broadcast producer, a move that comes as the team works to finalize its radio broadcast partner. 

Townsend is a familiar voice to A’s and Oakland sports fans in general, as he has worked as a pre-game and postgame radio announcer on A’s broadcasts and hosted an evening talk show on 95.7 FM. He leaves his full-time position at 95.7 to join the A’s as the team works to complete the task of finding a radio partner for the upcoming season.

In October, it was revealed that the A’s had parted ways with broadcast partner 95.7 FM The Game at the end of their multiyear partnership.  The station has not been replaced as the team’s broadcast partner in the months since, but with spring training just around the corner and the regular season approaching, the A’s are reportedly close to finalizing an agreement. More from the San Francisco Chronicle:

According to industry sources, the A’s are close to completing a deal with a free streaming service and a local radio station that should be announced in the next week or two.

The A’s are likely to use Townsend and others to provide expanded coverage for their streaming broadcasts, in particular, with the potential for A’s-centered talk shows, interview segments and expanded pre- and postgame shows.

“This is a dream come true,” Townsend said. “This is the organization I love and always wanted to work for. I never knew this kind of job would be available; it’s unusual, which is pretty cool. This is the new wave of how teams will present themselves.”

It is worth noting that neither the hiring of Townsend nor the eventual announcement of a new broadcast partner will affect the statuses of long-time A’s play-by-play team Ken Korach and Vince Cotroneo. The Chronicle reports that they are returning to their roles in 2019.

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