St. Louis Sports Media Power Rankings

Power Ranking

Name

Gigs

Notes

RPI

1

Bernie Miklasz

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM), St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Most powerful media personality in St. Louis sports. Be it radio, TV or print, the Big Dog holds fanbase and franchises alike in his sway. On top of all that, unlike his fellow columnists/pundits, he actually takes the trouble to enter the locker room and report.

.987

2

Bob Costas

NBC-TV

One word sums up this pint-size sports-media personality's outsized stature: gravitas. Costas, who got his big break at KMOX, has it in spades.

.976

3

Martin Kilcoyne

KTVI-TV (Channel 2), KTRS (550 AM)

Smart and witty, a pleasure to tune in. Nightly rant, "The Kilcoyne Opinion" (a.k.a. TKO), guarantees the FOX newscast a happy ending.

.892

Joe Strauss

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, KTRS (550 AM)

On a scale of 1 to 10, Strauss is an 11 -- in his book. Do we hate him because he's an asshole, or do we love him because he's an asshole? The answer depends on whether we're in the mood for anal.

.850

5

Derrick Goold

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, KTRS (550 AM)

Cardinals beat writer doesn't have his own radio show, but he might be the local sports landscape's only Twitter must-follow, offering scoops, humor and unequaled fan-reporter interaction.

.850

6

Steve Savard

KMOV-TV (Channel 4), ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

KMOV sports director/Rams radio play-by-play man is among the most well-informed and smartest journos in town. Astounding that he doesn't have his own radio show.

.838

7

Mike Shannon

KMOX (1120 AM)

As he rolls on into the deepening twilight of a long broadcasting career, the Moon Man's eyesight fails him with increasing frequency. Words, however, never do. A local treasure.

.815

8

Joe Buck

FOX-TV

Anybody who shares a podcast with Tim McKernan has, ipso facto, some serious character flaws. And though he's not in the same league as his fellow Joe (Strauss), he can redline the assholemeter from time to time. But props for his knowledge and dry humor.

.800

9

Mike Claiborne

KMOX (1120 AM), St. Louis American

His smug demeanor can make him come across as a know-it-all, but truth is he does know an awful lot about St. Louis sports.

.795

10

Tom Ackerman

KMOX (1120 AM)

A straighter shot than I-70 to Kansas City. Tends to be a homer, but that might be a job requirement at the "Mighty 'MOX."

.750

11

John Rooney

KMOX (1120 AM)

Baseball radio man came to St. Louis in 2006, straight from calling the Chicago White Sox's first World Series triumph in nearly 90 years -- then promptly rode the Redbirds to their first since '82. So far he's 4 for 7 in postseason appearances, with two World Championships. Now that's a Cardinals winner!

.750

12

Randy Karraker

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

Consummate pro, always informed, always prepared, Karraker often plays the foil to his less-competent but louder boothmates. Facts trump opinion every time, though. An astonishing trove of sports trivia.

.721

13

Dan McLaughlin

FOX Sports Midwest

Many lampoon him for his drunken run-ins with Johnny Law. But he's a far better play-by-play man than folks give him credit for. Plus, he has to put up with insufferable goody-two-shoes Rick Horton and Al "The Hair" Hrabosky.

.702

14

Dan Dierdorf

CBS-TV

The old Big Red offensive lineman reached his personal broadcasting pinnacle a generation ago with a dozen-year stint on ABC's Monday Night Football, but he's still going strong on CBS.

.673

15

Pat Parris

FOX Sports Midwest

Parris is Dean Martin to Jim Hayes' Jerry Lewis. A solid, oft-overlooked journalist.

.667

16

Rick Hummel

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Busch Stadium's press box is named in honor of Bob Broeg and Hummel. The difference is Broeg has the decency to be dead, while the man they call "The Commish" plods on. As a scribe and reporter, the truth is he's merely better than average. The key to his elevated rep? Not pissing anyone off.

.651

17

Chris Duncan

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM), FOX Sports Midwest

Former Cardinals left fielder has ramped up his knowledge of other sports to become a respectable radio host in record time. Let us all raise our man-sodas to toast sports radio's hardest trier!

.636

18

Brian Stull

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

Hard worker who puts in more than his share of hours at the ballpark. Bonus points for having to cohost with Bob Ramsey.

.619

19

Kevin Wheeler

KMOX (1120 AM)

Scrappy blue-collar guy who worked his way up from graveyard shifts in other markets. Exhibits unparalleled patience in suffering endless call-ins from idiot listeners (and Ron Jacober).

.608

20

Jimmy "The Cat" Hayes

KFNS "The Fan" (590 AM), FOX Sports Midwest

Quick to joke about others but thin-skinned himself, especially on the topic of his hairpiece -- which, until he upgraded it not long ago, deserved its own show, if not its own slot in these power rankings. Still, his on-field access to Cardinals players (who mercilessly mock him without fear of retribution) provides him with fodder for some meaty reportage.

.599

21

John Kelly

FOX Sports Midwest

Son of legendary Blues broadcaster Dan Kelly, John Kelly is a chip off the old block -- but in a good way (cf. Jay Randolph Jr. and B.J. Rains).

.586

22

Kevin Slaten

KFNS "The Fan" (590 AM)

The Bill O'Reilly of St. Louis sports media. Screw the facts -- hell, screw everybody. He's a bully, and an unapologetic one at that. Still, his willingness to call out players, coaches and team brass is undeniably refreshing in this too-polite town.

.567

23

Tim McKernan

KFNS "The Fan" (590 AM)

Dreams of being the Howard Stern of St. Louis sports radio, but he's more like our Al Goldstein (infamous founder of Screw magazine). He knows his stuff, ballwise, but his frequent digressions on porn and poker smack of self-loathing.

.555

24

Frank Cusumano

KFNS "The Fan"
(590 AM), KSDK-TV (Channel 5)

King of the non sequitur and the feel-good story -- often achieving both simultaneously. Know of a one-armed Belleville basketball player with a three-legged dog? Cusumano is there!

.532

25

Chris Kerber

KMOX (1120 AM)

A bit dorky. OK, really dorky. Also an extremely diligent hockey reporter.

.517

26

Vahe Gregorian

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

No man is an island, unless he's Vahe Gregorian, holding down the Mizzou beat for St. Louis' Only Daily.

.472

27

Tony Softli

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

Imagine the Rams' surprise when they showed their vice president of player development the door -- only to see him sneak back into Rams Park as a sports journo?

.461

28

Kathleen Nelson

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Not her fault! Forced to cover cast-off material her male colleagues refuse to touch.

.448

29

Zach McCrite

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

Newcomer to the market is a perfect match for the couch-potato set (it takes one to know one). Knowledgeable enough to get by and a competent, sometimes colorful interviewer. Trending upward for his yeoman duty propping up the dead weight of on-air partner Rick Venturi.

.437

30

D'Marco Farr

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

Ex-Rams defensive tackle, now the biggest shill on St. Louis sports radio. Does there exist a business or product Farr wouldn't plug? Football knowledge is predictably on target but adds little to the conversation when the topic turns to other sports.

.414

31

Rene Knott

KSDK-TV (Channel 5)

Knott's not a dummy by any stretch, but balance that with his unfailingly obsequious interviewing style (and the fact that he's always seemingly jacked on Hi-C or some similar sugar high), and what you get is utter mediocrity.

.402

32

Rich Gould

KPLR-TV (Channel 11)

The jester of St. Louis sports journalism. Too bad he's so hard to take seriously, given that he has managed to persevere for more than three decades on the St. Louis airwaves.

.383

33

Jeremy Rutherford

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

The Blues are locked out, and Jeremy Rutherford is a man without a country.

.349

34

Jim Thomas

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Do the Rams deserve better? Nah.

.343

35

Al Hrabosky

FOX Sports Midwest

What he lacks in colorful commentary he more than makes up for in cranial and facial hair. Is there such a thing as gay lions?

.291

36

Doug Vaughn

KFNS "The Fan" (590 AM), KMOV-TV (Channel 4)

If TV sports anchors were ice cream, Vaughn would be vanilla (the white kind; not the cream-colored stuff with "real specks"). But his gig on KFNS' Morning After adds a few sprinkles to the sundae.

.263

37

B.J. Rains

KXFN "The Fan 2" (1380 AM), FOX Sports Midwest

Is there an industry (excluding military dictatorships) more prone to nepotism than sports journalism? The son of former Globe-Democrat sports reporter Rob Rains, B.J. shares a radio show with Dad and pens online content for FOX Sports Midwest.

.252

38

Michelle Smallmon

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

As Bernie Miklasz's producer on WXOS, Smallmon is the sports-journalism equivalent of one of the minor moons that orbits Jupiter. How hard is it to book guests for Bernie? Dude gets anyone he wants.

.251

39

Rick Venturi

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

A pre-senile version of Jim Hanifan. Ex-defensive coordinator brings X's and O's to the table and nothing more. Moves up three spots in these rankings in deference to the number of victories he rang up as head coach -- for Northwestern University (1-31-1), the New Orleans Saints (1-7) and the Indianapolis Colts (1-11).

.240

40

Ron Jacober

KMOX (1120 AM)

The Wilford Brimley of sports radio. His Sunday-morning show is only a slightly better option than going to church.

.233

41

Bryan Burwell

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Strip away the adjectives, and his columns would be as thin as his arguments.

.196

42

Howard Balzer

KFNS "The Fan" (590 AM)

Harder to eradicate than a cockroach. Seems like Balzer hasn't had a paying gig in more than a decade (as is common in radio, he sells advertising for his own shows), yet he's still here. His NFL draft soliloquies are less welcome than tests of the Emergency Broadcast System.

.170

43

Rob Rains

KXFN "The Fan 2" (1380 AM)

Impressive ability to fart out sports books of absolutely no consequence. Who can forget Mac Attack (1998), Marshall Faulk -- Rushing to Glory (1999) and Whitey's Boys (2002)?

.159

44

Dan Caesar

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Has these exact-same power rankings written in lipstick on his bathroom mirror. Scary.

.118

45

Bob Ramsey

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

Play-by-play man for Saint Louis University basketball is a passable shot caller who's fortunate to have Mr. Nice Guy Earl Austin Jr. as his tag-team partner. As a radio host, he's a bigger bag of gas than the Hindenburg.

.099

46

Jeff Gordon

St. Louis Post-Dispatch, KXFN "The Fan 2" (1380 AM)

Output is dominated by regurgitated excerpts from other writers' work and wire stories.

.076

47

Rick Horton

FOX Sports Midwest

Give us Hrabosky any day.

.058

48

John Hadley

KTRS (550 AM)

Inflection's a dead ringer for Bill Murray's immortal turn as Carl Spackler in Caddyshack. Well, that's got to be worth something!

.049

49

Alvin Reid

ESPN Radio WXOS (101.1 FM)

Alvin Reid's dilemma: Which to put lower on résumé: obscure sports-talk show or obscure public-television political roundtable? Props for willingness to work Saturdays when no one is listening. (The better to cackle at his own jokes.)

.032

50

Jay Randolph Jr.

KFNS "The Fan" (590 AM)

Picture Jay Randolph having sex. Sorry! Still, you have to admit it beats listening to his son on the radio.

.019