For Immediate Release                                                                  Wed., January 30, 2013

ROOT SPORTS ANNOUNCES TV SCHEDULE FOR
2013 PIRATES SPRING TRAINING GAMES

NETWORK TO BROADCAST FIVE PIRATES SPRING TRAINING GAMES AND
ADDITIONAL PIRATES PROGRAMMING LEADING UP TO 2013 SEASON

ROOT SPORTS™,  the exclusive rights holder of Pittsburgh Pirates regional baseball game telecasts, announced today it will broadcast in high definition five Pittsburgh Pirates spring training games prior to the start of the 2013 Major League Baseball regular season.  The games are set for March 8th, 9th and 24th at the Pirates’ spring training home, McKechnie Field in Bradenton, Florida and March 1st and March 23rd at the Red Sox’ spring training facility, JetBlue Park at Fenway South in Fort Meyers, Florida.

Steve Blass, Greg Brown, Tim Neverett, Bob Walk and John Wehner will continue to call the action in 2013.  Brown and Neverett will handle the play-by-play duties while Blass, Walk and Wehner serve as color analysts. ROOT SPORTS’ newest on-air personality, Robby Incmikoski, will provide coverage from on the field and in the dugout as Pirates sideline reporter.

Coverage of the spring training games will start with a 30-minute Pirates pregame and conclude with a 30-minute Postgame show. In addition to five spring training games, ROOT SPORTS will also air exclusive Pirates coverage and programming prior to the start of the season including new episodes of Inside Pirates Baseball and Pirates Playback Monday nights through mid-March.  Inside Pirates Baseball new off-season episodes include a Spring Training special and 2013 Season Preview and ROOT SPORTS’ Pirates Playback will continue to show a definitive game from the Pirates 2012 season, such as Drew Sutton’s walk-off homer against the Astros and Neil Walker’s grand slam against the Cubs.

2013 Spring Training Games on ROOT SPORTS
(subject to change)

Click Here for a printable Pirates Spring Training TV Schedule on ROOT SPORTS

ROOT SPORTS™ is the cable home of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Pittsburgh Penguins. The network reaches more than 2.9 million viewers across five states and delivers more than 350 live events each year – all of which are also available in high definition.  ROOT SPORTS™ is owned and operated by DIRECTV Sports Networks LLC, which operates regional sports networks in the Northwest, Pittsburgh and Rocky Mountain regions. The three networks combined reach more than 8.8 million viewers across 18 states and own exclusive programming and distribution partnerships with more than 20 teams and conferences. DIRECTV Sports Networks is a controlled subsidiary of DIRECTV, the world’s most popular television service.