Miami Herald: Broadcaster Buck’s joke backfires

But Buck said by phone Thursday that he was joking. The only broader point he meant seriously, Buck said, was baseball must follow through on efforts to speed up the game.

...Bayless, ESPN’s resident gasbag, said, ``If I’m Bud Selig, I don’t want him being my national voice of baseball.’‘

‘‘Good for him,’’ Buck said of Bayless’ remark.

But seriously . . . ‘‘It was a total joke. If it didn’t come across as that, you fault the joke teller. Baseball has been my life [forever],’’ Buck said, as he recalled accompanying his father, legendary announcer Jack Buck, to games as a child.

Buck assured Thursday that he watches a lot of baseball not only because ‘‘it’s my job to stay current,’’ but also because ‘‘I enjoy it.’’ He said he jokingly mentioned The Bachelorette only ``because I had watched it with my wife the night before.’‘

On Thursday, Buck called Selig, baseball executive Tim Brosnan, Fox Sports president Ed Goren and Fox Sports chairman David Hill to apologize. ‘‘I said it was wrong and I’m sorry and it won’t happen again,’’ Buck said. ``I learned a valuable lesson. You have to be careful what you say and I was not careful.’‘

Buck said Selig ‘‘joked that he’ll tell my mom to spank me.’‘

Woo-hoo…I hope that shows up on that whacky The Caning Mutiny site!