The Mad Dog is refusing to be neutered by the Diamondbacks.
Chris “Mad Dog” Russo said he will not leave sports media after he promised to retire “on the spot” if the Diamondbacks won two straight games in Philadelphia to wrestle the NLCS away from the favored Phillies.
Arizona proceeded to quiet the Phillies’ bats on consecutive nights, winning 6-1 and 4-2 to advance to the World Series and leaving the famous broadcaster’s future briefly in doubt.
Russo deemed it “a throwaway line” in an interview with Howard Stern on Wednesday morning, though he has agreed to a unique form of punishment at the shock jock’s urging.
“You gotta do something so outrageous that they forget about the fact that you said you were gonna retire over a baseball game,” Stern said, as transcribed by Awful Announcing. “What were you thinking though, saying you’re gonna retire if the Diamondbacks win, that’s crazy!”
“How bout this. You come on my show, I’ll come into Manhattan for this, we put you in a bikini and you walk down the street with a sign that says, ‘I’m a d—-e.’ If you do that … it will make all the media and everyone say, ‘Wow, this guy was standup, he took it, obviously he couldn’t retire, but he was humiliated.’”
Russo agreed, though said his sign would read: ” I am a liar and a dope.”
On “First Take” — which Russo makes a weekly Wednesday appearance on — Stephen A. Smith “dedicated” the show to the Diamondbacks and promised to treat Russo like an intern during the show.
Russo is the name and face behind “Mad Dog Radio” on SiriusXM, where he hosts a show daily.
The trouble started Monday afternoon with the Phillies heading home with a 3-2 lead in the NLCS.
“To make a long story short, I’ve been wrong on Arizona from Day 1,” Russo, 64, said on his SiriusXM radio show, as captured by Funhouse on X. “I’m stunned they beat Milwaukee, I thought they’d get swept by the Dodgers, I never thought they’d even go back to Philly for a Game 6.
“I’ll try it one more time: I would not be stunned if they won [Monday night], I would be floored. … If they win the next two days, they win the next two games and win this series in seven games, if they win, I will retire on the spot.”
Russo also hosts “High Heat” on MLB Network.
The 64-year-old rose to prominence as the co-host of the “Mike & Mad Dog” show on WFAN for 19 years before leaving for Sirius over a contract dispute.
Russo’s contract with Sirius is up in 2024.