Tom Verducci’s postgame interview with Tim Lincecum proves it’s not as easy as it looks

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As is sometimes the case, a gifted baseball writer isn’t always as gifted at conducting live television interviews. Case in point: Tom Verducci’s postgame chat for TBS on Thursday night with the Giants’ Tim Lincecum after the two-time Cy Young Award winner shut down the Braves.

Lincecum seemed ready to end the chat about a minute into it. After all, he does of lot of these interviews. But asking someone not once but twice -- or was it three times? -- how he feels, or how it felt, well, what was Lincecum to say? ‘Did it feel as special as it looked?’ ‘How did it feel at that point?’ And back to, ‘How did it feel?’

Compare Verducci’s written piece with his television interview with Lincecum. It proves it is never easy being in front a camera live, no doubt with a producer yakking into your ear.

Patrick O’Neal, son of actor Ryan O’Neal and a broadcaster for Fox Sports West here in Los Angeles, is pretty adept at on-camera interviews. But he didn’t start out as a writer. And Peter Gammons, in his prime, was terrific with the written word as well as on TV (he got better as time went on).

As for former players, I turn to hockey and the Kings’ Jim Fox, who is smart, glib, does his homework and gets the most out of any interview. Who would be your pick for best on-air postgame interviewer?

-- Debbie Goffa