Courtesy Baltimore Sun

(July 11. 2008) If you were in the habit of turning off the television sound to listen to the radio broadcast during Ravens games, you won't have to do that in the preseason. That's because the radio broadcast will be the TV sound.

No more Dick, Moose and Goose calling the exhibition schedule. The Ravens have replaced Dick Stockton, Daryl Johnston and Tony Siragusa with a simulcast of the WBAL/98 Rock team of Gerry Sandusky, Stan White and Rob Burnett.

Most of the burden will fall on play-by-play man Sandusky, who will have to find a balance between talking too much for TV but not enough for radio.

"Gerry will have to find a fine line," said Kevin Byrne, the Ravens' senior vice president of public and community relations.

Part of the Ravens' thinking was to promote the radio team as "knowledgeable voices as people who know the most about the Ravens." Another part is to try selling interest in preseason games.

"We believe there has to be some education about the intensity," Byrne said. "There are guys fighting for their professional lives."

Yeah, yeah. As Pink Floyd once sang, "We don't need no education." Wake me up when they kick off the regular season.

•Sandusky said his task will be made easier because he'll be doing preseason games, when it's not as vital to keep radio listeners apprised of the game situations.

"In a preseason game, the numerical aspects [down and distance, time remaining] are not quite as important," Sandusky said. "Other story lines ... we're going to make those the primary aspects of the broadcasts. We're going to make it the story of the team coming together."

His partners won't have much of an adjustment at all, Sandusky said. White and Burnett "are already using the TV monitor" to offer analysis.

•One more preseason note (because, after all, we're less than a month away from the first game): The four games will be split between WBAL/Channel 11 and WMAR/Channel 2. WBAL has the Aug.7 and Aug.28 games against the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons, respectively, and WMAR is carrying the exhibitions Aug.16 ( Minnesota Vikings) and Aug.23 ( St. Louis Rams). And while you're making your plans, please note the Aug.28 telecast won't include a post-game show because of network coverage of the Democratic National Convention.

And you were so looking forward to White's commentary on Barack Obama.