…on one hand, I can’t stand the legacy issues with him and his dad and in the way you heard him talk to Doogie and the way in which he deals with “lessers” you can definitely see how the Big Sid raised his kid. On the other hand, he was one of the more solid contributors to Wolves talk on the station and I think he was a much better interviewer than Barreiro, especially with political guests. If anything, I think he was expendable because his show was too close to what the 4-7 show brought to the table. Barreiro’s show works because of prep and fantastic guests. He’s done a good job of making the news/sports blend work. Hartman’s show never seemed to master this balance and lately he seemed to be relying too heavily on the annoying fantasy football guy. It also seemed like a lesser version of the big time star. He was Ricky Davis to Spree.

That being said, Doogie’s enthusiasm was growing on me and I liked the fact that he mucked it up over at Rube Chat and that he was always digging for the extra angle, no matter if it was beyond homerish or not. It seemed like he was a hard worker and I always felt bad for the way he was dismissed with typical Hartman family flair when he expressed something that Chad disagreed with.

It will be interesting to see if guys like Hartman and Mischke get picked up by WCCO. Also, here’s hoping their checks don’t bounce like the folks who got bought out by the Strib:

http://www.minnpost.com/braublog/2009/01/20/6003/star_tribune_some_buyout_checks_will_bounce