A week shy of his third anniversary with KHTK (1140 AM), F.P. Santangelo finished his morning radio show with the "Rise Guys" and was promptly fired.
Santangelo, a former Major League Baseball player whose years of contacts helped enhance the morning program, confirmed as much today with The Bee, saying he was "surprised" and "disappointed" and that 1140, "quite honestly, made the biggest mistake in the history of the station."
Program director Jeff McMurray could not be immediately reached, but Santangelo said McMurray told him that cost-cutting measures was at the root of the dismissal.
"The ratings have been low and there was an uneasy vibe going on, but I didn't realize it was that bad, that I'd lose my job," said Santangelo, an Oak Ridge High School product who later attended Sacramento City College before embarking on a long professional baseball career that included stints with the A's, Giants and River Cats.
"No one likes to get fired. I've been on enough baseball teams, cut enough times, that you just know when they call you in for a meeting, it's not good."
Santangelo worked with veteran "Rise Guys" hosts Whitey and Phantom. Santangelo, well spoken and opinionated and able to laugh at himself, provided insight of a former pro athlete, and he had invaluable resources. He had Kings co-owner Joe Maloof call in last week to talk about the Kings and Reggie Theus, setting off a firestorm of debate and controversy.
Santangelo said he felt "stabbed in the back" by the station, the same station that stood by him when the Mitchell Report was released in December, the report by former Sen. George Mitchell detailing the use of performance-enhancing drugs by major league players. Santangelo was mentioned in the report, and he talked openly about his involvement with human growth hormones on the air, which proved to be a great boon for ratings.
"When (former program director Mike Remy) was here, he was behind me, and the station stuck with me after the Mitchell report, but it's not the same now," Santangelo said. Remy no longer works for 1140.
Santangelo will return for his fifth season with Comcast Sports Bay Area this coming spring to do pre- and post-game Giants work. He anticipates a full recovery from this, saying, "Maybe one day I can look back and say this was the best day of my professional career."
"I love baseball, my true love, and I never saw myself as a wacky morning DJ, but we had fun with the 'Rise Guys,' " Santangelo said. "All I can say to 1140 is, 'Good luck.' I don't think they'll get someone with my contacts. I don't think they'll find someone to get Pete Rose to call in, or have Steve Sax and Tommy Lasorda on, or get Barry Zito. I had good resources. I think I'm really good at what I do. I'm not sweating finding another job. I'm very confident."
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