# John Filippelli

John J. Filippelli (born April 19, 1951) is an American sports television executive and producer based in New York City.

## Early life and education

John J. Filippelli, also known as "Flip," was born on April 19, 1951, in Brooklyn, New York, to Rose Mary and John Filippelli. He has one younger brother, Rick. Filippelli's father owned a bar called Doubles, located near Ebbets Field, the home stadium of the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Growing up in a neighborhood where baseball players lived and socialized, Filippelli was exposed to the sport from a young age. He began his career in baseball at 16, working as a vendor at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.
Filippelli attended Abraham Lincoln High School, graduating in 1969. He then enrolled in the City University of New York (CUNY) Richmond, where he earned a bachelor's degree in history in 1974.

## Career
### Beginnings

In 1974, Filippelli's fascination with television began during a tour of NBC's headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. Coincidentally, 1974 marked the year that television executive Dick Ebersol, who would eventually become the president of NBC Sports, joined the network in the entertainment division.
Filippelli has described his experience walking through the NBC offices at 30 Rockefeller Plaza as "love at first sight." This encounter sparked his interest in pursuing a career in television

### NBC Sports (1974-1990)

Filippelli began his career at NBC as a desk assistant in the News division. His first on-air credit was as a desk assistant covering the resignation of Richard M. Nixon in August 1974.
Eager to transition to the sports division, Filippelli secured a meeting with Chet Simmons, the director of programming who would become the first president of NBC Sports. During the interview, Simmons tested Filippelli's sports knowledge, asking him to name the starting lineup of the 1961 World Series champion New York Yankees. Filippelli successfully named the entire roster, impressing Simmons. Filippelli's sports television career had begun and it would span five decades. At NBC Sports, he rose through the ranks to become a lead producer for: Major League Baseball Game of the Week telecasts, the Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star Game, MLB post-season playoff events, including the League Championship Series and World Series.
Filippelli co-produced the 1986 World Series alongside George Finkel, which featured the iconic Game 6 error by Boston first baseman Bill Buckner. He also produced the 1988 World Series, including game 1, where Los Angeles Dodgers' Kirk Gibson hit a walk-off home run against Oakland Athletics ace reliever Dennis Eckersley.
Michael Weisman, the executive producer at NBC Sports from 1982 to 1989 served as Filippelli's mentor. Among the sports properties at NBC that Filippelli worked on were the Summer Olympic Games in 1980 and 1988, the Super Bowl, PGA Golf and Wimbledon.

### WWF (1991- 1992)

Transforming the look and sound of the burgeoning World Wrestling Federation (WWF) was the impetus behind Vince McMahon hiring Filippelli as executive producer for the company that was the forerunner of the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). Filippelli went to work upgrading the production values and presentation of the live events under the WWF banner.

### The Baseball Network (1993-1995)

Beginning with the 1994 regular season, Major League Baseball (MLB) made a strategic decision to take its national television package in-house and with NBC Sports and ABC Sports serving as distribution partners launched The Baseball Network at the conclusion of the 1993 World Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Toronto Blue Jays. Among the first key hires was Filippelli as the Executive Producer of the new enterprise. In addition to restoring the value of Major League Baseball as a national television property that advertisers and sponsors would want to associate with, The Baseball Network was charged with re-energizing the appeal of regular season baseball in prime time on network television. Instead of showing one national game on ABC or NBC during the summer months, the strategy developed was to create a "Baseball Night in America" programming theme and regionalize anywhere from eight to 12 games on either Saturday or Monday evenings starting in July. The regional games would drive viewership numbers and enhance the value of the sport.
Filippelli's responsibility was to develop in less than a year a production plan that would seamlessly deliver the regionalized games with a dedicated broadcast and production team. Among the innovations that "Flip" implemented was hiring established broadcasters from the local clubs to announce the games but pairing them with broadcasters from opposing teams to generate a unique sound and appeal. Filippelli secured commitments from broadcasters such as Al Michaels, Bob Costas, Joe Buck, Dick Enberg, Tom Hamilton, Tim McCarver, Jon Miller, Brent Musburger, Jim Palmer, Suzyn Waldman and Bob Uecker. In addition, Filippelli collaborated with the executive producers at NBC Sports and ABC Sports to ensure the standardized look of "Baseball Night in America" would be executed across all the network affiliates.
Filippelli was responsible for the creative look of the new prime time package as well as overseeing the transmission of the live programming. With Hannah Storm anchoring the "Baseball Night in America" studio show for NBC and John Saunders handling the duties for ABC's share of the prime time games, The Baseball Network kicked off its coverage on July 11, 1994 with the Major League Baseball All-Star Game on NBC from Pittsburgh. The game delivered a 15.7 Nielsen household rating and ranked as the highest rated sports program of the summer and network television's No. 1 rated show for the week. The "Baseball Night in America" schedule launched on Saturday, July 15 with regionalized coverage and among the production enhancements incorporated was "the two-box" concept which utilized a split-screen to show two live baseball games simultaneously at key moments and well as occasional live studio cut-ins to provide perspective on the night's developments. In August, the Major League Baseball Players Association started a job action and went on strike as labor talks with MLB's management team stalled. The strike ended the regular season prematurely and wiped out the 1994 MLB post-season, including the World Series.
The Baseball Network would return in 1995 once the new labor agreement was signed but it became apparent that it would not survive past the '95 season as FOX Sports was interested in paying a substantial rights fee to acquire the national package. After televising the entire 1995 post-season, including ABC and NBC for the first time ever sharing the World Series, The Baseball Network closed its doors shortly after the conclusion of the 91st World Series.

### FOX Sports (1995-1999)

Following a two-decade run at NBC Sports and two full years at The Baseball Network, Filippelli was hired by the newly established FOX Sports division in 1995, to re-image the Game of the Week telecasts for Major League Baseball. "Flip's" credits include serving as coordinating producer of the first World Series broadcast on FOX, in 1996 (when the New York Yankees captured their first world championship title in 18 years by defeating the Atlanta Braves in six games). Flip was in the producer's chair when for the first time full-speed replay with sound was introduced during live game action as FOX followed Joe Girardi of the Yankees recording a triple during the New York vs. Atlanta post-season showdown. He was also producer in St. Louis in September 8, 1998 night when Mark McGwire hit his 62nd home run, breaking the landmark single-season home run record Roger Maris set in 1961 with 61 home runs.
FOX provided a fresh canvas to launch innovative new elements to the sport known for decades as "The National Pastime." 'Flip" was in the middle of a host of notable industry firsts, including the permanent baseball scorebug on screen and, perhaps most noteworthy, displaying regular-speed instant replays during a live broadcast. It influenced the perception of the athleticism, speed and power possessed by major league baseball players.
Production executive Ed Delaney, a colleague of Filippelli's at FOX Sports and later at the YES Network said, “Many of the production enhancements commonplace on baseball telecasts today — such as full-speed replays, tight super-slow-motion shots of the bases, and even subtle elements such as the full-time display of the pitch count – are all things that "Flip" implemented. Although "Flip’s" accomplishments are prestigious, they are eclipsed by his compassion, generosity, and wondrous spirit. At the end of the day, the sports-broadcasting industry is a better place because of Flip’s remarkable contributions.”

### ABC Sports (1999-2001)

Moving just a few blocks from FOX's headquarters in New York, Filippelli moved to ABC's midtown offices to join the network's sports division in 1999. The experience enabled Filippelli to round out his production portfolio by adding the signature anthology series Wide World of Sports to his production resume, which now included a mix of live sports events (Indianapolis 500) and pre-taped specials.

### YES Network

In 2001, Filippelli was recruited by George M. Steinbrenner, the majority owner of the New York Yankees, to join the startup team of the YES Network (Yankees Sports & Entertainment Network). Filippelli was the company's first hire and was tasked with developing the network's on-air presentation from scratch. Five months after his hire, the YES Network launched in March of 2002. Today, YES is the television home of the New York Yankees and Brooklyn Nets.
Under Filippelli's leadership, YES Network has been at the forefront of sports production innovation and technology:
* First Regional sports network (RSN) to produce 3D and interactive MLB telecasts
* First RSN to display continuous on-screen pitch counts during baseball telecasts
* Industry leader in High Definition (HD) production, launching its standalone 24/7 HD channel in 2007
* First RSN to produce and televise an MLB game outside of North America (New York Yankees vs. Tampa Bay Devil Rays, in March 2004 from Japan)
* First RSN to simulcast a sports radio talk show (WFAN's Mike and the Mad Dog program, March 2002)
Named to a senior management role as well as the head of production, Filippelli is one of a select few sports executives who have held senior positions in the production truck as well as in management. During Filippelli's tenure, YES Network has earned:
* 635 New York Emmy nominations
* 146 New York Emmy wins
Filippelli has been instrumental in developing and producing several notable programs, including:
* "Yankeeography," a multi-part docuseries that chronicles landmark seasons and figures in Yankee history
* "Center Stage" with Michael Kay, an unscripted studio interview program
* Live simulcasts of WFAN Radio's drive-time show "Mike and the Mad Dog and ESPN New York Radio's "The Michael Kay Show"
Filippelli has worked with nationally recognized broadcasters as well as having an eye on developing emerging talent. “Flip” has worked with Hall of Famers such as Vin Scully, Bob Costas, Joe Buck, Tim McCarver and Tom Seaver. He has helped guide the careers of Michael Kay, David Cone, Paul O’Neill, Ian Eagle, Ken Singleton, John Flaherty, Bob Lorenz, Sarah Kustok, Richard Jefferson, Michael Grady, Jack Curry, Buck Showalter, Ryan Rucco and Meredith Marakovits.
In February 2025 Filippelli transitioned to become senior advisor at the YES Network after 23 successful years starting as the 1st employee and moving up to the position of president, production & programming executive producer.

## Awards

* 2014 Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from St. Thomas Aquinas College in New York.
* 2017 Inducted into the Silver Circle by the board of governors of The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, New York Chapter, in recognition of his long and meritorious service in the television industry.
* 2018 Humanitarian Award from The Yogi Berra Museum
* 2021 Inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame in New York City, which recognizes individuals for their lasting and impactful contributions to the sports broadcasting industry.
* 2023 National Honoree of the Greenwich Old Timers Athletic Association.
* Awarded Honorary Board member member of the Connecticut Chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation after serving for seven years.

## Personal life

Filippelli and his wife, Virginia, were married in 1981. They have two sons: John Edward and Pierce.