It was on Tuesday when I realized something that probably never happened to me before. I had gone perhaps a week or more without watching a single minute of a White Sox game.

Obviously, the Sox are dreadful this year. Usually, though, I catch an inning or two here and there.

But not last week. I guess I met my threshold of pain tolerance.

It has been beyond bleak in Chicago this year, with both teams in last place. However, the games and the telecasts go on.

Budding sports media writer Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune examined the challenge facing the TV game producers for the Sox and Cubs:

How do they manage to keep viewers interested when their team stinks?

Here’s how two Chicago veterans, Sox telecast director Jim Angio and Cubs telecast producer Marc Brady, manage to create something out of nothing.

Angio, a 35-year veteran dating to the days Harry Caray and Jimmy Piersall called Sox games on WSNS-Ch. 44, said he stresses the three E’s: Education, entertainment and enthusiasm.

“We put a lot of effort into Hawk and (analyst Steve Stone) teaching the game,” Angio said. “Even if Alexei (Ramirez) makes three errors in a game, what they’re great about is they’ll still tell you what happened and where he should be.

“You trying not to drum up the negativity, but (explain), ‘Maintain your focus, see the ball …’ You’re not making excuses that the errors happened, but you teach something and then we move on. Hawk and Stoney do a great job of teaching the game to new and existing fans.”

Brady, a part of the WGN telecasts since 1998, has more of a sabermetrical approach to broadcasts, crunching numbers for new-age fans. Brady introduced “Stats Sunday,” in which broadcasters Len Kasper and Jim Deshaies focus on a statistic, often citing an accompanying article from a guest writer. The Cubs use the Internet more, Brady said, “because there is so much immediacy to what we can show” during a game.

“If Len says, ‘Hey, we had a fan email us and say, ‘Whatever you do, don’t play ‘We Built this City,’ the next thing you’ll hear, of course, is ‘We Built This City,’ ” he said. “There’s so much more interaction with fans. They can ask a question on Twitter and say, ‘We hated this or that.’ But at least they’re watching. The Internet, Facebook and Twitter have all enhanced our games, especially during a down period.”