In his column today, Phil Rosenthal probes the possibility of Steve Dahl and Garry Meier getting back together now that Dahl will be helming mornings on WJMK:

It’s tough to know exactly how close Chicago came to a reteaming of the groundbreaking radio duo of Steve Dahl and Garry Meier mornings on WJMK-FM 104.3, but that once-improbable reunion is still very much a possibility.

Sources at CBS said the company remains hopeful it can get the two back together but acknowledged that if it is going to happen, it will take time.

It appears that the opportunity to join Dahl in mornings was extended to Meier, who declined. He’s under contract with CBS Radio and will be paid until sometime late next year.

Now, it’s very possible that Garry knows that a Steve and Garry reunion is worth a great deal to CBS. It’s certainly worth more than the $400,000 that he’s reportedly receiving under his current deal. If that’s the case, then Garry is smart to sit on the sidelines and let Steve take a whack at mornings. A few months from now, if Steve isn’t moving the needle on his own, then Garry’s value as part of a reunion goes up exponentially. Either way, Garry can sit back and collect on his current deal until it runs out, or he can sell when his stock is on the rise.

One thing does seem clear, Garry isn’t going to the Loop. That’s what Emmis boss Marv Nyren told Rosenthal:

Marv Nyren, who oversees Emmis’ Chicago stations, insisted by e-mail that Meier is not headed to the Loop, “unless you define the Loop as a geographical spot on a map of Chicago.”

Garry Meier is a very patient man, as evidenced by the fact that he was off the air for 3 years after he walked away from a hefty contract at WLS in 2004. There’s no doubt in my mind that Garry is content to stand back and wait for things to develop before he puts himself back into the game.

Here’s the CBS2 story from 2006 when Garry Meier walked back into Steve Dahl’s life after 13 years.