Rounding Third
The derecho that swept through the upper Midwest two weeks ago caused property damage and electric and internet outages. For those devoted baseball fans trying to ease the pain a little by keeping up with their favorite MLB team, it meant a return to old school, locating your team on the radio dial. The notion of enjoying baseball through radio broadcasts brings back so many wonderful memories – placing a transistor radio under my pillow late at night when I was growing up; trying to get the best signal from a car radio on a road trip; and putting my headphones on while cutting the grass. I love listening to broadcasters who describe the game, provide insight, and share their passion. The seamless production of games through radio and television booths is about the only thing that seems normal to me in 2020, and incredibly much of the broadcasting is being undertaken away from live action at the ballpark. So I thought it would be fun to offer my top ten favorite baseball broadcasters of all time:
Joe Nuxhall. The “Ol’ Left-hander” was the radio analyst of the Reds for 40 seasons. Almost his entire life he spent as a Red, beginning in 1944 at fifteen years old when he pitched in a game for Cincinnati as the youngest player in MLB history and culminating in 2007 when he still worked part-time shortly before his death. Nuxie was Cincinnati Reds baseball. I used to look forward to rain delays of Reds games when I would sit with my Dad on the front porch and listen to Nuxhall’s stories. During a broadcast you could always hear Joe in the background cheering a great Reds play or lamenting a bad error. In 1999 I attended a Reds fantasy baseball camp in Florida, and my Dad joined me as my fan. At the concluding banquet Joe Nuxhall sat with Dad for an hour sharing baseball stories. It was one of my Dad’s life highlights, and I am forever thankful. I’m also thankful for every Reds radio broadcast I heard that ended with Nuxhall’s famous send-off, “This is the old left-hander, rounding third and heading to home. Good night everyone.”
Jack Buck. This Hall of Fame broadcaster was the lead commentator for many World Series games and NFL encounters, but for St. Louisans he will always be known as simply the voice of the Cardinals. In his early years he shared the KMOX-Radio booth with Harry Caray, and then went on to be the principal announcer with former Redbird and color analyst, Mike Shannon. Buck mastered the art of interviewing. In his pre and post game chats with managers, coaches, and players, he would always let the big personalities talk (manager Whitey Herzog) and kindly lead the conversation for the more quiet ones (George Hendrick, player). Buck’s call of Ozzie Smith’s walk-off home run in the 1985 NLCS against the Dodgers will always go down as a highlight for Cardinals fans, “Go Crazy Folks! Go Crazy!” And of course in 1988 during the first game of the World Series, it was Jack Buck who exclaimed “I don’t believe what I just saw” as Kirk Gibson limped around the bases after his historic home run.
Jack Brickhouse. Brickhouse introduced me to Cubs baseball in my college years in Chicago. He was the voice of Cubs baseball on WGN-TV from 1948 to 1981. He received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1983. His quiet demeanor and story-telling abilities made him so believable every afternoon at Wrigley. There was something about his kindness and warmth that made his beloved Cubbies even more lovable. Brickhouse’s talents also extended outside of baseball, as he called the Bears’ NFL games for 25 years and Bulls’ NBA games for eight. His most famous moment behind the mike might have been away from Chicago, the 1954 World Series radio call of Willie Mays’ catch in Game 1. For Cubs fans though, who will ever forget his “Hey, Hey” after every Cubs home run that landed in the basket or left the park at Wrigley!
Jon Miller. Miller is the first current announcer on my list. The highest compliment to a broadcaster is the appearance of total objectivity. When I first heard Miller do ESPN Sunday Night baseball games over ten years ago I had no idea that he was play-by-play announcer of the San Francisco Giants. His style is conversational and warm, and he is adept at bringing historical pieces into modern-day topics. Miller has been the voice of the Giants since 1997. He had the good fortune of being behind the microphone of San Francisco’s even-numbered years dominance of World Series baseball, 2010, 2012, and 2014. He received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2010, of course in an even-numbered year.
Tony Kubek. Kubek knew all about World Series play. In his nine-year career as a shortstop for the Yankees, he played in six of them. After his retirement from baseball, he joined NBC television and was the color analyst for 12 World Series. What I remember mostly about Kubek was his work with partner Curt Gowdy on the NBC Saturday Game of the Week in the late 1960s and 1970s. Before cable television, baseball crazy kids like me only had the local broadcasting of our hometown teams. For me, that was only 40 or so Reds away games. I loved tuning in on Saturday afternoon to see other MLB teams. It seemed like every other Saturday NBC would be at Fenway Park so we could hear Tony describe the nuances of the Green Monster. Kubek’s professional approach to broadcasting paved the way for many former players.
Vin Scully. No one has had a greater run in announcing baseball than Scully’s 67 seasons calling games for the LA Dodgers from 1950 to his recent retirement in 2016. While admittedly I am not a Dodgers fan (see “Dodgers Blues”, 04/29/2019), I appreciated his feel good charm and quiet respect for the game. I didn’t have the opportunity to hear his Dodgers play by play, but I do recall though his NBC national broadcasts of baseball in the 1980s. Upon his retirement, I heard so many celebrate his signature welcoming to Dodger broadcasts: “It’s time for Dodger baseball. Hi, everybody, and a very pleasant good afternoon to you.” Among his many accomplishments, Scully received the Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award in 2014 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016.
John Smoltz. Smoltz was an 8-time National League All-Star and HOF pitcher, most famous for being a starter with the Braves alongside Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine. Toward the end of his career, he spent four years as Atlanta’s closer. Smoltzie is the only pitcher in MLB history to record 200 wins and 150 saves. Nowadays you find Smoltz as the top color analyst on Fox television broadcasts. I truly enjoy his insight not only about a pitcher’s mindset and mechanics, but all situational aspects of the game. He is one of those few commentators who can lay out clearly the options of a manager in key moments of play, most often correctly predicting the outcome. If you are a Cubs fan, you might recall his first World Series at the microphone, 2016!
Harry Caray. More often than not, the “Mayor of Rush Street” is identified with the Cubs, but Caray had established a wonderful broadcasting career before he arrived at Wrigley in 1982. For 25 years Caray was the voice of the St. Louis Cardinals, teaming with Jack Buck. Caray spent one year in Oakland (1970), but then the next eleven at Comiskey Park with the White Sox. That’s actually how I remember him, the flamboyant Sox announcer whose colorful play-by-play was perfect for the South Siders during that era. The tradition of Harry leading the crowd in “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during the seventh inning started at Comiskey when his microphone was left on. He brought that tradition to Wrigley Field. Since his passing in 1998, the tradition has been carried forward with guest singers and an occasional big screen replay of Harry himself. A visitor to Wrigley today can find his statue just outside the centerfield bleachers gate.
Pat Hughes. Since the 1996 season, Hughes has been the radio voice of the Cubs. I find his style to be incredibly enjoyable, free of flashy stories and new age data. Hughes broadcasts in a professional manner, capturing your attention with an objective play-by-play call but mixed with baseball history and current topics. I find myself on many Sunday afternoons with my air buds in and listening to the radio broadcast. After several years of playoff disappointment, Pat became the first Cubs broadcaster who could say this in October, 2016: “A little bouncer slowly toward Bryant. He will glove it and throw it to Rizzo. It’s in time! And the Chicago Cubs win the World Series!”
Andy Masur. Sometimes you need to embrace someone new and project future performance. Masur is the talented White Sox radio announcer in his first season, replacing Ed Farmer who passed away earlier this year. Masur is from my new home village, and is a graduate of Bradley University. For the past 25 years he has held numerous radio reporting and broadcasting positions nationally (play-by-play for the San Diego Padres) and locally in Chicago (often substituting for Pat Hughes). I have quickly become a fan of his on-air style, a comfortable mix of baseball strategy and the realities of today’s game.
Football and basketball have seemingly jumped ahead of baseball in sports media because of the fast pace and excitement seen on your high definition televisions and laptops at home. Baseball though continues to be the easiest listen for me. I heard someone say that in today’s MLB a ball is only put in play every 3 minutes, 36 seconds. Crazy as this may be, that’s still fine with me, especially as I listen to every game I can find on my car radio and the kids’ old boom box. So who is on your list of favorite baseball announcers? As Harry Caray would have said, “Let me hear ‘ya.”
Until next Monday,
your Baseball Bench Coach