We’ve seen and heard a lot of exciting moments in baseball this season. Milestones, no-hitters, triple plays, walk-offs and more. Broadcasters live for these opportunities, to call big events and have your call be a part of history. That comes with some pressure as well. There are no re-dos. It’s live and once your call is out there, it lives on forever. How each person handles these situations is as unique as the moments themselves. You really can’t prepare for things like a triple play or even a no-no. Being in the moment is critical. Baseball broadcasters experience this every single game. You never know what you might see and that’s the beauty of baseball.
Every season provides fans with excitement, even if their particular team isn’t very good. I went back to watch/listen to a few of those special things that have taken place so far in 2022. I have provided you with the text of the calls and I’ll offer my thoughts on why I picked that call. I know there are a bunch of others that I may have left out, so just enjoy what I chose. With a little over a month to go in the season, I’m sure there are many more crazy and great moments to come. Here we go!
MIGUEL CABRERA 3,000th HIT
A sure fire, first ballot hall of famer Miguel Cabrera was in line to join a rather exclusive club in baseball history, the 3000-hit club this season. He did it at Comerica Park and really enjoyed the big moment in his career. Longtime radio play-by-play man Dan Dickerson had the call on Tigers Radio.
‘The 1-1, ground ball, base hit into right! 3,000 for Miguel Cabrera! Raises his arms, Iglesias is the first to hug him, the Tigers dugout empties as they charge over to first base. And let the hug dispensing begin. Oh, what an incredible journey. From a skinny 15-year-old discovered on the dusty fields of Maracay, to an icon in Motown. Miguel Cabrera the pride of Venezuela has joined one of the most exclusive clubs, containing the best hitters in baseball history, 3-thousand hits.’
This call has it all. The excitement of the enormity of the milestone is captured at the beginning of the call. The description of the aftermath is great as well. Pointing out how his former teammate was the first to get to him and hug Cabrera. What I really liked was the history lesson from Dickerson talking about Cabrera’s journey to where he is. It shows me how in tune he is with the team that he broadcasts. Dickerson caps it off with the most important aspect of the play, just how exclusive the club Cabrera just joined is.
PIRATES WIN DESPITE BEING NO HIT
In one of the more improbable wins of the year. The Pittsburgh Pirates scored a run in the 8th inning of a scoreless game with the Reds, without benefit of a hit. In fact, the Pirates took their 1-0 lead into the 9th, while being no-hit in the game. The final Reds batter had a count of 3-2 with two outs. Greg Brown along with Bob Walk have the final call of this crazy game.
Brown: Ground ball right side, sliding stop, on to first, RAISE THE JOLLY ROGER! And history, the Pirates are no-hit, but win the game!
Bob Walk: Out of this world, I mean it’s crazy…
Brown: Such a cliché, you never what you’re gonna see, but so true. What a great win.
Walk: Not a single batter is happy on either side, pitching staff is happy of course. Oh my word, what an incredible game.
It was at that time the crew flashed on the screen that the Pirates were just the 6th team in MLB history to win a game in which they were no-hit. This call proved that cliché Brown spoke of. I mean who could ever imagine going to a game, watching your team get no-hit and somehow still win the game? Brown and Walk echoed that surprise and shock perfectly. They were almost laughing at the improbability. Brown talked about the history of the moment, which had only been equaled 5 other times. I loved that Walk added the line about the hitters being upset and the pitchers loving the game. This was a great call to end a very strange game indeed.
REID DETMERS NO-HITTER
On May 10, 2022, Angels rookie left-hander Reid Detmers threw a no-hitter in a 12-0 win over Tampa Bay. The 22-year-old was the youngest to twirl a no-no since Anibal Sanchez in 2006 for the Marlins. With one out to go, Patrick O’Neal and Mark Gubicza took over to describe the final at-bat.
O’Neal: Ground ball, Velasquez, throws across…HE’S DONE IT! Reid Detmers throws a no-hitter! (They lay out for 1:04 while the pictures and sounds take over) Truly incredible amazing Mark…
Gubicza: Knowing the kid, great kid, a battler, what stuff, what a moment, something he will remember for the rest of his life. (He continues as a replay is shown of the final out, focused on the pitcher) Ground ball, great curveball, the anticipation, the throw and YES! No-No time for Reid Detmers!
A great and simple call to frame the moment in Anaheim. O’Neal was economical with his words and as I’ve said many, many times before, I love that they ‘laid out’ to allow the pictures and sounds just take over. The images were compelling enough, so were the sounds of the crowd and teammates mobbing the young pitcher after what he accomplished. Gubicza sounded like a proud papa. As a former big-league pitcher, he could relate to the pressure and just how rare the no-hitter is. I was struck though with the personal nature of Gubicza’s commentary, he was genuinely touched by what the kid accomplished. It wasn’t over the top, it was just right.
JOSH NAYLOR’S WALK-OFF HOME RUN
The Cleveland Guardians are right in the middle of a playoff run. Every game, especially those against a division foe like Minnesota, are important. Some announcers just have an uncanny ability to rise to the occasion. Count Tom Hamilton of Guardians Radio among the best to be able to do it. Case in point, Josh Naylor’s walk-off home run against the Twins.
‘Two out, 2-2 count, runner at third, bottom of the tenth, here it comes…a swing and a fly ball, deep left field, down the line it goes, Gordon in the corner, GONE!!!!! A walk off 2-run home run by Josh Naylor, down the left field line, it’s a game winner, and a mob scene at home plate! And the Guardians have stunned the Twins again! 4 runs in the bottom of the tenth, and Cleveland has beaten Minnesota 7-6 in 10 innings. Unbelievable. Down to their last strike and Naylor head butting Tito who had a batting helmet on.’
Hamilton does it brilliantly, as always. Emotion, excitement, description, yet controlled. It’s not easy to accomplish but Hamilton does it. I love the fact that he was paying attention to the celebration on the field. If he wasn’t, he’d have missed, Naylor in his excitement, actually did head butt manager Terry Francona. Tito must have been expecting it, because he was in fact wearing a batting helmet. Talk about having command of a situation, he made it sound like a walk in the park. Easy, in other words!
JOE MUSGROVE NO HITTER
This is one where you’d have to forgive the announcer for ‘losing it’, not that Don Orsillo lost it, but it was close. The Padres were the only franchise in baseball left, without a no-hitter to its credit. That was before a fateful night in Arlington, Texas. Where a kid from San Diego erased all of that with one tremendous outing. Here’s Orsillo’s description of the final out.
‘One out away. The Friar Faithful stand as one in Texas. Ground ball to shortstop, Kim will go to first…the SAN DIEGO PADRES GET THEIR FIRST NO-HITTER IN THE HISTORY OF THE FRANCHISE! IT BELONGS TO SAN DIEGO’S OWN, JOE MUSGROVE! SENDING THE FRIAR FAITHFUL INTO A FRENSY!’
You could just hear the years of frustration melt away with this succinct and very effective call. Orsillo was the voice of a fan base that had never experienced the highs of this type of moment. Could the story have been written any better? The alliteration Orsillo chose really worked. Padres’ fans have always been told to keep the faith, thus the Friar Faithful moniker. Orsillo didn’t have to say much, but he conveyed a lot of emotion into the few words he needed to describe the craziness of that instance. Some would try way too hard in a moment like that, but not a pro like Orsillo. Well done.
These are just a few examples of how special, unique and monumental moments are handled by the true pros that call Major League Baseball. People tend to remember these instances through these memorable calls. They live on long after they’ve taken place thanks to the emotions these memories elicit. And thanks to the connection formed between the announcer and the fans.
Andy Masur is a columnist for BSM and works for WGN Radio as an anchor and play-by-play announcer. He also teaches broadcasting at the Illinois Media School. During his career he has called games for the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres and Chicago White Sox. He can be found on Twitter @Andy_Masur1 or you can reach him by email at Andy@Andy-Masur.com.
