Soccer’s month-long hold on television came to an end last weekend in Qatar. The World Cup Final between France and Argentina drew in nearly 17 million viewers in the United States alone. Those that watched were treated to a great game that ended in penalties. You also witnessed some very poignant moments after the kick from Gonzalo Montiel went into the net. The goal set off a wild celebration for Argentina and caused France to wonder what could have been.
More than all of that, was another great example of an announcer understanding the gravity of the moment and letting the pictures speak for themselves. When the final PK got by the French goaltender, all you heard from Fox’s John Strong, was a resounding “YES!” then nothing for just over 2 minutes (2:13.06 to be exact). Strong and his broadcast partner Stu Holden allowed the many images to tell everyone watching the story without meaningless commentary.
Instead, we saw joy, jubilation, sorrow and sadness from the Fox production team. Close-up images of teammates on the French team consoling one another. Wide shots of the Argentinian fan base celebrating the victory. Overhead shots, showing the two groups of teams, separated by the midfield line and conflicting emotions. No words could have properly expressed what that powerful imagery did.
It’s difficult for many to fight the temptation to try and fill these times with words, rather than just sitting back and enjoying it along with the viewers. It’s also tough for the analyst, who generally is not a trained broadcaster, to resist a “wow” or “unbelievable” that really cheapens the moment. Non-verbal communication in the booth, or even a discussion before the game can help everyone remain on the same page in these times.
One of the biggest mistakes younger play-by-play announcers make is talking too much. I love listening to baseball games on the radio and hearing all the natural sounds of the ballpark. The murmur of the crowd and vendors hawking their products. You can’t hear that if the announcer is always talking over it. Of course, you have to talk, but you need to find the good balance.
On television, you don’t have to chat through every picture either. A good director and producer will be able to get the most of out of their camera people, to find interesting things to shoot that require no commentary, at least in the moment.
The other problem arises when the announcer tries to seize the opportunity to be part of history with some, pre-prepared proclamation. Yeah, your voice is on the highlight, but I’m guessing people will be shaking their heads in derision wishing you had just saved it and let the game breathe.
I mean look, you can still be part of the history of the moment, with a short, well-delivered phrase and then get out of the way. There are many examples of great calls, including last weekend’s from Strong.
Vin Scully was the master at letting the game breathe both on radio and television. It’s a little more difficult to achieve on radio obviously because you can’t see what’s going on at the time. But the Hall of Famer made it sound easy. Let me give you a couple of examples. One from television and one from radio from the greatest to ever call baseball.
1988 World Series – Kirk Gibson GW Home Run
By now you have heard the Scully call of the Gibson homer off of Dennis Eckersley to win Game One of the 1988 World Series at Dodger Stadium. Gibson injured both legs during the NLCS, and therefore did not start Game 1. Unknown to the fans and the media at the time, Gibson was watching the game on television while undergoing physical therapy in the Dodgers’ clubhouse. At some point during the game, television cameras scanned the Dodgers’ dugout and Scully observed that Gibson was “nowhere to be found”. Apparently, this spurred Gibson to tell Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda that he was available to pinch hit. Gibson immediately returned to the batting cage in the clubhouse to take swings. It led to one of the most dramatic at bats in baseball history. It was of course handled like a pro by Scully.
“High fly ball into right field, she i-i-i-is… GONE!!! “
Following the call, the pictures took over. Gibson, limping around the bases. Dodgers’ fans going crazy. A dejected A’s dugout. A jubilant group of Dodgers greeting Gibson at home plate. It was insanity. All the while, the great Scully said nothing. Nothing. For just over a minute (1:08 to be exact) he was silent. Then came back with the line:
In a year that has been so improbable… the impossible has happened!
Hair raising. Can you imagine if Scully had muddied it all by speaking over the pictures? The moment was so much more captivating, due to the silence.
1974 – Hank Aaron’s 715th Home Run
Scully also nailed a famous radio call, when Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s career home run record. Scully described the action as Al Downing delivered the pitch to Aaron that he hit over the left field wall. Here was the call that April night in 1974:
“There’s a high drive into deep left-center field, Buckner goes back… it is gone!”
Then Scully said nothing for about 25 seconds, as Aaron rounded the bases and joined his teammates at home plate. Scully felt that hearing the crowd cheering and fireworks going off told the story better than he could. He was right. By the way, 25 seconds of silence seems like an eternity on radio. He made it work. Not shocking.
1997 Masters – Tiger Woods 1st Green Jacket
Jim Nantz was a witness to history back in 1997. 21-year-old Tiger Woods won his first major and it came at Augusta National. Woods won the tournament going away, by 12 strokes, which set a record for the lowest score. The event was capped off by a short putt to end the tournament. Nantz, certainly aware of the magnitude of the moment, simply said:
“There it is, a win for the ages.”
What followed was 40 seconds of silence. Again, the pictures were allowed to tell the story. A young golfer in a red shirt, pumping both fists in the air, hugging his caddie and seeking out his parents. The beauty of television and the beauty of a broadcaster that understands that there are no words you can say that will match what people are seeing at home.
2019 Masters – Tiger Woods ‘Return to glory’
This is an example of letting the game breathe that could be taught in broadcasting classes.
Nantz covered yet another Tiger Woods win, this one came out of nowhere. Woods’ win at the Masters in 2019, was much more improbable than the 1997 victory. Nantz was right on in his commentary leading up to the final clinching putt, comparing the two events as basically night and day. Leading up to last putt, “this is the minute that millions around the world have waited for, waited for years, many doubted we’d ever see it, but here it is,” said Nantz, then Woods completed the tap-in to win it all, with Nantz exclaiming:
“The return to glory!”
That sentence was followed by nothing for 2 minutes and 42 seconds. That is a lifetime of silence.
“After that putt dropped on 18, there wasn’t a chance in the world that I was going to say anything.” Nantz told the Sports Business Journal shortly after the tournament. Nantz was in Butler Cabin already, Nick Faldo was in the 18th Tower and the production team was of course in the truck.
“As soon as the ball dropped, I said to [producer] Lance [Barrow] on the talk-back switch, ‘I’m not saying anything for a long time.’ Lance and I wanted to make sure that since none of us were together, the next time somebody spoke it was going to be me. We were going ride this thing out and sit back and enjoy it. I never would have jumped on a moment that was that big. It was just so big. There was nothing you could do to add to it. You could only ruin it.” he recalled.
He couldn’t have handled it any better than he did. There is pressure on us, as broadcasters to make these moments iconic. Being prepared for the broadcast, being able to build drama and set scenes always help going into these situations. A confident broadcaster, one who has command over the story, will be able to step aside to allow for the participants to shine. That broadcaster will remember the lessons we were all taught, less is more. Much more indeed.
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.
