Shipping Up To Boston
And back to the East Coast we go...
Hello from 30-something-thousand feet above Nebraska!
I’m writing this on Wednesday evening, but waiting to send it out until Thursday morning. So..good morning.
Anyway!
Quite a homestand.
What began with a continuation of Walkoff-Diego against the Brewers culminated with an explosive 3-game sweep of the Nationals and a dose of Slam Diego to chase it all down.
The Pads finished the homestand 6-1 and are, despite missing as many key guys as they are right now, arguably playing their best baseball of 2024.
We all love this game, and one of the things that I enjoy most is that you really, truly, never know what you’re going to get on a given night or day. Like how often do you look at a pitching matchup or a starting lineup and think it’s going to be one kind of game and it turns out to be something altogether different.
And that brings us to the last three days: who would have ever thought that a weekday series against the Nats in late June would be as fun and emotionally charged as that was.
Between the walkoff drama on Monday night, the drama-drama on Tuesday, the Profar slam, it was all a lot in the best way.
Again, some series on the schedule pretty much circle themselves, and no disrespect intended to the Nats, that wasn’t one of them. But you better figure everyone in the building for those first two games in particular will remember them for a very, very long time. Too cool.
The Fens
Permit me some indulgence here, as I am very excited for this weekend’s series in Beantown. Not for any specific baseball reason (though I’m sure I’ll unearth plenty before game one tomorrow night1), but because this will be my first time getting to broadcast a game at one of the true cathedrals of the sport.
The Pads haven’t played at Fenway since July 4, 20132 (!) and while I’ve been to one game there as a fan (while in high school), getting to do a game in the building, which opened in 1912, is going to be very cool.
I’m sure I’ll obnoxiously over-post on Instagram, so feel free to follow along if you’re so inclined.
Btw, that last game between the teams in Boston back in ‘13…the guy on the mound for the Sox to close out an 8-2 win? Their current head of baseball ops (and former Friar!), Craig Breslow.
Some Good Reads
Just wanted to highlight a couple of recent articles that I hope you didn’t miss, but I’m sure some of you did.
First, a Father’s Day salute to our pal Mark Grant from Shaun O’Neill of MLB dot com. Most Padre fans probably feel like they’re a part of Mark’s family already, but this will give you a bit of a window into the day-to-day life of the Grant clan, some of the most wonderful people on the planet.
Secondly, AJ Cassavel, also of MLB dot com, put together a beautiful new look at Tony Gwynn’s legacy to commemorate the tenth anniversary of his passing. Hearing from current and former big leaguers about the impact he had on them is very special and it’s a very powerful piece.
Questions?
I have to be better about reading and responding to questions, so let’s wipe the slate clean and try again. Next time I do a newsletter, I’ll be sure to answer a couple!
Congrats to the Champs
Way off topic for our usual purposes here, but I want to send out congrats to the Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers.
My first job with a “major league” team was with the Cats, as I hosted their pregame, intermission and postgame reports on the radio for two seasons beginning in the fall of 2005. I made a lot of wonderful friends and worked with some wonderful people there, most of whom have moved on three times over since I was there.
Two who have not, however, are the guys who called the games on the radio at the time (and who now form an excellent TV team for the Cats), Steve Goldstein and former NHLer Randy Moller. These guys are not only absolute pros, they’re hilarious and fun to be around and most importantly, were great teammates—especially to a 23 year old kid trying to find his way in the real world.
Seeing the Panthers close out Game 7 the other night, there’s no doubt that Goldie and Moles were the guys I thought of right away. I couldn’t wait to text them my congrats and their responses that evening showed a true bit of shock and awe. I couldn’t help but imagine how my own response will be when I get the chance to call something like that for the Pads. Here’s to hoping October in San Diego feels as good as June in Sunrise, Florida.
Congrats to my friends. What a thing.
The Friday game is an AppleTV game, just FYI…no Don and Mud, but Tony and Jesse there for ya as always.
Fenway and the new stadium in Arlington are the only two current ballparks that I have yet to broadcast a game from; salute to the schedule makers for letting me check both boxes on this one trip.