Ahhhhhhhhhh, baseball season

Tonight is the night I look forward to the most; the start of baseball season. Well, at least for me.

I have color duties for the University of North Florida against Michigan and can't wait. I just love the game and broadcasting baseball is more fun than watching George Bush Jr leave office for the last time.

Preparing for baseball is a different animal. One has to have just about every piece of information about a player as there is so much dead time in between pitches, pinch hitters, etc. One has to be able to have the ability to paint the picture of a game so a blind person can "see" what is going on.

What I do is this: I will give the temperature and weather conditions every couple of innings so the listener knows what the players are facing. If the wind is at the hitters back, the ball will fly and the pitcher has to keep the ball low. If the wind is in the face of a hitter, maybe the pitcher can get away with hanging one as he knows the wind will knock the ball down. Weather is important, especially in baseball.

Also, I will set the defense, mentioning how far off the lines the corners are; whether or not the infield is in, and where the outfielders are. I will walk through what both the pitcher and hitter are doing on the mound and in the batter's box and then describe the pitch. Everything has to be described to create the visual effect for a listener on radio.

Baseball is timeless. I have seen games go an hour and 50 minutes to five hours. One has to be prepared and also have a broadcast partner with a sense of humor. Two of the best I have ever seen are Jerry Remy and Don Orsillo with NESN in Boston. Those two play off each other better than any two I have ever seen or heard. When things get a bit boring, Orsillo will set up Remy and vice versa. When that happens, all bets are off as Remy usually starts laughing so hard he can barely speak. Yes, it keeps them amused, but it also shows the viewer that they are having fun together. Yes, good chemistry is important.

Now, for my baseball compulsions. I HAVE to be at a game in time to watch batting practice. Generally I will go on the field, check out stances, the wind and what the field conditions are like. How can I paint the picture if I don't know what is happening before the game?

I need pencils and plenty of them. Honestly, I am not the greatest at keeping a scorebook so I need pencils so I can erase my countless mistakes.

Gatorade....Must....Have.....Gatorade. I talk so much that if I don't have plenty of fluid, I will sound like an obscene phone call gone bad.

Normally I have a glass of red wine before a game. I do this because I was once told red wine is good for the voice. Superstitions are a pain in the tush to break.

Tonight's game will be on the web at www.1320wbob.com starting at 6:45 Eastern Time. John Lawrence and I will have the call starting at 7:00.