If you ask any broadcaster what the most important part of
a broadcaster’s job is, they most likely say research. That is the most
important thing for me before a game and it takes most of my prep time.
Many broadcasters do it differently, but I learned from Ryan Rouillard (former
broadcaster for the Victoria HarborCats and Yakima Valley Pippins, now Ranger’s
Double-A Broadcaster) that the best way to do it is by chart. I go through each
and every player on a team’s roster and look up information for them. This can
be simple, such as stats from the previous season as well as where they are
from and stuff like that, to the in-depth stories that everyone loves. These
can be obtained through thorough research and/or by interviewing them or someone
close to them. For every team that the Sweets play, I spend anywhere from 5-8
hours researching the team’s players and then an extra hour or so researching
coaches, team history and home-town fun facts/stories. This makes the broadcast
a lot more interesting for the listeners and for me as well!
As for game-day prep, it is a little more manageable in terms of time. At home,
it all begins with a trip to the Sweets Shoppe in downtown Walla Walla at
9:00am, where I work in the back office to put out the Borleske Bulletin, our
game program for fans at the games. That does not take long, but it must be
emailed to our print shop by 11:00. With a little extra time, I will hang out
at the office and finalize some things on my chart, but mostly just relax. From
there, I pick up the copies of the Bulletin by 1:00 and make my way over to the
stadium.
I am a little different than some broadcaster in the fact that I like to be at
the ballpark SUPER early. For a 7:00pm game, I will usually get there anywhere
from 2-3:00pm. That way, I can fill out my scorebook, chat with players and
coaches and take in the sounds and feels of the park without having to rush. I
love being around the game and being emerged in the atmosphere that a ballpark
provides. After I do my pre-game video interview, I upload it to youtube and
begin game prep. This is the most fun part for me. I can take my time to fill
certain stats in and fun facts into my score book for certain players and
circumstances. From there, I am usually ready to broadcast about 10 minutes
before I go on the air. With a five-minute pre-game show, it doesn’t leave me
much time to talk about the Sweets and what they need to do, so I fit as much
in as I can. Then, my favorite part of the day: first pitch.
After the game is over, I interview a player or coach and pack up my broadcast
equipment. The long night ahead then ensues. It is about 10:30pm by the time I
get home and I won’t eat until after I have finished all my post-game duties. These
include a recap on the website and sent to the press, the post-game interview
uploaded, my “highlight of the night” that I post to soundcloud, updating any
game notes for the next day and continuing prep for the upcoming series. It is
usually anywhere from 12:00am-2:00am until I get any food in my stomach and
then I finally get to catch up on the MLB plays and scores from the day. I try
to find time to keep up on my Mariners.
Not much sleep, a lot of work, but I could not be happier. There is no better
feeling than feeling prepared to do a broadcast and putting out my best effort
every night for the listeners. Everything I do is for my listeners and to make
their experience the best one possible. If a hectic day all culminates to that,
then I have done my job.
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