06.20.2011: Opening Day!

Big day today! I am a combination of several emotions right now. On top of that, I am looking forward to a nice night's sleep. I haven't had one of those in a while.

Today, for several of the players, is the beginning of their professional journey. For others, its the continuation. I fall under the former of the two categories.

My unofficial broadcasting experience started when I was probably 7 or 8, playing a video game and imitating the people I heard on TV/Radio, talking my way through the action. I honestly had no clue what I was doing--I didn't actually realize it was feeding into an undiscovered passion of mine. Flash forward several years later. It was the Spring of 2007. It was time for me to make my college decision. Do I go to a smaller school and continue to play baseball? Or, do I go somewhere with a focus on journalism?

Ultimately, I decided to take the journalistic route. Trust me, if I could still play baseball, I would, but it was the more practical move. I settled on USC over other more established programs because at those programs I would be thrown into a pool of other broadcasting candidates who had more years of actual experience. I played sports throughout high school and, before college, had never actually done an official broadcast. Now, don't get me wrong. It was not shying away from competition. I just knew that I needed to get on air right away, and I knew that opportunity existed at USC. I could not afford to wait 3 years to broadcast a game.

Upon deciding USC was the place for me, I immediately put in calls to people attached to the broadcasting program. I got my name out there, but was promised nothing.

Flash forward a few more months. Its August. I am going through the overwhelming process of moving into college for the first time. Trying to get settled. Adjusting to life on my own. Bam, I get a call from the Sports Director at the time, with whom I had previously spoke, and he asked if I could broadcast a USC-Duke Volleyball game as the intended broadcaster was sick. Without hesitation, I accepted. I crammed my prep, go to the Galen Center for the game, called it, and afterwards thought I was the best broadcaster ever. I got the game on my computer and I will tell you that that was some of the worst broadcasting of all-time. I was terrible. Whenever I am feeling good about myself, I will watch a bit of that game to keep myself grounded. Either way, I got my start. A few weeks, I called my first football game--USC vs. Arizona. A few months later, my first basketball game. And then the following Spring, my first baseball game.

Tonight is my debut broadcasting professional baseball. Today will be a special day for me--a day I will look back at with fond memories. I have moved on to a higher level since that first volleyball game I called. I am much better broadcaster since then. I hope, after tonight's game, I feel like the best broadcaster in the world, only to have the opportunity several years from to be at an even high level and to go back, listen to the tape of tonight's game and laugh as I realize how much I have since improved.

I am ready for the journey to begin.

Small picture video of the 2011 Voyager Blast

Hot Sports Opinion: Golf. I love golf. I want to get back into it as a player. i can watch golf all day long though. It's so relaxing. I love sports like golf and tennis where its on you. You compete as an individual. You versus the field, yourself, the weather--however you want to classify it. I find that level of competition so unique. It makes winning so special, but also, losing so tough. Especially when it happens the way it happened to Jean Van De Velde at the British years back. Or, more recently, how it happened to Rory McIlroy at the Masters in April. Whether its a team sport or an individual sport, it makes me uneasy when it is clear that an individual player cost himself/his team a victory. I always a team/a player to win a game/match rather than a team/a player lose it. And in an individual sport like golf, it's so tough measure how someone can come back after a meltdown.

I am really happy to see Rory McIlroy win the U.S. Open. He is a great talent, but there have been special talents marred by a major letdown. We see it in baseball all the time, or, at least, talk about it. When a young pitcher or a young hitter gets released into the wild too early, struggles, and can't deal with it. Maybe that player would never have made it anyway, but you never know.

Rory McIlroy will be special. Yesterday, he was a great talent, but the way he was able to rebound from his Master's collapse, stare adversity in the eye and WIN, is unique and it shows that "it" factor that makes great players, special. Rory McIlroy is special.

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