December 4, 2024 • 43 mins
On this month's episode I’m honored to talk with a man who has been the heartbeat of Cleveland baseball for 35 years—Tom Hamilton, the legendary voice of the Cleveland Indians and Guardians. Hear his baseball beginnings, including the first game he ever attended as a kid, the quirks and character that made Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium one of a kind, and the city’s transformation with the opening of Jacobs Field in 1994.
And of course, we revisit those incredible Cleveland teams of the mid-‘90s—teams that had the whole city glued to their radios, with Tom’s iconic calls providing the soundtrack to those magical Ohio summers.
From the vast expanse of Municipal Stadium to the unforgettable debut of ‘The Jake,’ and the moments that united a city, this is one conversation I can't wait to share with you.
Update: 12/11/24 - Tom has been named the Ford C. Frick Award Winner and will take his place in the broadcast wing of the Hall of Fame in 2025!!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Mike Koser (00:00):
Hi, I'm Mike Koser, and welcome to Lost Ball parks.
Today, I'm honored to sit downwith the man who has been the
heartbeat of Cleveland baseballfor 35 years, Tom Hamilton, the
legendary voice of the ClevelandIndians and Guardians.
On today's episode, we'llexplore Tom's baseball
beginnings, including the firstgame he ever attended as a kid,
(00:21):
the quirks and character thatmade Cleveland's Municipal
Stadium one of a kind, and thecity's transformation with the
opening of Jacobs Field in 1994.
And of course, when we visitthose incredible Cleveland teams
of the mid-1990s, teams thathad the whole city glued to
their radios with Tom's iconiccalls, providing the soundtrack
to those magical Ohio summers.
(00:41):
Tom Hamilton, welcome to LostBallparks.
(02:02):
How are you?
Tom Hamilton (02:02):
I'm good, thanks.
How are you?
Mike Koser (02:04):
I'm great.
Thanks so much for doing this.
I uh I really, reallyappreciate it.
Tom Hamilton (02:07):
You betcha.
You grew up on your family's150-acre dairy farm in
Wisconsin, and as a young boy,you would uh you would tune in
to Earl Gillespie callingMilwaukee Braves games.
Your your gateway into theworld of baseball.
Earl Gillispie (02:39):
Outfield is shading Aaron just a shade
towards left.
The runner on second base,Bruton takes the lead.
Turley's pitch is a fast strikeon the outside corner knee
high.
Tom Hamilton (02:48):
Yeah, he really did.
I mean, um, literally.
Um, you sat on the porch.
I mean, anybody that umremembers those times, or most
people that, you know, livedsome part of their life on a
farm had a house with a porch, ascreened-in porch, and we had
that.
And I literally had a littletransistor radio, which is
(03:10):
obviously dating yourself backto the 60s, and uh seemed like
such a such a magical space thatyou know you were able to go to
as far as listening to thosereally fun teams that Milwaukee
had with a Hank Aaron and anEddie Matthews and a Warren
Spahn and a Lew Burdette.
And I was too young to everrecollect when they went to
(03:33):
back-to-back World Series in thelate 50s against the Yankees.
But once I got to be nine, 10years of age, you really became
a baseball fan listening tothose Braves teams.
And then after 65,unfortunately, they left
Milwaukee and moved to Atlanta.
So that that was a void foranybody that was a Wisconsin
(03:55):
baseball fan.
And back in those days, becausemy parents were still farming,
we we got to one uh one homedate a year.
Mike Koser (04:04):
Was that your first major league game that you
attended as a kid?
Was it at County Stadium?
Tom Hamilton (04:08):
Yes, County Stadium.
I was one of five children, butbecause I was the oldest, I...
whether my parents said I getto choose or was because the
bleacher seats were 75 cents, Iguess it doesn't matter, but we
got to sit in the right fieldbleacher seats because those
were the seats closest to HankAaron.
And that was always the guythat, as any kid growing up in
(04:30):
that era, that was your guy,Hank Aaron.
And uh so yeah, we'd get to adoubleheader every summer, and
we'd always have to leave partway through game two because mom
and dad had to get back to thefarm because they were the ones
that would have to milk the cowsthat evening.
Mike Koser (04:47):
As much as you can remember, tell me about that
that first time that day, thatthe sights and the sounds,
walking into County Stadium forthe first time.
Is there anything that jumpsout at your memory?
Tom Hamilton (04:57):
Well, the fact that it was so massive.
I mean, at least it was forsomebody um coming from an hour
away.
And again, especially for afamily that at that point was
living on a farm, I mean, youvery seldom saw your neighbors
because it wasn't like yourneighbor was right next door.
They were they were maybe amile down the road.
(05:18):
Um, so just to be in a parkinglot, for instance, at County
Stadium with all those peoplefiling into the ballpark.
And again, it was it justseemed like such a a magical
place, and it really was.
Announcer (05:33):
Baseball, the national pastime, and in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, thebaseball capitol of the world,
office boys disappear.
Grandmothers are taken ill,executives won't be disturbed,
and there's standing room onlyat County Stadium.
Tom Hamilton (05:47):
Of course, it wasn't politically correct.
Maybe at the time it was, itwouldn't be now, but you know,
the big draw for the fans wasChief Noc-a-homa uh coming out
of his teepee in center fieldevery time the Braves hit a home
run, and smoke would uh gothrough the top of the teepee,
and Chief Noc-a-homa would comeout and do a little dance.
(06:08):
And of course, with thoseBraves teams, he danced a lot
during those summer days becausethey hit a lot of home runs.
You wouldn't get away withChief Noc-a-homa uh in today's
world, but it was part of thecharm of County Stadium.
Earl Gillispie (06:21):
This is Earl Gillespie taking you on a tour
of baseball's Braves Land, USA,where in 1955 legions of loyal
fans again clicked theturnstiles for an amazing count
of two million and more.
Tom Hamilton (06:33):
It was a special time, even though the Braves
should never have left.
I don't think anybody that grewup in that time frame will ever
forget what they meant to thestate.
Mike Koser (06:43):
In high school, um, I think sometimes you would cut
lawns to make a little extramoney.
And wouldn't you listen to Cubsgames on WGN?
Tom Hamilton (06:50):
Yeah, you would you would do all of that.
Announcer (06:52):
Good afternoon, everybody, and welcome once
again to Major League Baseball.
And what a beautiful, beautifulday for a ball game in Chicago.
Tom Hamilton (06:59):
You were listening to Vince Lloyd and Lou
Boudreau, and those Cubs teamsreminded you a lot of of the
Milwaukee teams because of ErnieBanks and Billy Williams and
Ron Santo and like those Bravesteams.
Um, they they always scored alot of runs.
They were always a fun team tolisten to.
Mike Koser (07:16):
You know, when people hear you calling games,
Tom, they kind of assume thatyou've been doing it forever.
35 years is a is a long time,but you uh definitely paid your
dues uh in the early days.
I'm sure you recall your daysand nights working as a DJ in
Shell Lake, Wisconsin, living inthe cellar of the radio station
owner's mom's home.
Tom Hamilton (07:34):
Yeah, you've done your homework.
Um certainly not the high pointof my career.
And uh
but as you said, it wasn't abasement, it was a it was a
cellar.
Yeah, yeah, there's a big difference.
And uh again, because um myfirst whatever it was, 13 years
of my existence around a farm,um, anybody that lived in a
(07:57):
farmhouse, they they didn't havea a basement, they had a
cellar.
Um, the cellar was where thefurnace was that your parents
threw wood in to heat the houseor coal, whatever the case might
be.
And so um, yeah, it uh whenyou're living there and you're
thinking this is not what Ienvisioned, maybe I should have
listened to my mom and become anaccountant.
Mike Koser (08:19):
Tom, I often have conversations with my kids who
are who are all grown up nowabout uh the kind of work ethic
that it takes to be successful.
I tell them that hard work isessential and that it will often
require you to put in more thanan eight-hour day.
And I remind them that you haveto be willing to do what others
won't to have what othersdon't.
(08:40):
And I think a a perfect exampleof this um is your time in
Columbus, Ohio, doing morningdrive sports on WBNS uh back in
the eighties.
Um at the time that you gotthere, Terry Smith was calling
Columbus Clippers Games, theYankees AAA affiliate on WBNS.
And when you arrived, you toldthe station manager that um hey,
(09:04):
look, I'd I'd love to helpTerry out, do maybe a couple
innings of play-by-play for homegames each night to you know to
give him a break.
And you offered to do it forfree.
Now this was back in let's see,1987 to 89.
And so you would get up at 3 30in the morning to do the
morning show, and then probablynot leave the ballpark later
(09:24):
that night till after midnightsome nights.
But had you not made that movefor those two years, you
probably wouldn't have landedthe Indians job later on, would
you?
Tom Hamilton (09:34):
Oh, there's no question.
I I don't get it, Mike.
And you know, I'm also forevergrateful that Terry allowed me
to come into the booth with himand help him out.
And he didn't need help by anymeans.
And anybody back in those daysthat was doing minor league
baseball, uh, very seldom didanybody ever have a partner
(09:55):
because it just wasn'teconomically feasible, which is
why I knew if I thought I wasgoing to get paid, it would not
become a reality, thus youvolunteer.
But Terry was gracious enoughto say sure, because you know,
at that time, not only was Terrydoing a full slate of minor
league games, but he was gettingready uh to do the Ohio State
(10:17):
Buckeyes football season.
And so Terry was gone a lot.
I mean, when you think of doingfootball basketball for Ohio
State and then doing theColumbus Clippers, um, that
that's that's a lot of play byplay.
That's a lot of time um spentaway from home.
And so I was very grateful thatTerry was more than happy to
(10:37):
have me join him for home games.
And uh I even made a couple ofroad trips when Terry got some
time off and whatnot.
But yeah, without, even thoughit was just two innings of play
by play, I knew that if I hadany hopes of ever getting an
Angel League job, that I neededto get more baseball experience.
And I was lucky enough to be ina market like Columbus.
(10:59):
The the Columbus experience, wewouldn't be talking today
without it.
Mike Koser (11:03):
Yeah, and thank goodness, by the way, uh, we
should make a point uh to to uhjust give some praise to your
wife, Wendy, because uh in 89,you hear through the news that
the Indians are looking for abroadcasting partner for a Herb
Score who had been with the teamsince uh I think 68.
They narrowed it down to fourcandidates and probably thought,
well, shoot, it's too late forme to apply.
But your wife steps in andencourages you to send in a
(11:25):
tape.
And I think on Christmas Day,don't you spend like 10 hours at
the radio station going throughtape that you could send to the
Indians?
Tom Hamilton (11:33):
Yeah, you're right, Mike.
Um there were three reasons formy reticence of even getting
involved.
I had seen once the Indianseason was over, uh starting in
October, that Paul Olden wasleaving the ball club.
And at that point, I was like,well, they're not going to be
interested in somebody that isat best the number two guy in
(11:56):
Columbus doing two innings.
So you talk yourself out ofsubmitting anything at that
point.
But more importantly, we areexpecting our first child,
Nicholas.
And as first-time parents,everybody knows what that is
like.
Nicholas was due to be born inthe middle of November.
And so my focus was really onthat and on Wendy.
(12:17):
And I was part of the OhioState football broadcast, which
consisted of a four-hour pregameshow that I had to put
together, a halftime on thenetwork, post-game on the
network.
So I was putting in 60 to 70hours a week just getting ready
for football.
Wow.
And so there wasn't really timefor me to literally go through
(12:40):
my cassette tapes of auditionmaterial and put something
together.
And again, I think it's prettyeasy to say, ah, they would
never consider me.
And to your point, you know, aswe got into December, there was
a story in the Cleveland Plaindealer that we used to get at
the radio station every daysaying that the Indians were
(13:01):
down to their final fourcandidates.
They listed some of the names,and I really kind of kicked
myself because I was like, um,maybe I sold myself short.
Maybe I would have had anopportunity to at least get the
experience of interviewing.
And uh Nick was born onNovember 19th.
So we were not going to herfamily's in Pittsburgh for
(13:23):
Christmas, nor my family inWisconsin because we did not
want to travel um that far bycar with a one-month-old child
in the middle of winter.
So you're right.
I mean, Wendy said, look, go toMass on Christmas morning and
then go to the radio station.
I'll take care of Nick.
You will be able to be in aradio station with nobody in it
(13:45):
because it's Christmas Day.
Do what you need to do.
So that's what it was.
It was a 10 or 12 hour day onChristmas Day where you
literally listen to all of yourmaterial to see what you wanted
to do, put together an auditiontape, uh, put together a resume,
and then luckily enough, therest is history.
Mike Koser (14:04):
And your first game would be uh April of 1990, and
you're all set to broadcast thatfirst game at municipal
stadium, and the most Clevelandthing happens, right?
Tom Hamilton (14:16):
Well, you know what, Mike?
That whole thing of 90 wasmessed up because there was a
player lockout.
Right.
So in those days, I didn't evenget the the full experience of
spring training because wedidn't go to spring training
because there was no reason to.
And in those days, Cleveland'sspring training was in Tucson.
(14:36):
And so you lost out on that,which again, when you've been
born on a farm in Wisconsin andthen moved to a town of 2000,
the thought of even going toTucson um seemed like you were
going on a Caribbean cruise.
So um I lost out on thatbecause when they finally came
to terms and ended the lockout/strike, we had a much
(14:58):
abbreviated spring training.
And my first major league gamewas supposed to be at Yankee
Stadium.
And so that in itself was likeyou couldn't script it as a more
unforgettable experience tohave your first major league
game in that cathedral.
And because of the lockout, thefirst week of the regular
(15:22):
season was postponed, and thosegames were rescheduled
throughout the course of theseason.
We went to New York a couple ofdifferent times to play makeup
games.
And then so what ended up beingthe season opener was um, I
believe I should know this, butI believe it was a Tuesday
(15:42):
night.
Um, I know it was a weeknightin Cleveland, it was not opening
day per se, because what wejust talked about, the schedule
being interrupted the way itwas, and there weren't many
people there.
People were still upset aboutthe strike, and um it was a
miserable night.
And of course, uh municipalstadium literally was on the
(16:05):
shores of Lake Erie, and inwhich when you looked out to
center field, you could stillsee chunks of ice bobbing up and
down in the lake.
And uh you're so nervous, youcan't believe this opportunity
has presented itself.
You don't sleep the entirenight before.
We're in uh temporary housing.
(16:27):
Our child is five months old,so he's not sleeping, mom's not
sleeping, I'm not sleeping.
And we get into the secondinning and a blizzard blows in
off the lake and cancels thegame.
And I go back to our downtownapartment because we were not
able to move into our home thatwe had purchased yet.
And my wife looked at me andsaid, We're not going through
(16:49):
another night of this, are we?
Just because you're not goingto be that nervous again like
you were last night.
So um, yeah, it's kind of anunforgettable way to have your
debut.
But yeah, you know, again, ituh we laugh about it with
Nicholas now.
Nick wasn't keeping anybody upthat night.
It was dad.
Mike Koser (17:09):
I grew up, Tom, with municipal stadium walking down
the Western Street Bridge withmy dad.
I will always, always love thatplace.
People often joke that it was adump, but you know what?
It was our dump.
And the the crazy truth is, itwas actually built on an old
landfill.
Yes, and I I heard formermanager Mike Hargrove say uh one
time that in the 80s theyactually dug down a couple of
(17:33):
feet in the infield or outfieldand hit the landfill.
The tops of stoves and piecesof a kitchen sink were exposed.
I don't know if that was anexaggeration, but
yeah, I mean, yeah.
Um to your point of view, and Iagree with it.
Look, that was my first majorleague home.
And um, so it'll always mean alot to me.
(17:57):
It was also an incrediblevantage point from a
play-by-play standpoint, becausein those old ballparks, you
were so much closer to theaction, so much closer to the
field.
Uh, the only ballpark you wereliterally closer to the hitter
was at Old Tiger Stadium.
And so, from a play-by-playstandpoint, there wasn't a
(18:18):
better place to do a game fromas far as visually being able to
see the ballgame unfold infront of you.
Was it a dump?
Yeah, but it meant so much tothe people here.
And you know, I'll never forgetour closing weekend.
Um, and that was when theballpark closed in 1993 because
(18:40):
Jacobs Field was going to openin '94.
The final three games was aweekend series against the White
Sox.
Announcer (18:47):
And we are just about ready to go for the final game
here at Cleveland Stadium.
Tom Hamilton (18:52):
And all three games were sold out for days,
probably months.
We had 80,000 fans threestraight days at that ballpark.
Bob Hope came in.
Bob Hope (19:05):
I can't tell you what a kick it is to be back in my
hometown.
Tom Hamilton (19:10):
And um, because at one time he was a part owner of
the ball club, and he's sayingthanks for the memories.
Bob Hope (19:17):
Well, you've been so swell, and now it's farewell.
(sining) So thanks for thememory,
Tom Hamilton (19:28):
and that's how they closed municipal stadium,
and you know, it was reallyemotional for a lot of people
because that place meant to themwhat county stadium meant to
me.
Mike Koser (19:42):
The trip to the press box, by the way, at
municipal stadium wasprecarious.
Can you can you describe thatjourney?
Tom Hamilton (19:49):
Catwalks.
I mean, you were literally on acatwalk walking over people in
the lower bowl.
People would look up at youlike, where's what's that noise?
Or what just fell on me in casesomebody dropped something, and
you were literally on a catwalkwalking to the booth that hung
out over the upper deck.
Um, and ironically, it's funnyhow life takes you in these
(20:14):
circle moments.
County Stadium in Milwaukee,which is no longer up because of
well, was Miller Park, now it'sum American Family Field.
But uh County Stadium was ascaled-down version of municipal
stadium.
Very same design, just asmaller version of it, which is
(20:35):
also part of the reason why theyused County Stadium for a lot
of the filming of major leaguebecause they were able to use
it, and it was uh similar in uhstructure and architectural look
as to Cleveland MunicipalStadium.
Mike Koser (20:53):
As you say, the Indians move into Jacobs Field
in 1994.
And as a lifelong Clevelandfan, I can tell you that it was
a seminal moment for me and myfamily.
In fact, six years later, Iwould name my firstborn son Jake
after the new ballpark.
Tell me about the first gameyou broadcast there.
I'm sure it felt like just acomplete rebirth for you, the
(21:14):
team, the city.
Tom Hamilton (21:15):
Today, this field of dreams has become a reality.
And boy this reality hascertainly exceeded everyone's
expectations.
What a beautiful ballpark, andwhat a gorgeous Monday...
Mike Koser (21:41):
What was different about the Jake?
Tom Hamilton (21:43):
Well, it was surreal in that, Mike, when you
drove by the surface parkinglot, which is basically what it
was built on, when you woulddrive by the area that they were
talking about building theballpark, you were like, What?
There's no way you can build aballpark on the land that
(22:04):
they're talking about.
And again, it would be hard forpeople now to understand it
because they drive by it now andthey they think, well, sure, of
course, this was the perfectlocation or a great fit and
whatnot.
But back when they were goingto build that ballpark, it was
hard to envision that there wasgoing to be a ballpark on this
parking lot.
And, you know, when you walkedinto it the first time you were
(22:27):
blown away.
You got to remember too, Mike,um, we were dealing with a lot
of old stadiums in Major LeagueBaseball.
But maybe more importantly, wewere dealing with a lot of
multi-purpose stadiums that boththe football team and baseball
team played in.
So they had no feel, they hadno charm, they had no character.
(22:50):
They you didn't know if youwere in Philadelphia,
Pittsburgh, St.
Louis, Cincinnati, Atlanta.
They they were all the sameballpark.
They were multi-purpose typethings.
Baltimore changed all of thatwhen they built Camden Yards,
and when Camden Yards opened upin 1992, and then uh Jacobs
(23:12):
Field was the next new ballparkto open in 1994.
So it was the second ever retropark that had opened up.
And so Camden Yards, I think,opened up everybody's eyes to,
hey, this is what baseball canreally look like.
And then Jacobs Fields justcontinued that trend with a
(23:32):
distinctive look of its own.
And it was the first time thatanybody in Cleveland had been in
a real park, not in a stadium.
Yeah, it was a cold, sunny day.
Um, we thought our ball clubwas going to be a good ball
club, and um, it was.
It was the beginning of whatwould be uh an era of
(23:53):
unprecedented success inCleveland, but you finally had a
ballpark and a ball club thatdeserved each other.
It was the perfect storm inthat that ballpark and the ball
club really kind of uh grew uptogether.
Cleveland had a really goodteam to move into that ballpark
with.
They would be a winning cluband a playoff contender for the
(24:16):
first time in 40 years.
And you're facing Randy Johnsonand the Seattle Mariners, and
Randy Johnson's going to no-hitCleveland.
Right.
What a way to open up aballpark.
You've got Bob Feller walkingall around the press box area
like an expected father becausehe did not want Randy Johnson to
(24:37):
join Bob Feller, and that Bobis the only player in baseball
history to throw a no-hitter onopening day.
And Randy Johnson sure lookedlike he would do that.
And the other thing was theballpark wasn't completely
finished.
So Herb and I are working inthe booth that we still work in,
but the two windows, only oneof them opened.
(25:02):
And so we had to sit next toeach other like um we were
school children.
We were that close to eachother in the booth, so we could
both sit in front of the openedwindow.
And the booth next to us, toour left, as we looked out onto
the field, was where ESPNtelevision was broadcasting
(25:25):
from.
Chris Berman was doing the gamefor ESPN on television.
Chris Berman (25:29):
And welcome back to Jacobs Field in Cleveland.
Chris Berman, along with BuckMartinez, so glad you could be
with us yet.
Another opening day here onESPN.
Tom Hamilton (25:38):
And they hadn't had time to put the window up
between our two booths.
So we're doing opening daysitting on each other's lap,
trying to stay focused becauseChris Berman with that booming
voice of his is all we can hearbecause there is no glass
(25:59):
partition that had yet to beinstalled separating the two
booths.
Chris Berman (26:04):
Breaking ball over for strike three.
Good pitch froze Baerga.
One out of the seventh.
Tom Hamilton (26:10):
It created some challenges, but you had a um a
classic opener.
Sandy Alomar late in the gamebreaks it up, and then Wayne
Kirby wins the game in extrainnings.
3 balls and a strike. Here's the pitch. Line drive left field, base hit, the game is over.
Mike Koser (26:58):
Yeah, those mid-1990s Cleveland teams
provided, I think, some of thebest summers of my life.
I mean, 1995 was absolutelyelectric, earth-shattering every
night.
I think of uh Manny Ramirez onJuly 16th, 1995, when he hits
that walk-off home run againstDennis Eckersley in the twelfth
inning.
Tom Hamilton (27:46):
Game audio
Was it Eckersley walking off the field and you can see him mouth, "Wow!"
Wow.
Yeah.
Wow.
Yeah.
I mean, Albert Bell.
Uh we had a Sunday night gameagainst a really good Angels
team that we thought we wouldplay in the playoffs.
They folded down the stretch,and that's why we ended up
playing Seattle eventually.
But um, Albert won a game anextra innings off a great closer
(28:10):
in Lee Smith.
Game audio Hitting a ball intothe shrubbery in dead center.
(28:37):
Back in those days, we hadpicnic tables out there, and
they would have pregame partiesout there.
And uh Lee Smith had the greatquote after the game, Albert
Belt hit a home run into thepork and beans.
And so there were so many ofthose kind of games down 7-0 to
the great David Cone and comingback to walk it off on a Paul
(28:58):
Sorrento game-winning home run.
I mean, that team in 95, Mike,won.
And again, we had anotherstrike/slash walkout.
So we only played 144 games, 18fewer than normal, and they won
100 games.
And 27 of those 100 wins werelast at bat victories.
(29:21):
And David Winfield and EddieMurray would sit in the
clubhouse after games with thisyoung Indians team celebrating
on a nightly basis, and theywould just shake their heads and
go, This is not supposed tohappen every night.
I mean, they've been around thegame, you know, uh each of them
nearly two decades.
(29:41):
They knew how hard it was towin in the major leagues.
And these young Indians justthought, well, this is the way
it's always going to be.
We'll always find a way to winlate.
Mike Koser (29:50):
By the way, I still get goosebumps, Tom, thinking
about October 24th, 1995, gamethree of the 95 World Series at
Jacobs Field.
Uh Herb score is calling thatuh Um, I think it's the last
inning.
And Herb, of course, joined theIndians in 1955, began his
broadcast career with him in 68.
And there, through much of thetime, he was with him at
Municipal Stadium.
(30:10):
And now here he is at the newballpark, Jacobs Field, a bridge
between the uh the past and thepresent.
And he had the call as EddieMurray walked it off in the 11th
to give Cleveland their firstWorld Series win since 1948.
Herb Score (30:24):
11th inning, we are tied at six.
The Indians trying to win theirfirst World Series game ever at
Jacobs Field in the first gameever played in the World Series
at Jacobs Field.
Tom Hamilton (30:52):
Yeah, and it was really fun for me.
I mean, I am so grateful that Igot to work with Herb and got
to be his partner for eightyears.
I mean, I was the lucky onebecause Herb treated me as an
equal from day one, even thoughI was never Herb's equal.
But that was the kind of man hewas.
I've said it a number of times,Mike, outside of my own dad,
(31:15):
Herb probably gave me the bestadvice I've ever had in my life.
I mean, Herb was not a guy thatwas going to tell you what to
do or any of that.
If you came to him looking foradvice, he would give it.
And you'd be an idiot not toask somebody of his stature for
(31:36):
advice.
And I did.
And I think it's why ourpartnership worked.
Um, because he respected me,because I wasn't coming there.
One of the things that enabledme to get this job, at the time
I didn't realize it, but theball club was sick and tired of
people coming and working withHerb and using it as a stepping
(31:57):
stone to a bigger and betterjob, or maybe better isn't the
right term, but a job maybe in adifferent market that they
wanted to live in.
Maybe, okay, I'll get my firstjob in Cleveland and then go to
the West Coast, or go to theSouth, or go to the East Coast,
whatever the case might be.
For us, getting the Clevelandjob, we didn't look at it as a
(32:21):
stepping stone.
We looked at it as winning thelottery.
Uh, my wife being fromPittsburgh, myself being from
Wisconsin kept us, you know,within driving distance of both
of our families.
Um, and so I was never lookingto move on.
Um, I had great respect forHerb and felt like, look, I'm
(32:41):
just here to help in any way Ican.
This is Herb's show.
He's earned that respect.
And he's one of the most iconicfigures in this city.
And I think a lot of it, Mike,had to do with the fact that
when he came up, I mean, he cameup as a comment.
I mean, he he set a rookierecord for strikeouts in 55 that
(33:04):
stood until Doc Gooden broke itwith the New York Mets.
Wow.
He was a 20-game winner, hissecond season in the big
leagues.
I asked Tony Kubek one time,who was a Milwaukee native.
And of course, Tony played onthose great Yankee teams with
you know, Mickey and Roger andYogi and Bobby Richardson and
(33:24):
Whitey Ford and on and on and onin the late 50s and early 60s.
And Tony Kubek said that forhim, Herb was much more
difficult to hit than SandyKoufax.
Mike Koser (33:36):
Wow.
Tom Hamilton (33:36):
So that's the kind of pitcher we're talking about,
basically taking the mantlefrom Bob Feller and was going to
give Cleveland another Hall ofFame pitcher until the life
changed.
And then he became this greatbroadcaster who, for all of
those years, was a broadcasterthat broadcast for a team that
(33:57):
never won, but it never impactedhow Herb approached the game.
And that was the greatestadvice he gave me in that
records don't mean anything.
Um, your performance is notbased on how the club is doing,
your performance is based ondoing the best you can do each
and every night in that booth.
And so for him to get to call aplayoff and then a World
(34:18):
Series, it was so apropos.
And uh for him to have thewalk-off call Eddie Murray,
because quite frankly, if Eddiedoesn't get that hit and we lose
game three, we get swept.
Yeah, and it was going to bekind of a bummer.
And you know, and then you youend up losing the next night,
and then you come back and stayalive by beating the the
(34:40):
unbeatable Greg Maddux in gamefive.
So um I was really happy thatnot only did Herb call that
World Series, but his finalbroadcast was game seven of the
97 World Series in Miami.
Mike Koser (34:53):
Speaking of that game, there's only been one time
in my life that I've criedwatching a baseball game, and it
was October 26, 1997.
Game seven of the 97 WorldSeries.
The Indians are up two to onegoing into the bottom of the
ninth at Pro Player Stadium inMiami.
Bob Costas (35:08):
Three out from the happiest birthday of his life.
It will just be for themillions of fans who are
crazy about these Indians.
Every day and night during thebaseball stadium, it'll be
for all those folks who went tomunicipal stadiums and
were part of crowds of3500 and 4000 for all the lean
(35:28):
years.
Cheering for Chico Simoneand Max Alvis.
"Daddy Wags" Wagner and Vic Davalillo. Jack Kralick and "Sudden" Sam McDowell. Forall the people who have waited
since 1948 for the Indians to beworld champions.
Mike Koser (35:43):
And I, probably like a lot of us, was convinced that
Jose Mesa was gonna get thesave, beat the Marlins, deliver
the Indians their firstchampionship since 1948.
I wasn't the only one who wasconvinced of that.
Herb Scores doing the ninthinning, calling the ninth
inning, and you were sent downto the clubhouse to cover the
post-game, do interviews, andthat kind of thing.
And then you witnessedsomething that was customary,
but probably made you a littleuneasy.
Tom Hamilton (36:06):
Yeah, I was standing there in the clubhouse,
and there were very few of us,obviously, allowed into that
clubhouse.
And I'm with our vice presidentof public relations, Bob
DiBiasio, and Bobby and I arestanding in the clubhouse
looking up at the television,watching the bottom of the ninth
unfold as they're stapling upthe plastic to protect all the
(36:28):
players' clothes in the lockers,and then they're wheeling in
the stage for the presentation,and then they wheel in the World
Series trophy.
And I looked at Bobby and said,Bobby, this is not right.
I mean, you never tempt thefates of the baseball gods.
But as Bobby said, look, theyhave to do this, Tom, and this
(36:51):
is what they do each and everyyear.
Well, I'll tell you a quickstory on that, Mike.
The next year when the Yankeeswere in the World Series, George
Steinbrenner didn't let anybodyin that Yankee clubhouse before
it was official.
So I think they did it toeverybody until we lost.
And then George Steinbrennersaid, No, that's not happening
on my watch.
(37:11):
But, you know, and then you'reseeing that ninth inning unfold.
And Jose Mesa 97 wasn't thedominant closer he'd been in 95.
And I didn't have a goodfeeling about the bottom of the
ninth inning just because he hadnot been as dominant.
And when he started to shakeoff Sandy Alomar, that that was
not good.
(37:31):
And uh so you you had kind of aqueasy feeling, but hey,
whatever, we'll find a way.
And then boy, it unfolded in ahurry.
And um, I had to race up thestairs to get to the broadcast
booth because I was going to bedoing the 10th inning.
And it just you had a badfeeling when you lose a game
(37:53):
like that, even though youdidn't lose it.
I felt like they lost it in theninth inning.
Mike Koser (37:57):
Yeah, and then of course, in the 11th, Edgar
Renteria hits the walk-off.
Bob Costas (38:01):
A liner, off Nagy's glove into center field!
The Florida Marlins have won theWorld Series.
Mike Koser (38:15):
Is there a better teammate?
Is there a better guy thanCharles Nagy?
Tom Hamilton (38:18):
Charles Nagy was the guy I always pointed to my
sons, who both played Division Iand both played in the minor
leagues.
And I would always, when theywere growing up, would say, I
don't know what kind of a playeryou're going to be, but you
need to be a teammate likeCharlie Nagy.
And he was the example I alwaysused because he's the best
(38:39):
teammate I've ever seen, one ofthe great people that I've ever
come across in my life.
And, you know, he was supposedto start game seven, and
"Grover" went with Jared Wrightbecause he felt Jared was the
better matchup and Jared was ona roll.
And that was a bitter pill forCharlie to swallow.
And it's a soft liner that getsinto center field.
(39:02):
But what people forget isCharlie did his job.
The error by Tony Fernandez isreally what was the undoing
there in the extra innings.
Mike Koser (39:10):
When you joined the Indians in 1990, the broadcast
team with Herb Score, very fewIndians games were broadcast on
TV for me to see in Mansfield,Ohio.
Maybe 60 or less for the entireyear or something, maybe even
less than that.
Tom Hamilton (39:20):
Probably.
Yeah.
Mike Koser (39:21):
So I relied on your radio call to fill me in on what
was happening with my favoriteteam.
The first baseball game I everattended was at Cleveland
Municipal Stadium with my dad,my brother, my nephew, and
hearing your voice, Tom, eachsummer, it connects me to my
dad, who passed away in 2009.
To my brothers and sisters, whoall live across the country
from me.
You're also a cord thatconnects me to my Uncle Larry in
(39:44):
Orlando, Florida, who's alifelong Cleveland fan, whose
love for the team stretches allthe way back to League Park on
E66th in Lexington.
So your voice, your voice, Tom,doesn't just remind me of
Cleveland, it feels like family.
And for that, thank you for 35years going on 36.
I yeah. So appreciate you.
Tom Hamilton (40:05):
Well, that uh....
you choked me up on that onebecause I you know I know how
fortunate and blessed we havebeen to have this job.
And I I think the best part ofthis job is what you just said.
(40:25):
Um what makes our game the bestis family, and that it's always
connecting families, and itdoesn't seem to matter where
we're at, whatever century we'retalking about, whatever decade
(40:45):
we're talking about, this sportconnects families unlike any
other sport that we deal with.
And I think it's because of thedaily connection that for six
months you're living one dayyou're you're going to work
smiling, and the next day you'regoing to work grumpy.
And so I know how lucky I'vebeen and how blessed I've been.
(41:07):
And those words mean more to methan you'll ever know.
And um, I just um we're we'revery grateful.
This game of baseball hasprovided my wife and I a life
beyond what we could have evercomprehended.
And trust me, every day that Igo to that booth, I I can't
believe I got the job.
(41:28):
I just can't believe I somehowgot this job.
And I'll I'll never take it forgranted, I'll tell you that.
Mike Koser (41:35):
Well, I know your off-season is precious, this
time with your family, and soI'm just I'm thankful for a few
minutes today.
Thank you so much, Tom.
Tom Hamilton (41:41):
Happy holidays to you, to your listeners, and uh
this was really fun.
Mike Koser (41:47):
A couple of quick notes.
Terry Pluto, a fantasticCleveland writer who co-authored
Florida Days in Tribetown withTom Hamilton, wrote the
following.
Close your eyes and think backto the middle 1990s.
Those weren't baseball seasons,they were year-long
celebrations.
It was the end of baseball'sdarkest decades in Cleveland.
(42:08):
It was Jacobs Field packed withfans wearing wahoo red, white,
and blue.
It was horns blaring from thecars of East Ninth and Ontario
Avenue.
It was Tom Hamilton screamingone word that said so much.
For a generation, well, morethan a generation of baseball
fans in Cleveland, Tom Hamiltonis the voice of baseball.
(42:30):
December 11th, the Ford C.
Frick Award winner will beannounced.
Once again, Tom Hamilton isnominated to join fellow
baseball immortals in thebroadcast wing of the Hall of
Fame.
He deserves it.
Hi, I'm Mike Koser, and welcome to Lost Ball parks.
Today, I'm honored to sit downwith the man who has been the
heartbeat of Cleveland baseballfor 35 years, Tom Hamilton, the
legendary voice of the ClevelandIndians and Guardians.
On today's episode, we'llexplore Tom's baseball
beginnings, including the firstgame he ever attended as a kid,
(00:21):
the quirks and character thatmade Cleveland's Municipal
Stadium one of a kind, and thecity's transformation with the
opening of Jacobs Field in 1994.
And of course, when we visitthose incredible Cleveland teams
of the mid-1990s, teams thathad the whole city glued to
their radios with Tom's iconiccalls, providing the soundtrack
to those magical Ohio summers.
(00:41):
Tom Hamilton, welcome to LostBallparks.
(02:02):
How are you?
Tom Hamilton (02:02):
I'm good, thanks.
How are you?
Mike Koser (02:04):
I'm great.
Thanks so much for doing this.
I uh I really, reallyappreciate it.
Tom Hamilton (02:07):
You betcha.
You grew up on your family's150-acre dairy farm in
Wisconsin, and as a young boy,you would uh you would tune in
to Earl Gillespie callingMilwaukee Braves games.
Your your gateway into theworld of baseball.
Earl Gillispie (02:39):
Outfield is shading Aaron just a shade
towards left.
The runner on second base,Bruton takes the lead.
Turley's pitch is a fast strikeon the outside corner knee
high.
Tom Hamilton (02:48):
Yeah, he really did.
I mean, um, literally.
Um, you sat on the porch.
I mean, anybody that umremembers those times, or most
people that, you know, livedsome part of their life on a
farm had a house with a porch, ascreened-in porch, and we had
that.
And I literally had a littletransistor radio, which is
(03:10):
obviously dating yourself backto the 60s, and uh seemed like
such a such a magical space thatyou know you were able to go to
as far as listening to thosereally fun teams that Milwaukee
had with a Hank Aaron and anEddie Matthews and a Warren
Spahn and a Lew Burdette.
And I was too young to everrecollect when they went to
(03:33):
back-to-back World Series in thelate 50s against the Yankees.
But once I got to be nine, 10years of age, you really became
a baseball fan listening tothose Braves teams.
And then after 65,unfortunately, they left
Milwaukee and moved to Atlanta.
So that that was a void foranybody that was a Wisconsin
(03:55):
baseball fan.
And back in those days, becausemy parents were still farming,
we we got to one uh one homedate a year.
Mike Koser (04:04):
Was that your first major league game that you
attended as a kid?
Was it at County Stadium?
Tom Hamilton (04:08):
Yes, County Stadium.
I was one of five children, butbecause I was the oldest, I...
whether my parents said I getto choose or was because the
bleacher seats were 75 cents, Iguess it doesn't matter, but we
got to sit in the right fieldbleacher seats because those
were the seats closest to HankAaron.
And that was always the guythat, as any kid growing up in
(04:30):
that era, that was your guy,Hank Aaron.
And uh so yeah, we'd get to adoubleheader every summer, and
we'd always have to leave partway through game two because mom
and dad had to get back to thefarm because they were the ones
that would have to milk the cowsthat evening.
Mike Koser (04:47):
As much as you can remember, tell me about that
that first time that day, thatthe sights and the sounds,
walking into County Stadium forthe first time.
Is there anything that jumpsout at your memory?
Tom Hamilton (04:57):
Well, the fact that it was so massive.
I mean, at least it was forsomebody um coming from an hour
away.
And again, especially for afamily that at that point was
living on a farm, I mean, youvery seldom saw your neighbors
because it wasn't like yourneighbor was right next door.
They were they were maybe amile down the road.
(05:18):
Um, so just to be in a parkinglot, for instance, at County
Stadium with all those peoplefiling into the ballpark.
And again, it was it justseemed like such a a magical
place, and it really was.
Announcer (05:33):
Baseball, the national pastime, and in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, thebaseball capitol of the world,
office boys disappear.
Grandmothers are taken ill,executives won't be disturbed,
and there's standing room onlyat County Stadium.
Tom Hamilton (05:47):
Of course, it wasn't politically correct.
Maybe at the time it was, itwouldn't be now, but you know,
the big draw for the fans wasChief Noc-a-homa uh coming out
of his teepee in center fieldevery time the Braves hit a home
run, and smoke would uh gothrough the top of the teepee,
and Chief Noc-a-homa would comeout and do a little dance.
(06:08):
And of course, with thoseBraves teams, he danced a lot
during those summer days becausethey hit a lot of home runs.
You wouldn't get away withChief Noc-a-homa uh in today's
world, but it was part of thecharm of County Stadium.
Earl Gillispie (06:21):
This is Earl Gillespie taking you on a tour
of baseball's Braves Land, USA,where in 1955 legions of loyal
fans again clicked theturnstiles for an amazing count
of two million and more.
Tom Hamilton (06:33):
It was a special time, even though the Braves
should never have left.
I don't think anybody that grewup in that time frame will ever
forget what they meant to thestate.
Mike Koser (06:43):
In high school, um, I think sometimes you would cut
lawns to make a little extramoney.
And wouldn't you listen to Cubsgames on WGN?
Tom Hamilton (06:50):
Yeah, you would you would do all of that.
Announcer (06:52):
Good afternoon, everybody, and welcome once
again to Major League Baseball.
And what a beautiful, beautifulday for a ball game in Chicago.
Tom Hamilton (06:59):
You were listening to Vince Lloyd and Lou
Boudreau, and those Cubs teamsreminded you a lot of of the
Milwaukee teams because of ErnieBanks and Billy Williams and
Ron Santo and like those Bravesteams.
Um, they they always scored alot of runs.
They were always a fun team tolisten to.
Mike Koser (07:16):
You know, when people hear you calling games,
Tom, they kind of assume thatyou've been doing it forever.
35 years is a is a long time,but you uh definitely paid your
dues uh in the early days.
I'm sure you recall your daysand nights working as a DJ in
Shell Lake, Wisconsin, living inthe cellar of the radio station
owner's mom's home.
Tom Hamilton (07:34):
Yeah, you've done your homework.
Um certainly not the high pointof my career.
And uh
but as you said, it wasn't abasement, it was a it was a
cellar.
Yeah, yeah, there's a big difference.
And uh again, because um myfirst whatever it was, 13 years
of my existence around a farm,um, anybody that lived in a
(07:57):
farmhouse, they they didn't havea a basement, they had a
cellar.
Um, the cellar was where thefurnace was that your parents
threw wood in to heat the houseor coal, whatever the case might
be.
And so um, yeah, it uh whenyou're living there and you're
thinking this is not what Ienvisioned, maybe I should have
listened to my mom and become anaccountant.
Mike Koser (08:19):
Tom, I often have conversations with my kids who
are who are all grown up nowabout uh the kind of work ethic
that it takes to be successful.
I tell them that hard work isessential and that it will often
require you to put in more thanan eight-hour day.
And I remind them that you haveto be willing to do what others
won't to have what othersdon't.
(08:40):
And I think a a perfect exampleof this um is your time in
Columbus, Ohio, doing morningdrive sports on WBNS uh back in
the eighties.
Um at the time that you gotthere, Terry Smith was calling
Columbus Clippers Games, theYankees AAA affiliate on WBNS.
And when you arrived, you toldthe station manager that um hey,
(09:04):
look, I'd I'd love to helpTerry out, do maybe a couple
innings of play-by-play for homegames each night to you know to
give him a break.
And you offered to do it forfree.
Now this was back in let's see,1987 to 89.
And so you would get up at 3 30in the morning to do the
morning show, and then probablynot leave the ballpark later
(09:24):
that night till after midnightsome nights.
But had you not made that movefor those two years, you
probably wouldn't have landedthe Indians job later on, would
you?
Tom Hamilton (09:34):
Oh, there's no question.
I I don't get it, Mike.
And you know, I'm also forevergrateful that Terry allowed me
to come into the booth with himand help him out.
And he didn't need help by anymeans.
And anybody back in those daysthat was doing minor league
baseball, uh, very seldom didanybody ever have a partner
(09:55):
because it just wasn'teconomically feasible, which is
why I knew if I thought I wasgoing to get paid, it would not
become a reality, thus youvolunteer.
But Terry was gracious enoughto say sure, because you know,
at that time, not only was Terrydoing a full slate of minor
league games, but he was gettingready uh to do the Ohio State
(10:17):
Buckeyes football season.
And so Terry was gone a lot.
I mean, when you think of doingfootball basketball for Ohio
State and then doing theColumbus Clippers, um, that
that's that's a lot of play byplay.
That's a lot of time um spentaway from home.
And so I was very grateful thatTerry was more than happy to
(10:37):
have me join him for home games.
And uh I even made a couple ofroad trips when Terry got some
time off and whatnot.
But yeah, without, even thoughit was just two innings of play
by play, I knew that if I hadany hopes of ever getting an
Angel League job, that I neededto get more baseball experience.
And I was lucky enough to be ina market like Columbus.
(10:59):
The the Columbus experience, wewouldn't be talking today
without it.
Mike Koser (11:03):
Yeah, and thank goodness, by the way, uh, we
should make a point uh to to uhjust give some praise to your
wife, Wendy, because uh in 89,you hear through the news that
the Indians are looking for abroadcasting partner for a Herb
Score who had been with the teamsince uh I think 68.
They narrowed it down to fourcandidates and probably thought,
well, shoot, it's too late forme to apply.
But your wife steps in andencourages you to send in a
(11:25):
tape.
And I think on Christmas Day,don't you spend like 10 hours at
the radio station going throughtape that you could send to the
Indians?
Tom Hamilton (11:33):
Yeah, you're right, Mike.
Um there were three reasons formy reticence of even getting
involved.
I had seen once the Indianseason was over, uh starting in
October, that Paul Olden wasleaving the ball club.
And at that point, I was like,well, they're not going to be
interested in somebody that isat best the number two guy in
(11:56):
Columbus doing two innings.
So you talk yourself out ofsubmitting anything at that
point.
But more importantly, we areexpecting our first child,
Nicholas.
And as first-time parents,everybody knows what that is
like.
Nicholas was due to be born inthe middle of November.
And so my focus was really onthat and on Wendy.
(12:17):
And I was part of the OhioState football broadcast, which
consisted of a four-hour pregameshow that I had to put
together, a halftime on thenetwork, post-game on the
network.
So I was putting in 60 to 70hours a week just getting ready
for football.
Wow.
And so there wasn't really timefor me to literally go through
(12:40):
my cassette tapes of auditionmaterial and put something
together.
And again, I think it's prettyeasy to say, ah, they would
never consider me.
And to your point, you know, aswe got into December, there was
a story in the Cleveland Plaindealer that we used to get at
the radio station every daysaying that the Indians were
(13:01):
down to their final fourcandidates.
They listed some of the names,and I really kind of kicked
myself because I was like, um,maybe I sold myself short.
Maybe I would have had anopportunity to at least get the
experience of interviewing.
And uh Nick was born onNovember 19th.
So we were not going to herfamily's in Pittsburgh for
(13:23):
Christmas, nor my family inWisconsin because we did not
want to travel um that far bycar with a one-month-old child
in the middle of winter.
So you're right.
I mean, Wendy said, look, go toMass on Christmas morning and
then go to the radio station.
I'll take care of Nick.
You will be able to be in aradio station with nobody in it
(13:45):
because it's Christmas Day.
Do what you need to do.
So that's what it was.
It was a 10 or 12 hour day onChristmas Day where you
literally listen to all of yourmaterial to see what you wanted
to do, put together an auditiontape, uh, put together a resume,
and then luckily enough, therest is history.
Mike Koser (14:04):
And your first game would be uh April of 1990, and
you're all set to broadcast thatfirst game at municipal
stadium, and the most Clevelandthing happens, right?
Tom Hamilton (14:16):
Well, you know what, Mike?
That whole thing of 90 wasmessed up because there was a
player lockout.
Right.
So in those days, I didn't evenget the the full experience of
spring training because wedidn't go to spring training
because there was no reason to.
And in those days, Cleveland'sspring training was in Tucson.
(14:36):
And so you lost out on that,which again, when you've been
born on a farm in Wisconsin andthen moved to a town of 2000,
the thought of even going toTucson um seemed like you were
going on a Caribbean cruise.
So um I lost out on thatbecause when they finally came
to terms and ended the lockout/strike, we had a much
(14:58):
abbreviated spring training.
And my first major league gamewas supposed to be at Yankee
Stadium.
And so that in itself was likeyou couldn't script it as a more
unforgettable experience tohave your first major league
game in that cathedral.
And because of the lockout, thefirst week of the regular
(15:22):
season was postponed, and thosegames were rescheduled
throughout the course of theseason.
We went to New York a couple ofdifferent times to play makeup
games.
And then so what ended up beingthe season opener was um, I
believe I should know this, butI believe it was a Tuesday
(15:42):
night.
Um, I know it was a weeknightin Cleveland, it was not opening
day per se, because what wejust talked about, the schedule
being interrupted the way itwas, and there weren't many
people there.
People were still upset aboutthe strike, and um it was a
miserable night.
And of course, uh municipalstadium literally was on the
(16:05):
shores of Lake Erie, and inwhich when you looked out to
center field, you could stillsee chunks of ice bobbing up and
down in the lake.
And uh you're so nervous, youcan't believe this opportunity
has presented itself.
You don't sleep the entirenight before.
We're in uh temporary housing.
(16:27):
Our child is five months old,so he's not sleeping, mom's not
sleeping, I'm not sleeping.
And we get into the secondinning and a blizzard blows in
off the lake and cancels thegame.
And I go back to our downtownapartment because we were not
able to move into our home thatwe had purchased yet.
And my wife looked at me andsaid, We're not going through
(16:49):
another night of this, are we?
Just because you're not goingto be that nervous again like
you were last night.
So um, yeah, it's kind of anunforgettable way to have your
debut.
But yeah, you know, again, ituh we laugh about it with
Nicholas now.
Nick wasn't keeping anybody upthat night.
It was dad.
Mike Koser (17:09):
I grew up, Tom, with municipal stadium walking down
the Western Street Bridge withmy dad.
I will always, always love thatplace.
People often joke that it was adump, but you know what?
It was our dump.
And the the crazy truth is, itwas actually built on an old
landfill.
Yes, and I I heard formermanager Mike Hargrove say uh one
time that in the 80s theyactually dug down a couple of
(17:33):
feet in the infield or outfieldand hit the landfill.
The tops of stoves and piecesof a kitchen sink were exposed.
I don't know if that was anexaggeration, but
yeah, I mean, yeah.
Um to your point of view, and Iagree with it.
Look, that was my first majorleague home.
And um, so it'll always mean alot to me.
(17:57):
It was also an incrediblevantage point from a
play-by-play standpoint, becausein those old ballparks, you
were so much closer to theaction, so much closer to the
field.
Uh, the only ballpark you wereliterally closer to the hitter
was at Old Tiger Stadium.
And so, from a play-by-playstandpoint, there wasn't a
(18:18):
better place to do a game fromas far as visually being able to
see the ballgame unfold infront of you.
Was it a dump?
Yeah, but it meant so much tothe people here.
And you know, I'll never forgetour closing weekend.
Um, and that was when theballpark closed in 1993 because
(18:40):
Jacobs Field was going to openin '94.
The final three games was aweekend series against the White
Sox.
Announcer (18:47):
And we are just about ready to go for the final game
here at Cleveland Stadium.
Tom Hamilton (18:52):
And all three games were sold out for days,
probably months.
We had 80,000 fans threestraight days at that ballpark.
Bob Hope came in.
Bob Hope (19:05):
I can't tell you what a kick it is to be back in my
hometown.
Tom Hamilton (19:10):
And um, because at one time he was a part owner of
the ball club, and he's sayingthanks for the memories.
Bob Hope (19:17):
Well, you've been so swell, and now it's farewell.
(sining) So thanks for thememory,
Tom Hamilton (19:28):
and that's how they closed municipal stadium,
and you know, it was reallyemotional for a lot of people
because that place meant to themwhat county stadium meant to
me.
Mike Koser (19:42):
The trip to the press box, by the way, at
municipal stadium wasprecarious.
Can you can you describe thatjourney?
Tom Hamilton (19:49):
Catwalks.
I mean, you were literally on acatwalk walking over people in
the lower bowl.
People would look up at youlike, where's what's that noise?
Or what just fell on me in casesomebody dropped something, and
you were literally on a catwalkwalking to the booth that hung
out over the upper deck.
Um, and ironically, it's funnyhow life takes you in these
(20:14):
circle moments.
County Stadium in Milwaukee,which is no longer up because of
well, was Miller Park, now it'sum American Family Field.
But uh County Stadium was ascaled-down version of municipal
stadium.
Very same design, just asmaller version of it, which is
(20:35):
also part of the reason why theyused County Stadium for a lot
of the filming of major leaguebecause they were able to use
it, and it was uh similar in uhstructure and architectural look
as to Cleveland MunicipalStadium.
Mike Koser (20:53):
As you say, the Indians move into Jacobs Field
in 1994.
And as a lifelong Clevelandfan, I can tell you that it was
a seminal moment for me and myfamily.
In fact, six years later, Iwould name my firstborn son Jake
after the new ballpark.
Tell me about the first gameyou broadcast there.
I'm sure it felt like just acomplete rebirth for you, the
(21:14):
team, the city.
Tom Hamilton (21:15):
Today, this field of dreams has become a reality.
And boy this reality hascertainly exceeded everyone's
expectations.
What a beautiful ballpark, andwhat a gorgeous Monday...
Mike Koser (21:41):
What was different about the Jake?
Tom Hamilton (21:43):
Well, it was surreal in that, Mike, when you
drove by the surface parkinglot, which is basically what it
was built on, when you woulddrive by the area that they were
talking about building theballpark, you were like, What?
There's no way you can build aballpark on the land that
(22:04):
they're talking about.
And again, it would be hard forpeople now to understand it
because they drive by it now andthey they think, well, sure, of
course, this was the perfectlocation or a great fit and
whatnot.
But back when they were goingto build that ballpark, it was
hard to envision that there wasgoing to be a ballpark on this
parking lot.
And, you know, when you walkedinto it the first time you were
(22:27):
blown away.
You got to remember too, Mike,um, we were dealing with a lot
of old stadiums in Major LeagueBaseball.
But maybe more importantly, wewere dealing with a lot of
multi-purpose stadiums that boththe football team and baseball
team played in.
So they had no feel, they hadno charm, they had no character.
(22:50):
They you didn't know if youwere in Philadelphia,
Pittsburgh, St.
Louis, Cincinnati, Atlanta.
They they were all the sameballpark.
They were multi-purpose typethings.
Baltimore changed all of thatwhen they built Camden Yards,
and when Camden Yards opened upin 1992, and then uh Jacobs
(23:12):
Field was the next new ballparkto open in 1994.
So it was the second ever retropark that had opened up.
And so Camden Yards, I think,opened up everybody's eyes to,
hey, this is what baseball canreally look like.
And then Jacobs Fields justcontinued that trend with a
(23:32):
distinctive look of its own.
And it was the first time thatanybody in Cleveland had been in
a real park, not in a stadium.
Yeah, it was a cold, sunny day.
Um, we thought our ball clubwas going to be a good ball
club, and um, it was.
It was the beginning of whatwould be uh an era of
(23:53):
unprecedented success inCleveland, but you finally had a
ballpark and a ball club thatdeserved each other.
It was the perfect storm inthat that ballpark and the ball
club really kind of uh grew uptogether.
Cleveland had a really goodteam to move into that ballpark
with.
They would be a winning cluband a playoff contender for the
(24:16):
first time in 40 years.
And you're facing Randy Johnsonand the Seattle Mariners, and
Randy Johnson's going to no-hitCleveland.
Right.
What a way to open up aballpark.
You've got Bob Feller walkingall around the press box area
like an expected father becausehe did not want Randy Johnson to
(24:37):
join Bob Feller, and that Bobis the only player in baseball
history to throw a no-hitter onopening day.
And Randy Johnson sure lookedlike he would do that.
And the other thing was theballpark wasn't completely
finished.
So Herb and I are working inthe booth that we still work in,
but the two windows, only oneof them opened.
(25:02):
And so we had to sit next toeach other like um we were
school children.
We were that close to eachother in the booth, so we could
both sit in front of the openedwindow.
And the booth next to us, toour left, as we looked out onto
the field, was where ESPNtelevision was broadcasting
(25:25):
from.
Chris Berman was doing the gamefor ESPN on television.
Chris Berman (25:29):
And welcome back to Jacobs Field in Cleveland.
Chris Berman, along with BuckMartinez, so glad you could be
with us yet.
Another opening day here onESPN.
Tom Hamilton (25:38):
And they hadn't had time to put the window up
between our two booths.
So we're doing opening daysitting on each other's lap,
trying to stay focused becauseChris Berman with that booming
voice of his is all we can hearbecause there is no glass
(25:59):
partition that had yet to beinstalled separating the two
booths.
Chris Berman (26:04):
Breaking ball over for strike three.
Good pitch froze Baerga.
One out of the seventh.
Tom Hamilton (26:10):
It created some challenges, but you had a um a
classic opener.
Sandy Alomar late in the gamebreaks it up, and then Wayne
Kirby wins the game in extrainnings.
3 balls and a strike. Here's the pitch. Line drive left field, base hit, the game is over.
Mike Koser (26:58):
Yeah, those mid-1990s Cleveland teams
provided, I think, some of thebest summers of my life.
I mean, 1995 was absolutelyelectric, earth-shattering every
night.
I think of uh Manny Ramirez onJuly 16th, 1995, when he hits
that walk-off home run againstDennis Eckersley in the twelfth
inning.
Tom Hamilton (27:46):
Game audio
Was it Eckersley walking off the field and you can see him mouth, "Wow!"
Wow.
Yeah.
Wow.
Yeah.
I mean, Albert Bell.
Uh we had a Sunday night gameagainst a really good Angels
team that we thought we wouldplay in the playoffs.
They folded down the stretch,and that's why we ended up
playing Seattle eventually.
But um, Albert won a game anextra innings off a great closer
(28:10):
in Lee Smith.
Game audio Hitting a ball intothe shrubbery in dead center.
(28:37):
Back in those days, we hadpicnic tables out there, and
they would have pregame partiesout there.
And uh Lee Smith had the greatquote after the game, Albert
Belt hit a home run into thepork and beans.
And so there were so many ofthose kind of games down 7-0 to
the great David Cone and comingback to walk it off on a Paul
(28:58):
Sorrento game-winning home run.
I mean, that team in 95, Mike,won.
And again, we had anotherstrike/slash walkout.
So we only played 144 games, 18fewer than normal, and they won
100 games.
And 27 of those 100 wins werelast at bat victories.
(29:21):
And David Winfield and EddieMurray would sit in the
clubhouse after games with thisyoung Indians team celebrating
on a nightly basis, and theywould just shake their heads and
go, This is not supposed tohappen every night.
I mean, they've been around thegame, you know, uh each of them
nearly two decades.
(29:41):
They knew how hard it was towin in the major leagues.
And these young Indians justthought, well, this is the way
it's always going to be.
We'll always find a way to winlate.
Mike Koser (29:50):
By the way, I still get goosebumps, Tom, thinking
about October 24th, 1995, gamethree of the 95 World Series at
Jacobs Field.
Uh Herb score is calling thatuh Um, I think it's the last
inning.
And Herb, of course, joined theIndians in 1955, began his
broadcast career with him in 68.
And there, through much of thetime, he was with him at
Municipal Stadium.
(30:10):
And now here he is at the newballpark, Jacobs Field, a bridge
between the uh the past and thepresent.
And he had the call as EddieMurray walked it off in the 11th
to give Cleveland their firstWorld Series win since 1948.
Herb Score (30:24):
11th inning, we are tied at six.
The Indians trying to win theirfirst World Series game ever at
Jacobs Field in the first gameever played in the World Series
at Jacobs Field.
Tom Hamilton (30:52):
Yeah, and it was really fun for me.
I mean, I am so grateful that Igot to work with Herb and got
to be his partner for eightyears.
I mean, I was the lucky onebecause Herb treated me as an
equal from day one, even thoughI was never Herb's equal.
But that was the kind of man hewas.
I've said it a number of times,Mike, outside of my own dad,
(31:15):
Herb probably gave me the bestadvice I've ever had in my life.
I mean, Herb was not a guy thatwas going to tell you what to
do or any of that.
If you came to him looking foradvice, he would give it.
And you'd be an idiot not toask somebody of his stature for
(31:36):
advice.
And I did.
And I think it's why ourpartnership worked.
Um, because he respected me,because I wasn't coming there.
One of the things that enabledme to get this job, at the time
I didn't realize it, but theball club was sick and tired of
people coming and working withHerb and using it as a stepping
(31:57):
stone to a bigger and betterjob, or maybe better isn't the
right term, but a job maybe in adifferent market that they
wanted to live in.
Maybe, okay, I'll get my firstjob in Cleveland and then go to
the West Coast, or go to theSouth, or go to the East Coast,
whatever the case might be.
For us, getting the Clevelandjob, we didn't look at it as a
(32:21):
stepping stone.
We looked at it as winning thelottery.
Uh, my wife being fromPittsburgh, myself being from
Wisconsin kept us, you know,within driving distance of both
of our families.
Um, and so I was never lookingto move on.
Um, I had great respect forHerb and felt like, look, I'm
(32:41):
just here to help in any way Ican.
This is Herb's show.
He's earned that respect.
And he's one of the most iconicfigures in this city.
And I think a lot of it, Mike,had to do with the fact that
when he came up, I mean, he cameup as a comment.
I mean, he he set a rookierecord for strikeouts in 55 that
(33:04):
stood until Doc Gooden broke itwith the New York Mets.
Wow.
He was a 20-game winner, hissecond season in the big
leagues.
I asked Tony Kubek one time,who was a Milwaukee native.
And of course, Tony played onthose great Yankee teams with
you know, Mickey and Roger andYogi and Bobby Richardson and
(33:24):
Whitey Ford and on and on and onin the late 50s and early 60s.
And Tony Kubek said that forhim, Herb was much more
difficult to hit than SandyKoufax.
Mike Koser (33:36):
Wow.
Tom Hamilton (33:36):
So that's the kind of pitcher we're talking about,
basically taking the mantlefrom Bob Feller and was going to
give Cleveland another Hall ofFame pitcher until the life
changed.
And then he became this greatbroadcaster who, for all of
those years, was a broadcasterthat broadcast for a team that
(33:57):
never won, but it never impactedhow Herb approached the game.
And that was the greatestadvice he gave me in that
records don't mean anything.
Um, your performance is notbased on how the club is doing,
your performance is based ondoing the best you can do each
and every night in that booth.
And so for him to get to call aplayoff and then a World
(34:18):
Series, it was so apropos.
And uh for him to have thewalk-off call Eddie Murray,
because quite frankly, if Eddiedoesn't get that hit and we lose
game three, we get swept.
Yeah, and it was going to bekind of a bummer.
And you know, and then you youend up losing the next night,
and then you come back and stayalive by beating the the
(34:40):
unbeatable Greg Maddux in gamefive.
So um I was really happy thatnot only did Herb call that
World Series, but his finalbroadcast was game seven of the
97 World Series in Miami.
Mike Koser (34:53):
Speaking of that game, there's only been one time
in my life that I've criedwatching a baseball game, and it
was October 26, 1997.
Game seven of the 97 WorldSeries.
The Indians are up two to onegoing into the bottom of the
ninth at Pro Player Stadium inMiami.
Bob Costas (35:08):
Three out from the happiest birthday of his life.
It will just be for themillions of fans who are
crazy about these Indians.
Every day and night during thebaseball stadium, it'll be
for all those folks who went tomunicipal stadiums and
were part of crowds of3500 and 4000 for all the lean
(35:28):
years.
Cheering for Chico Simoneand Max Alvis.
"Daddy Wags" Wagner and Vic Davalillo. Jack Kralick and "Sudden" Sam McDowell. Forall the people who have waited
since 1948 for the Indians to beworld champions.
Mike Koser (35:43):
And I, probably like a lot of us, was convinced that
Jose Mesa was gonna get thesave, beat the Marlins, deliver
the Indians their firstchampionship since 1948.
I wasn't the only one who wasconvinced of that.
Herb Scores doing the ninthinning, calling the ninth
inning, and you were sent downto the clubhouse to cover the
post-game, do interviews, andthat kind of thing.
And then you witnessedsomething that was customary,
but probably made you a littleuneasy.
Tom Hamilton (36:06):
Yeah, I was standing there in the clubhouse,
and there were very few of us,obviously, allowed into that
clubhouse.
And I'm with our vice presidentof public relations, Bob
DiBiasio, and Bobby and I arestanding in the clubhouse
looking up at the television,watching the bottom of the ninth
unfold as they're stapling upthe plastic to protect all the
(36:28):
players' clothes in the lockers,and then they're wheeling in
the stage for the presentation,and then they wheel in the World
Series trophy.
And I looked at Bobby and said,Bobby, this is not right.
I mean, you never tempt thefates of the baseball gods.
But as Bobby said, look, theyhave to do this, Tom, and this
(36:51):
is what they do each and everyyear.
Well, I'll tell you a quickstory on that, Mike.
The next year when the Yankeeswere in the World Series, George
Steinbrenner didn't let anybodyin that Yankee clubhouse before
it was official.
So I think they did it toeverybody until we lost.
And then George Steinbrennersaid, No, that's not happening
on my watch.
(37:11):
But, you know, and then you'reseeing that ninth inning unfold.
And Jose Mesa 97 wasn't thedominant closer he'd been in 95.
And I didn't have a goodfeeling about the bottom of the
ninth inning just because he hadnot been as dominant.
And when he started to shakeoff Sandy Alomar, that that was
not good.
(37:31):
And uh so you you had kind of aqueasy feeling, but hey,
whatever, we'll find a way.
And then boy, it unfolded in ahurry.
And um, I had to race up thestairs to get to the broadcast
booth because I was going to bedoing the 10th inning.
And it just you had a badfeeling when you lose a game
(37:53):
like that, even though youdidn't lose it.
I felt like they lost it in theninth inning.
Mike Koser (37:57):
Yeah, and then of course, in the 11th, Edgar
Renteria hits the walk-off.
Bob Costas (38:01):
A liner, off Nagy's glove into center field!
The Florida Marlins have won theWorld Series.
Mike Koser (38:15):
Is there a better teammate?
Is there a better guy thanCharles Nagy?
Tom Hamilton (38:18):
Charles Nagy was the guy I always pointed to my
sons, who both played Division Iand both played in the minor
leagues.
And I would always, when theywere growing up, would say, I
don't know what kind of a playeryou're going to be, but you
need to be a teammate likeCharlie Nagy.
And he was the example I alwaysused because he's the best
(38:39):
teammate I've ever seen, one ofthe great people that I've ever
come across in my life.
And, you know, he was supposedto start game seven, and
"Grover" went with Jared Wrightbecause he felt Jared was the
better matchup and Jared was ona roll.
And that was a bitter pill forCharlie to swallow.
And it's a soft liner that getsinto center field.
(39:02):
But what people forget isCharlie did his job.
The error by Tony Fernandez isreally what was the undoing
there in the extra innings.
Mike Koser (39:10):
When you joined the Indians in 1990, the broadcast
team with Herb Score, very fewIndians games were broadcast on
TV for me to see in Mansfield,Ohio.
Maybe 60 or less for the entireyear or something, maybe even
less than that.
Tom Hamilton (39:20):
Probably.
Yeah.
Mike Koser (39:21):
So I relied on your radio call to fill me in on what
was happening with my favoriteteam.
The first baseball game I everattended was at Cleveland
Municipal Stadium with my dad,my brother, my nephew, and
hearing your voice, Tom, eachsummer, it connects me to my
dad, who passed away in 2009.
To my brothers and sisters, whoall live across the country
from me.
You're also a cord thatconnects me to my Uncle Larry in
(39:44):
Orlando, Florida, who's alifelong Cleveland fan, whose
love for the team stretches allthe way back to League Park on
E66th in Lexington.
So your voice, your voice, Tom,doesn't just remind me of
Cleveland, it feels like family.
And for that, thank you for 35years going on 36.
I yeah. So appreciate you.
Tom Hamilton (40:05):
Well, that uh....
you choked me up on that onebecause I you know I know how
fortunate and blessed we havebeen to have this job.
And I I think the best part ofthis job is what you just said.
(40:25):
Um what makes our game the bestis family, and that it's always
connecting families, and itdoesn't seem to matter where
we're at, whatever century we'retalking about, whatever decade
(40:45):
we're talking about, this sportconnects families unlike any
other sport that we deal with.
And I think it's because of thedaily connection that for six
months you're living one dayyou're you're going to work
smiling, and the next day you'regoing to work grumpy.
And so I know how lucky I'vebeen and how blessed I've been.
(41:07):
And those words mean more to methan you'll ever know.
And um, I just um we're we'revery grateful.
This game of baseball hasprovided my wife and I a life
beyond what we could have evercomprehended.
And trust me, every day that Igo to that booth, I I can't
believe I got the job.
(41:28):
I just can't believe I somehowgot this job.
And I'll I'll never take it forgranted, I'll tell you that.
Mike Koser (41:35):
Well, I know your off-season is precious, this
time with your family, and soI'm just I'm thankful for a few
minutes today.
Thank you so much, Tom.
Tom Hamilton (41:41):
Happy holidays to you, to your listeners, and uh
this was really fun.
Mike Koser (41:47):
A couple of quick notes.
Terry Pluto, a fantasticCleveland writer who co-authored
Florida Days in Tribetown withTom Hamilton, wrote the
following.
Close your eyes and think backto the middle 1990s.
Those weren't baseball seasons,they were year-long
celebrations.
It was the end of baseball'sdarkest decades in Cleveland.
(42:08):
It was Jacobs Field packed withfans wearing wahoo red, white,
and blue.
It was horns blaring from thecars of East Ninth and Ontario
Avenue.
It was Tom Hamilton screamingone word that said so much.
For a generation, well, morethan a generation of baseball
fans in Cleveland, Tom Hamiltonis the voice of baseball.
(42:30):
December 11th, the Ford C.
Frick Award winner will beannounced.
Once again, Tom Hamilton isnominated to join fellow
baseball immortals in thebroadcast wing of the Hall of
Fame.
He deserves it.
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