October 16, 2025 • 33 mins
Today on Brewsers, we talk to play by play announcer, Geoff Arnold. We talk about how he fell in love with broadcasting, on air banter, and so much more. Follow us on instagram and twitter at Brewserspod. Like, share, review, enjoy and cheers. #brewsers #brewserspod #Enjoylife #DrinkLocal #Cheers
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome to Bruisers podcast about beer, coffee, booze and Bruisers.
(00:23):
I'm here Sordy John and today we talked to you
play by play announcer Jeff Arnold. We talked about how
he fell in love with broadcasting on air, banter, and
so much more. This is such a fun conversation. We
actually joined Jeff and his wife on a date because
he is in the off season, but we definitely make
sure to talk about what happened during the season itself
and obviously what his pick for the off season when
(00:44):
it comes to baseball is. But you don't want to
hear from me, you want to hear from him. So
without further ado, here is Jeff Arnold.
Speaker 2 (01:03):
I'd like to boocome the show. Jeff Arnold. How are
you doing today, sir?
Speaker 3 (01:07):
I am doing really well. How about yourself?
Speaker 2 (01:09):
I'm doing well.
Speaker 4 (01:10):
So for those listing kind of paintings, the word picture,
where are you at?
Speaker 2 (01:12):
What's going on around you?
Speaker 5 (01:14):
So right now I'm actually with my wife at this
place called Malarkey, which is in Nassas, Gainesville, Virginia. It's
this bar winery, kitchen bar. It's a really cool place.
It's brand new and We actually just came here about
a week or two ago, and the food is great.
There's there's a number of other places around here which
(01:36):
are awesome too. So enjoying a little fall sprits talking
to you?
Speaker 4 (01:42):
What's in the sprits?
Speaker 2 (01:44):
Did they give you the recipe there?
Speaker 3 (01:46):
You know what? I don't Actually I don't have here.
I can tell you.
Speaker 5 (01:49):
Let's see, let me see if I can find it here,
See if I can locate it here? All right, fall sprits,
apple cider, apparol, cinnamon syrup, prosecco, and club soda.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
That's very nice.
Speaker 5 (02:05):
Okay, I'm not I'm not usually a sprits kind of guy,
but I had this last time we were here and
it was too good.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
So I got it again.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
It looks fantastic, mm hmm, really good. What is the
weather there?
Speaker 3 (02:16):
Like?
Speaker 5 (02:18):
Wonderful? It's like a great fall day. It's it's not
too hot, it's not too cold. It's just kind of
the right time of year and beautiful weather. And so
my wife and I are just having a wonderful time.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
That's fantastic.
Speaker 4 (02:31):
Well, I wanted to get in that later, but let's
start it off there. So you get married this year congratulations.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
As a very busy.
Speaker 4 (02:38):
Play by play man. What does balance look like for you?
And how does that work when it comes to unfortunately
I have to miss this birthday or this celebration or
whatever it is.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
How does that work?
Speaker 3 (02:49):
Well, I'm still working on it.
Speaker 5 (02:52):
I'm somebody that probably my wife would tell you I
work all the time, and I'm always like on top
of stuff, and it's it's challenging because you're gone every
other week for you know, usually eight months, and it's
a great job and it's a wonderful, wonderful life. But
at the same time, I feel guilty when I can't
go to different events and birthdays as you said, and
(03:13):
you know, we have different social gatherings on the weekends.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
So in many ways it's a work in progress for me.
Speaker 5 (03:19):
But when we get to this time of the year,
I get to be part of it again and we
have a lot of fun and go to a lot
of places in some of which we've been to before,
others are new and so but I love her dearly,
and she is very patient with me and what my
schedule is.
Speaker 4 (03:35):
I love it and tell her thank you very much
for me interrupting your schedule.
Speaker 5 (03:39):
Now. Oh, absolutely, she's enjoying a false sprits herself, so
she seems to be doing just fine.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
Well there you go.
Speaker 4 (03:47):
Well you are with the Orioles right now, but you
also do a lot of other college sports, and you've
done so much in the past, even for a brief
stint here in North Texas with the Frisco Roughriders. What
was it initially about sports like broadcasting that really kind
of caught your attention? Like, well, I guess let's go
(04:09):
all the back in time. What is your earliest memory
of sports?
Speaker 5 (04:11):
First, Probably my earliest memory of sports is when I
was kindergarten watching the Phillies play in the World Series
against the Toronto Blue Jays. It was the World Series
where Mitch Williams gave up the walk off home run
to Joe Carter which won it, and Tom Cheeks call,
touch them all, jail, You'll never hit a bigger one
(04:32):
in your life. Like It's one of the iconic calls
I think in playoff history. I unfortunately was on the
other side of that, So a young Jeff was very
upset and very sad that the season was over. But
you know, I think it begins with that magical nineteen
eighty three Philadelphia Phillies team and growing up loving baseball,
going to Veterans Stadium and watching some of those early games.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
I love that.
Speaker 4 (04:52):
Well what then later when you're going through school and
you're trying to figure it all out, and you're like,
you know what, I think broadcasting is where I really
want to be.
Speaker 5 (05:00):
Well, it's interesting because some people know that they want
to do broadcasting from the time that they're very young.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
I was not one of those people. I found out
by mistake.
Speaker 5 (05:10):
I was looking for some clubs to join when I
got into college, and you know, you're trying to meet
people and nobody knows anybody, and so I ended up
at the sports radio station WDCV, which was in little
Old Carlisle, Pennsylvania, which is where Dickinson College is located.
So Red Devils are Division III football, basketball, baseball, and
(05:33):
I ended up going in one day. When I found
out they had sports broadcasting, I was like, I think
I'm gonna give this a shot, and I ended up
doing my first football game at Hampton Sydney College with
a guy who was actually in my wedding party as
a matter of fact, and he became one of my
first friends at college and became a very close friend
that I stay in touch with to this day. He's
actually in Houston. He's a very successful attorney there, and
(05:55):
so we ended up going and doing this game. I
found a passion of mine, we both found a lifelong
friend in one another. And then eventually I just started
doing more and more. And then by the time I
got out of college, I was like, you know what,
I'm not sure how far I'm going to go. I
don't know where this is going to take me, but
I think it's at least worth a shot. And then
(06:16):
starting the likes of North Texas and the Frisco rough
Riders and the eventually make it to the Baltimore Orioles
and some.
Speaker 3 (06:23):
Of the other stuff I'm doing right now.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
I love that.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
Yeah, you've kind of touched every sport too, And is
there one that you obviously deeble for baseball?
Speaker 2 (06:33):
I get that very much. Is there another sport that
you're like, you know what? Calling it? I think is
really fun.
Speaker 5 (06:40):
I would say right now that sport is hockey. I
started doing it probably two years ago, and I think
when you get to a certain point your career, it's
always good to have maybe passion projects, so to speak.
So I've kind of labeled hockey as my broadcasting passion
project and done some games over the last couple of years.
I have so much fun with it. Do a few year,
(07:00):
but it's a blast to do. My wife and I
watch a lot of Capitals games, and so I have
so much fun learning how to do it. I pick
up something new every time I go out there. I
was kind of amazed to see the progress I made
from one year of doing it to the second year
of doing it, when I picked up some different things
from watching different games and talking to people like Kenny Albert,
who's a buddy of mine, and I kind of hope
(07:23):
that one day I'll be able to call an NHL game.
It's it's funny because my friend John Walton, who's the
voice of the Capitals, he and I did an interview
when he was a Camdon yards earlier this year, and
I threw the proposition out there. I said, how about
you come and do one of my games and I'll
come and do one of yours.
Speaker 3 (07:41):
So maybe do a.
Speaker 5 (07:42):
Little swap and and it gives him a little break,
gives me a little break, and so maybe.
Speaker 3 (07:48):
One of these days but hockey's kind of that.
Speaker 4 (07:50):
Other sport for me right now, you know, we're putting
it out in the universe that that needs to happen,
and I think we need more of the crossover because
then also it's especially if you not you know, a
normal commentator on it, a lot of this stuff and
the way that the EBB and flow of the game
works is going to be completely different for you. So
it's always it's fun to try new things.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
So I think we need to have that in the universe.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Well.
Speaker 5 (08:12):
And the other thing too is that I think as
broadcasters were sports fans first, and we love the different sports.
And you know, I'll watch the English Premier League and
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
A whole lot about English football or soccer.
Speaker 5 (08:26):
But we went to a game actually two years ago
when we were in you know, we just got engaged
and we went over there. We went to Tottenham Hotspur
and checked out that stadium, which is spectacular and the
the atmosphere is one of a kind. And so even
though maybe I'm not the biggest football fan, at least
English football fan, it's still something that's really fun to
(08:48):
do and hopefully, you know, hopefully one of these days
don and I can make.
Speaker 4 (08:51):
It happen than Plus, the fans are so much better
over there too. They they're the chances are better, the
songs are experience Americans. We just look so lazy with
our claps and just the no sing songy. I'm like,
what are we? How are we missing this? But how
can we fix this and bring this back over here?
Speaker 5 (09:07):
Well, the fans are almost too good because if you
get yourself an adult beverage, you can't take it out
to your seats with you because they're afraid you're gonna throw.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
It at somebody.
Speaker 5 (09:17):
So right, Yeah, that that that was That was maybe
one drawback. But I was getting my my beverage and
my wife and I were making our way to our seats,
like I sure you can't take.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
That with you. You gotta you gotta drink it out there.
Speaker 5 (09:29):
And I'm like, oh, no, wonder there are all these
people out there. They're not just congregating to chat. It's
they don't let them bring their their adult beverage with
them to their seats.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Uh huh exactly.
Speaker 4 (09:39):
Now when it comes I mean, speaking of fans, when
it comes to hockey, do you think that the because
the energy kind of stays in the building that maybe
that is also a draw for hockey because with baseball,
I mean, especially with your stare ballpark, there's no roof,
so the sound just kind of escapes. While yes the
(10:00):
crowd does get loud, it just escapes and doesn't go anywhere. However,
with hockey, something happens in boom like that energy just
kind of circulates throughout the building.
Speaker 5 (10:09):
You know.
Speaker 3 (10:09):
I think it kind of depends on where your team is.
Speaker 5 (10:11):
Obviously, the clubs that are really good, Like if you
go to a game at Citizens Bank Ballpark for the
Phillies play, it is as loud as anywhere. We were
just the Yankees Stadium to close out the year. Yankees
are trying to win the American League East end up
making the wild Card. But you go to places like
that where it's playoff atmospheres, the fans are ready to go.
(10:32):
They think their team can win the World Series. They
packed the place. And for us with the Oriols, like
we've been there in recent years where we packed the
place and it really comes to life. So I think
it's more about having a good team as opposed to
maybe an indoor environment.
Speaker 3 (10:47):
But I will say that you do.
Speaker 5 (10:48):
Have a point in some cases because one of the
loudest places that I have been since I've been doing
this has been what's now dyke in Field, but men
in made Park where.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
The eros like a guy can field.
Speaker 5 (11:01):
Now it's dyk In Park, Dyking I think it's Dyking Park. Yeah,
they changed it this year and I had to like
look up how to say it, but dyk in Park.
And but it'd always been a park to me. But
when they're good, and we've seen them a number of
times where they're really good, they packed that place. The
(11:21):
roof is always closed and it is always loud.
Speaker 4 (11:24):
Yeah, that's trip. Yeah, appear the Rangers. Now we have
a dome on ours, and it's fantastic. We should have
obviously done it years ago, but unfortunately, you know, we
kind of from what I heard, built it after the
Oriel Stadium.
Speaker 2 (11:37):
And I was like, oh, well, that's that's not smart.
That's much different weather. Why are we doing this we
need to put a roof on ours?
Speaker 3 (11:44):
Well, you know, it's funny.
Speaker 5 (11:45):
Oriel Park, as great as it is, it feels like
it's probably been a model that most teams when they
make their new ballparks or they design new pieces of
it Oriel Park at Camden Yards is always one that
people can look at just because of how well it
was built, how unique it is to the city that
it's in, and the atmosphere and the vibe that you
get going in there.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
It really is second and one.
Speaker 4 (12:07):
Yeah, I took a tour. Oh man, this was over
a decade ago, and I was.
Speaker 5 (12:12):
Just like, yeah, I think our service coming by so
getting at what we're doing.
Speaker 4 (12:19):
Good that you've ever had this happen on one of
your podcasts as I love it though.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
Well, I've actually had a cop stop.
Speaker 4 (12:30):
Me in the middle of one, so that was that
was a fun situation.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
He yeah, that's a that's a long story. I'll tell
it later. But uh no, we we did.
Speaker 4 (12:39):
Tour Camden Yards or Oriole Park years ago, and I
love that build. That brick wall that's just outside of
right field and catches all of those home runs whenever
they go out there, and I'm just like, yeah, the
whole place is fantastic because I think they also put
like actual markers wherever the ball is actually landed, right.
Speaker 5 (12:56):
They do yep, yep, everyone is marked, and at the
very end of the year they make up new plaques
and so you'll see all these chalk markings of where
these different balls landed on Utah Street, and then they'll
put different plaques out there, and so you can go
and check and see all these different home run balls.
But no, they do that every year and it's really cool.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
I love that. Now.
Speaker 4 (13:18):
I saw on your website, Jeff on Theair dot com,
by the way, for anybody wants to do it, says
you did a stint as an NPR host, and you
can do the voice.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
Obviously we have to hear the NPR voice.
Speaker 3 (13:31):
Well let's see here.
Speaker 5 (13:34):
Good morning, it's seven fifteen, and hope you're off to
a great start. Get out of bed, sleepyhead. Here's the
news for the day. Across Russia. Vladimir Putin is threatening Ukraine.
And like you just like stuff like that, just not
very low just trying to like expressions, trying to yeah,
(13:55):
expression list is trying to be very loose and relaxed
and good morning. You know, it's just like that's just
the way the way that it is. But no, I
started doing that when I was in my first job,
and it was another thing that I would do, just
the way to make money when you're going But it
was in Winstersale, North Carolina WFDD. The people that I
worked with there were so great. None of them were
(14:17):
sports people. They didn't really understand what it is that
I did, but they were a little bit like amazed
when I could just like there'd be breaking news or
something would kind of come out of thin air and
I would just kind.
Speaker 3 (14:28):
Of wing it, so to speak, because they had to.
Speaker 5 (14:32):
Have scripts for like everything, like, I don't know how
he does that, but I'm like, well, I live sports announcer.
Speaker 3 (14:37):
It's part of the part of the gig I do.
Most of the stuff I do is in script it anyways.
Speaker 5 (14:41):
But it was It was kind of the one of
the first jobs that I had, but honestly was probably
one of the better experiences I've had doing this.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
It is funny because it's you have a different tool
when you are a especially a baseball and live announcer.
You have to talk through a lot of stuff and
you're feeling a lot of time and again, if you
could just do that on the air normally, like it's
it's just a regular thing for you. Everybody else like, wait, oh.
Speaker 2 (15:06):
They can't do it. Their brain's not operated that way.
Speaker 5 (15:10):
Well, you know it takes a lot of time to
figure out how to do it. I would say that
it's a lot better now than it was probably when
my wife and I started dating, because that was pre pitchclock,
and when you have all these different reasons why the
game would get disrupted just somebody would step out of
the box.
Speaker 3 (15:27):
Pitcher would throw over three or four.
Speaker 5 (15:29):
Times just stepping off, meandering on the batter's pucks. Like
games between US and the Yankees, they'd go four hours.
I'm like, nobody wants to watch this, So I think
that it became necessary for the pitch clock to just
bring the old speed of the game back, and now
it's a million times better. You don't find yourself just
overfilling because some of the material that I had to
have just to get through these games. It was just
(15:51):
ridiculous because there was so much time to fill, and
you kind of worried you're overfilling or you were underfilling.
So I'm much happier now that we have a pitch
clock because I know that generally speaking, we're gonna be
out of there between two and a half and three hours,
and that's usually at most nights.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Sometimes you get a little luckier.
Speaker 5 (16:07):
Sometimes it goes a little longer, but even so it
usually is extra innings if you're going over three hours.
Speaker 3 (16:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (16:13):
I used to work at the ground screw for the
ballpark up here, and people be like, Oh, when you're
gonna get off, I'm like, I'm not gonna get I'm
gonna it's give me way later the game ends, I'll
be there for another hour after that, and I don't
know how long the game is going to be.
Speaker 2 (16:28):
Nobody does, so no, I can't beletely get it.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
I imagine that's so much easier now for you when
it does come to not having, like you said, feel
four hours where you're just you know, what is the
weirdest thing that you maybe had brought up other than
losing your passport twice in Toronto that you've had to
just kind of, like you said, just kind of fill
time with.
Speaker 5 (16:48):
Yeah, I've been called out like five times in different
situations across different mediums for doing that.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
You put it on your website, really.
Speaker 4 (16:56):
So yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 5 (16:58):
We've it's hard to identify one thing because what's great
about baseball is that sometimes it can be very off
the wall, Like I have an idea of like some
things i'd like to talk about. But the reality of
it is you never know what's gonna come up. I
mean recently I did. I can't remember.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
I think my I had a.
Speaker 5 (17:17):
Broadcast partner who brought up He said, you know, I
don't I don't notice any Bobs anymore.
Speaker 3 (17:22):
I'm like, well, what about Bob the Builder?
Speaker 5 (17:24):
And so we were like looking at how many years
of Bob the Builder there were, and it's like twenty
seasons of Bob the Builders, So it's twenty pretty wild,
but twenty seasons we looked at crazy. I mean, as
long as you believe Wikipedia, then it's it's twenty seasons.
But no, well we'll hit on some weird stuff and
kind of go different directions that you don't expect to go.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
But that's what makes baseball so great.
Speaker 5 (17:46):
Like you can talk about a kid show one moment,
and then you can be doing serious baseball the next.
Speaker 4 (17:53):
I do love that about That's one of my favorite things.
When people people love like, oh, I like going to baseball,
but I don't like watching it on TV. I'm like,
that's one of my favorite things because that feel that
filling in between is that anters my best. It's especially
when like there's a real good dynamic between you know,
your your partner and you like this, it could be
so good.
Speaker 5 (18:13):
Yeah, Brett Hollander and I are kind of that way.
I mean he will He'll call me Jeffrey my boy
every time I I toss it to him, and it's
it goes back to this. It goes back to this
old joke. Actually when when I we all have our
welcome to the Major League moments, So when I was
at the beginning of my career, John Stirling of the
Yankees with this at the very end of his John
(18:34):
actually just got nominated for the Ford Frick Award, which
is the Hall of Fame winner. So it's second second
straight year he has been nominated. I'm hoping he's gonna
get in one of these years. But but anyways, he
It's a Sunday game. I don't know if it was
Easter Sunday, but it was like around Easter time.
Speaker 3 (18:52):
And I walk into the men's room, like right before
the game.
Speaker 5 (18:55):
You know, you you're gonna be on for probably an
hour before you'll have a chance to go again. And
I walk into the men's room and I'm at one
urinal and he sidles up to the next one and
he just bellows out, hello, Jeffrey, my boy. And that's
kind of where I was like, John Sterling knows my
name and he let me know he knows my name
(19:16):
at the EARNL So that was a welcome to the
major leagues moment. But when you hear Brett say thank you,
Jeffrey my boy, that's where it that's where it comes from.
Speaker 2 (19:25):
I love it. It all goes back to that. Yeah,
that that first time.
Speaker 5 (19:29):
Bizarre, strange, but but that's that's what makes baseball baseball.
Were there one hundred and sixty two days out of
the year, so you're gonna have some some funny stuff
and some hilarious stuff happened to you.
Speaker 2 (19:42):
Just this is true. I think mine was. It was
the Yankees.
Speaker 4 (19:49):
It was a doubleheader just because it got rained out
the day before, and I was walking up to the infield.
You know, we're going to do our stuff before the game.
Yankees are kind of practicing. Ever, a Rod stops me
and the guy next to him from next to me
and he was like, hey, can you can you guys
make sure to uh, you know, water down the infield.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
It's really hard. I was like, yeah, sure, A rod,
I'll go tell our boss to go do that.
Speaker 4 (20:13):
In my head, I'm like, you're getting paid how much
you play on concrete if they want you to?
Speaker 3 (20:18):
Gosh?
Speaker 2 (20:19):
But also I was like, why did a ard stop me?
Of all people, do I look like.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
I'm in charge?
Speaker 2 (20:26):
I love it?
Speaker 3 (20:28):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (20:29):
Now, what what does research look like for you? Because
some people I know will have just a stack of
notes and some people almost wing it, especially toward the
end of the season because you you've kind of gotten
everybody down by Now what.
Speaker 2 (20:40):
Does your research kind of look like?
Speaker 5 (20:42):
Well, it is probably NonStop and ongoing at all times.
Just ask my wife about that and she'll she'll tell
you it's it's NonStop. It's player notes, it's team notes.
It's reading different stuff about like what's going on around
the ballpark when you have homestands and things like that,
and finding like different stories to tell and help people
(21:05):
learn about the cities that you're in. So we've been
a bunch of different places, you know where We'll like,
we went to Toronto last year when we went to
the Hockey Hall of Fame, we went to the gate
we went to the Gateway Arch and we were in
Saint Louis We went to a bunch of different breweries.
When we went to Milwaukee, we did a cheese steak tour.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
When we went to Philadelphia, we did a speech pitch.
Speaker 5 (21:26):
We went to the throw the speed pitch this year
when we were in Chicago. So like, we'll tell stories
about stuff like that too, And I think it kind.
Speaker 3 (21:33):
Of helps people learn who you are.
Speaker 5 (21:35):
And I think when you're doing baseball as many games
as we're doing, and I think especially when you're doing
baseball in the radio, you have to let people know
that you're a human being just like them. You were
just as weird, you have just as many issues as
they do, but you're fortunate that you get to do
a pretty cool job and have a lot of fun
for a living. And that's that's I think what we
(21:57):
try and get across. But I think what we really
trying show is that we're just like everybody else.
Speaker 3 (22:02):
We just happen to have micro funds.
Speaker 4 (22:04):
It's true, Yeah, you just happen to be gifted enough
to do the play by play. Whenever you see the
schedule for the next year, what cities do you kind
of get excited about? And then obviously toward the end
of the year, through end of the year. Which cities
do you kind of get excited about when it comes
to the team itself.
Speaker 5 (22:23):
I would say that it's always fun when you're playing
meaningful games inside the American leagues. So if you go
to Toronto, if you go to Boston, if you go
to New York, you know it's going to be a
rockous atmosphere. You know it's going to be exciting, you
know it's going to be fun. I'd say Boston is
one of my favorite places to go to anyways. Shar
Icago is tremendous, and my wife and I went this year.
(22:45):
It was her first time going to Chicago, and she
had a lot of fun and we got to do
some different stuff. Took one of the architecture tours, one
of those boat tours, which really really recommend doing that
if you happen to go to Chicago. Seattle is awesome.
It's probably one of my favorite ball t mobile park.
The weather there if you go in the middle of summer,
is always beautiful, and then you know you'll have some
(23:06):
that it might seem a little more surprising, like Minnesota
is a gem to go to in the summertime because
the weather's perfect target Field I think is one of
the coolest places. And then I love going to San
Francisco where you play the where you play the Giants
and you do games there. And then also San Diego,
Like San Diego is one of those cities ballparks places
(23:28):
that it's always at the top of the list. So
whenever you find out you're going to San Diego, it's
pretty awesome.
Speaker 4 (23:32):
Yeah, I'm trying to So I'm going to WrestleMania next year.
I'm trying to make it down to San Diego afterwards
and then drive over. It's going to be a big
weird loop, but I'm going to make it.
Speaker 3 (23:42):
Happen, do it.
Speaker 5 (23:44):
It's a it's a cool place, great micro brewery scene there.
Speaker 2 (23:48):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (23:48):
Yeah, and so many, so many people are just so
excited about the padres. I mean that the pottery fans there,
they're sold out every game and it's really cool. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (23:58):
If they've been getting so much better over the past
few years, it's insane to see what's going on out there.
Speaker 3 (24:03):
Mm hmm.
Speaker 5 (24:04):
Like, yeah, they have they have a lot of they
have a they have deep pockets and they will spend
and they have some superstar power and they're they're just
a fun They're a fun team. They got a lot
of talented players out there. We actually traded a few
guys there who were key guys for our team this year.
But yeah, it's a it's a fun place to go,
great atmosphere, plenty of stuff to do. It's a it's
(24:26):
a favorite, always at the top of always at the
top of our less.
Speaker 4 (24:29):
Now as we're recording, the postseason, for the most part,
is about to start. We're in the middle of wild
card games. Who do you see going on not to
the World Series, but to the game to the final,
the ALC Finals before the World Series.
Speaker 5 (24:47):
It's a real tough one because I think it could
go any number of ways. If I had to take
a guess, I'm gonna guess Phillies Mariners, if I if
I'm gonna if I'm gonna take a guess Phillies Mariners.
I think the Mariners in the past, they always had
the pitching, but they didn't have the offense.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
This year they have the offense.
Speaker 5 (25:05):
They won a really great run at the end of
the At the end of the regular season, they had
us long winning Street Calro probably hit sixty home runs.
Speaker 3 (25:14):
But they could pitch.
Speaker 5 (25:15):
They can fight out pitch, so that's a team if
they get on a run, I could see them making
a run all the way to the World Series.
Speaker 3 (25:20):
They've never done that.
Speaker 5 (25:20):
They've never gone to a World Series before, so I
could see Seattle.
Speaker 3 (25:24):
And then Philadelphia. There's a lot on the line for them.
Speaker 5 (25:26):
A lot of their players like Kyle Schwerber, jt Real Muto,
their contracts are coming up, so it's kind of viewed
as now or never for Philadelphia. They're without Zach Wheeler
who had to have a had to have a surgery
for thrastic outlet syndrome, I think, but their their pitching
staff is still really good even without him, and I
could I could see that being another another team that
(25:48):
they get into the World Series. And that is one
of the most raucous atmospheres. I think it is the
most raucous atmosphere in baseball right now. Philadelphia when when
they are good at their fans are as passionate as anybody,
and I could see it being a Philly Mariner World Series.
Speaker 2 (26:05):
Oh, I love that. That'd be fantastic.
Speaker 3 (26:06):
Mm hmm.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
I'm not going to ask.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Who you think would win, but if you were to bet,
where would you put your money.
Speaker 5 (26:12):
I would say, I would say the Phillies just because
they have so much they have so much experience in
big games, and they have so many big game players
in their lineup, right.
Speaker 4 (26:21):
Yeah, and again that those fans will get be super
ramid for it.
Speaker 3 (26:25):
They will.
Speaker 5 (26:25):
And by the way, I'll make these predictions and these
those two teams will lose when the division for sure starts.
So so I'm sure I'll get a lot of told
you sos from this.
Speaker 2 (26:34):
Yeah, there you go. Well I was saying about Shelley
called the five counts just five random questions. Okay, who
was your first concert?
Speaker 3 (26:42):
Mmmm?
Speaker 5 (26:44):
I think my first conscience. This is going to sound
sort of weird, but it was actually when I was
in FO Texas was one direction. One.
Speaker 3 (26:51):
It was a one It was a one direction concert.
Speaker 5 (26:53):
It was like the first event that I ever did
when I was with the Rough Riders. They needed to
move I think the concert to Doctor Pepper Ballpark because
where it was supposed to be I think I think
could have gotten out of hand. There wasn't enough security.
So one direction. As strange as that might sound.
Speaker 2 (27:11):
Did they put on a good show? I bet they would?
Speaker 3 (27:13):
They did. They were pretty good pretty good.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
Yeah, I never I never got to see them that.
I like Harry Stoslot.
Speaker 4 (27:19):
Uh, if you owned a liquor company, brewery, winery, coffee shop,
or dispensary, which one would.
Speaker 2 (27:24):
You own and what would the name be?
Speaker 3 (27:25):
Uh?
Speaker 5 (27:27):
I would say winery, it would be it would be.
My wife and I are huge winery people. We love
going to Charlottesville, Virginia, which is I think one of
the great wine regions on the East Coast. So if
you look at the East Coast, like the best wine regions,
i'd say are in Charlottesville, and then if you go
the Finger Lakes up in New York, and then if
you go to West Coast, there's so many different places.
You go to Napa, you go to Sonoma, you could
(27:48):
go to the Wallamotte Valley. You get all these different
different types of places. But I don't know, I probably
say I don't know what I would.
Speaker 3 (27:58):
I don't know what I would. I don't know what
i'd call it. You know something, I'm like looking at
my wife, what you got?
Speaker 4 (28:08):
You know what?
Speaker 3 (28:08):
Actually, she just gave me a good one.
Speaker 5 (28:09):
We call it saga. Seawan Arnold, Jeff Arnold. So yeah,
so maybe maybe saga. Yeah, that's what we're gonna hold
onto that in case we open.
Speaker 3 (28:18):
One one day.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
Now, you have to do it. Go buy it, go
buy the website right now and all.
Speaker 3 (28:22):
That I got. Yeah, I like that.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
There you go. I'm glad that. Yes, this is just
a think tank.
Speaker 3 (28:29):
Exactly. Just nobody takes Okay, give us, give us a
thirty year window.
Speaker 4 (28:35):
Hey, this won't come out for like two weeks, so
you have you have time. Who is the last person
you fan boyed out on?
Speaker 3 (28:43):
It's tough to like.
Speaker 5 (28:43):
It's hard with like with baseball players, it doesn't it's
a little.
Speaker 3 (28:47):
Bit different for the most part.
Speaker 5 (28:50):
I would say the guy that I'm kind of in
awe of whenever I see him is John Miller, the
former voice of the Orioles, long time voice his son
in a baseball I think he's the best baseball broadcaster
who's ever lived.
Speaker 3 (29:04):
I think he's hilarious. He's so good what he does.
Speaker 5 (29:06):
He has an incredible voice, and whenever we go to
San Francisco, he always takes us out to lunch. And
you know, Brett Hollander, who's guy broadcasts with He's.
Speaker 3 (29:14):
He knows John a little better than I do.
Speaker 5 (29:16):
He's always nice enough to let me tag along and
just listening to John's stories and all the people he's
gotten to know and all the things he's gotten to do.
I would say that for you know, as a baseball
broadcast dork, John Miller would probably be number one.
Speaker 2 (29:29):
Nice.
Speaker 4 (29:30):
Uh leads us right into number four.
Speaker 2 (29:32):
Who are what inspires you?
Speaker 5 (29:33):
Well, my wife inspires me every day. She's kind, smart, tough,
and she puts up with me. And that's that says
a lot. There you go, Yeah, I would say, say her.
And then I have a lot of friends that I
really admire for who they are as people and how
they're real and they're themselves. Like, authenticity is really big
to me with people that I'm friends with, And it's like.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
You don't have to agree with me on every single thing.
Speaker 5 (30:00):
You can be totally different, come from a totally different
part of the country, different walks of life, different socioeconomic status.
Speaker 3 (30:06):
Doesn't make a difference to me.
Speaker 5 (30:07):
Just be authentic and who you are, And then that's
what I really value about friends of mine.
Speaker 3 (30:12):
They're all authentic people.
Speaker 2 (30:14):
We waited and more are those in the world.
Speaker 3 (30:16):
Mm hmm.
Speaker 4 (30:17):
And number five, what would you tell your seventeen year
old self.
Speaker 5 (30:20):
You're going to live in a lot of different places,
You're going to try a lot of different things. You're
going to have some success and failures along the way,
but that's part of the journey. And just realize that
you'll end up at where you're supposed to be when
you're supposed to be there.
Speaker 3 (30:37):
Love it now.
Speaker 4 (30:39):
If people want to find out more about you, follow
you online, go to your website, listen to you call
baseball or any other sport.
Speaker 2 (30:46):
How can they do all the things?
Speaker 3 (30:47):
So I do have a website and I updated some.
Speaker 5 (30:51):
The reason I still have the website actually is it's
kind of it's kind of my excuse to go back
and watch some of my work throughout the year, just
to check myself and how I'm doing, and just sort
of to assess progress.
Speaker 3 (31:02):
You're in and you're out.
Speaker 5 (31:03):
So I do have a website called Jeff oneair dot com,
which is more just like you know, for my It's
it's kind of like something that people can look at
if they want, but it's more just for my my
tracking of my own progress, right, and then you can
follow me at Jeff on the Air. It's what my
social media handle is on Twitter and Instagram, so I
(31:24):
don't do TikTok just yet, but I'm on Twitter and
Instagram pretty periodically, so I usually when we're when I'm
not posting baseball picks, it's usually pictures of the wineries.
My wife and I go too, so so we we
tend to tend to post a bunch of pictures of
that stuff.
Speaker 2 (31:40):
There's nothing wrong with that. I love it.
Speaker 3 (31:42):
Yep.
Speaker 4 (31:43):
Well, Jeff, thank you so much for your time, and
thank you to your wife as well for allowing me
again to hop in here. So you guys go enjoy
your sprits, get a second round, and.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
We'll talk to you later.
Speaker 3 (31:53):
Awesome, John, thanks so much, Thank you.
Speaker 4 (31:54):
Sir, Thank you so much for Jeff for being on
the show again. Definitely make sure to go follow Jeff
and go to uh Jeff on the air because you
have all of his calls from the year the years prior.
(32:16):
He's updating on a regular basis because he wants to
get better at being a play by a play announcer
and he definitely wants to know what you think of him,
So definitely make sure to go follow him on social media,
and while you're following him, make sure to follow Wes
on social media at bruisers Pod that is b R
E W S the R S p O D on
the Instagram, the threads and the Twitter. If you want
to send us an email, it is Bruiserspod at gmail
(32:37):
dot com. If you want to follow me directly, it.
Speaker 1 (32:39):
Is Roady John. That is our O D I E
j O N. Roady John is the name on the
Twitter and are untapped in case you want to find it.
When I'm drinking babe, we can have a beer together.
If you want to follow me on the threads or
the Instagram, it is official Order John. So until next time,
make sure to enjoy life, drink local and cheers.
Speaker 3 (33:05):
Three two one
Welcome to Bruisers podcast about beer, coffee, booze and Bruisers.
(00:23):
I'm here Sordy John and today we talked to you
play by play announcer Jeff Arnold. We talked about how
he fell in love with broadcasting on air, banter, and
so much more. This is such a fun conversation. We
actually joined Jeff and his wife on a date because
he is in the off season, but we definitely make
sure to talk about what happened during the season itself
and obviously what his pick for the off season when
(00:44):
it comes to baseball is. But you don't want to
hear from me, you want to hear from him. So
without further ado, here is Jeff Arnold.
Speaker 2 (01:03):
I'd like to boocome the show. Jeff Arnold. How are
you doing today, sir?
Speaker 3 (01:07):
I am doing really well. How about yourself?
Speaker 2 (01:09):
I'm doing well.
Speaker 4 (01:10):
So for those listing kind of paintings, the word picture,
where are you at?
Speaker 2 (01:12):
What's going on around you?
Speaker 5 (01:14):
So right now I'm actually with my wife at this
place called Malarkey, which is in Nassas, Gainesville, Virginia. It's
this bar winery, kitchen bar. It's a really cool place.
It's brand new and We actually just came here about
a week or two ago, and the food is great.
There's there's a number of other places around here which
(01:36):
are awesome too. So enjoying a little fall sprits talking
to you?
Speaker 4 (01:42):
What's in the sprits?
Speaker 2 (01:44):
Did they give you the recipe there?
Speaker 3 (01:46):
You know what? I don't Actually I don't have here.
I can tell you.
Speaker 5 (01:49):
Let's see, let me see if I can find it here,
See if I can locate it here? All right, fall sprits,
apple cider, apparol, cinnamon syrup, prosecco, and club soda.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
That's very nice.
Speaker 5 (02:05):
Okay, I'm not I'm not usually a sprits kind of guy,
but I had this last time we were here and
it was too good.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
So I got it again.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
It looks fantastic, mm hmm, really good. What is the
weather there?
Speaker 3 (02:16):
Like?
Speaker 5 (02:18):
Wonderful? It's like a great fall day. It's it's not
too hot, it's not too cold. It's just kind of
the right time of year and beautiful weather. And so
my wife and I are just having a wonderful time.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
That's fantastic.
Speaker 4 (02:31):
Well, I wanted to get in that later, but let's
start it off there. So you get married this year congratulations.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
Thank you.
Speaker 2 (02:37):
As a very busy.
Speaker 4 (02:38):
Play by play man. What does balance look like for you?
And how does that work when it comes to unfortunately
I have to miss this birthday or this celebration or
whatever it is.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
How does that work?
Speaker 3 (02:49):
Well, I'm still working on it.
Speaker 5 (02:52):
I'm somebody that probably my wife would tell you I
work all the time, and I'm always like on top
of stuff, and it's it's challenging because you're gone every
other week for you know, usually eight months, and it's
a great job and it's a wonderful, wonderful life. But
at the same time, I feel guilty when I can't
go to different events and birthdays as you said, and
(03:13):
you know, we have different social gatherings on the weekends.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
So in many ways it's a work in progress for me.
Speaker 5 (03:19):
But when we get to this time of the year,
I get to be part of it again and we
have a lot of fun and go to a lot
of places in some of which we've been to before,
others are new and so but I love her dearly,
and she is very patient with me and what my
schedule is.
Speaker 4 (03:35):
I love it and tell her thank you very much
for me interrupting your schedule.
Speaker 5 (03:39):
Now. Oh, absolutely, she's enjoying a false sprits herself, so
she seems to be doing just fine.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
Well there you go.
Speaker 4 (03:47):
Well you are with the Orioles right now, but you
also do a lot of other college sports, and you've
done so much in the past, even for a brief
stint here in North Texas with the Frisco Roughriders. What
was it initially about sports like broadcasting that really kind
of caught your attention? Like, well, I guess let's go
(04:09):
all the back in time. What is your earliest memory
of sports?
Speaker 5 (04:11):
First, Probably my earliest memory of sports is when I
was kindergarten watching the Phillies play in the World Series
against the Toronto Blue Jays. It was the World Series
where Mitch Williams gave up the walk off home run
to Joe Carter which won it, and Tom Cheeks call,
touch them all, jail, You'll never hit a bigger one
(04:32):
in your life. Like It's one of the iconic calls
I think in playoff history. I unfortunately was on the
other side of that, So a young Jeff was very
upset and very sad that the season was over. But
you know, I think it begins with that magical nineteen
eighty three Philadelphia Phillies team and growing up loving baseball,
going to Veterans Stadium and watching some of those early games.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
I love that.
Speaker 4 (04:52):
Well what then later when you're going through school and
you're trying to figure it all out, and you're like,
you know what, I think broadcasting is where I really
want to be.
Speaker 5 (05:00):
Well, it's interesting because some people know that they want
to do broadcasting from the time that they're very young.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
I was not one of those people. I found out
by mistake.
Speaker 5 (05:10):
I was looking for some clubs to join when I
got into college, and you know, you're trying to meet
people and nobody knows anybody, and so I ended up
at the sports radio station WDCV, which was in little
Old Carlisle, Pennsylvania, which is where Dickinson College is located.
So Red Devils are Division III football, basketball, baseball, and
(05:33):
I ended up going in one day. When I found
out they had sports broadcasting, I was like, I think
I'm gonna give this a shot, and I ended up
doing my first football game at Hampton Sydney College with
a guy who was actually in my wedding party as
a matter of fact, and he became one of my
first friends at college and became a very close friend
that I stay in touch with to this day. He's
actually in Houston. He's a very successful attorney there, and
(05:55):
so we ended up going and doing this game. I
found a passion of mine, we both found a lifelong
friend in one another. And then eventually I just started
doing more and more. And then by the time I
got out of college, I was like, you know what,
I'm not sure how far I'm going to go. I
don't know where this is going to take me, but
I think it's at least worth a shot. And then
(06:16):
starting the likes of North Texas and the Frisco rough
Riders and the eventually make it to the Baltimore Orioles
and some.
Speaker 3 (06:23):
Of the other stuff I'm doing right now.
Speaker 2 (06:25):
I love that.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
Yeah, you've kind of touched every sport too, And is
there one that you obviously deeble for baseball?
Speaker 2 (06:33):
I get that very much. Is there another sport that
you're like, you know what? Calling it? I think is
really fun.
Speaker 5 (06:40):
I would say right now that sport is hockey. I
started doing it probably two years ago, and I think
when you get to a certain point your career, it's
always good to have maybe passion projects, so to speak.
So I've kind of labeled hockey as my broadcasting passion
project and done some games over the last couple of years.
I have so much fun with it. Do a few year,
(07:00):
but it's a blast to do. My wife and I
watch a lot of Capitals games, and so I have
so much fun learning how to do it. I pick
up something new every time I go out there. I
was kind of amazed to see the progress I made
from one year of doing it to the second year
of doing it, when I picked up some different things
from watching different games and talking to people like Kenny Albert,
who's a buddy of mine, and I kind of hope
(07:23):
that one day I'll be able to call an NHL game.
It's it's funny because my friend John Walton, who's the
voice of the Capitals, he and I did an interview
when he was a Camdon yards earlier this year, and
I threw the proposition out there. I said, how about
you come and do one of my games and I'll
come and do one of yours.
Speaker 3 (07:41):
So maybe do a.
Speaker 5 (07:42):
Little swap and and it gives him a little break,
gives me a little break, and so maybe.
Speaker 3 (07:48):
One of these days but hockey's kind of that.
Speaker 4 (07:50):
Other sport for me right now, you know, we're putting
it out in the universe that that needs to happen,
and I think we need more of the crossover because
then also it's especially if you not you know, a
normal commentator on it, a lot of this stuff and
the way that the EBB and flow of the game
works is going to be completely different for you. So
it's always it's fun to try new things.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
So I think we need to have that in the universe.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Well.
Speaker 5 (08:12):
And the other thing too is that I think as
broadcasters were sports fans first, and we love the different sports.
And you know, I'll watch the English Premier League and
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
A whole lot about English football or soccer.
Speaker 5 (08:26):
But we went to a game actually two years ago
when we were in you know, we just got engaged
and we went over there. We went to Tottenham Hotspur
and checked out that stadium, which is spectacular and the
the atmosphere is one of a kind. And so even
though maybe I'm not the biggest football fan, at least
English football fan, it's still something that's really fun to
(08:48):
do and hopefully, you know, hopefully one of these days
don and I can make.
Speaker 4 (08:51):
It happen than Plus, the fans are so much better
over there too. They they're the chances are better, the
songs are experience Americans. We just look so lazy with
our claps and just the no sing songy. I'm like,
what are we? How are we missing this? But how
can we fix this and bring this back over here?
Speaker 5 (09:07):
Well, the fans are almost too good because if you
get yourself an adult beverage, you can't take it out
to your seats with you because they're afraid you're gonna throw.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
It at somebody.
Speaker 5 (09:17):
So right, Yeah, that that that was That was maybe
one drawback. But I was getting my my beverage and
my wife and I were making our way to our seats,
like I sure you can't take.
Speaker 3 (09:27):
That with you. You gotta you gotta drink it out there.
Speaker 5 (09:29):
And I'm like, oh, no, wonder there are all these
people out there. They're not just congregating to chat. It's
they don't let them bring their their adult beverage with
them to their seats.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Uh huh exactly.
Speaker 4 (09:39):
Now when it comes I mean, speaking of fans, when
it comes to hockey, do you think that the because
the energy kind of stays in the building that maybe
that is also a draw for hockey because with baseball,
I mean, especially with your stare ballpark, there's no roof,
so the sound just kind of escapes. While yes the
(10:00):
crowd does get loud, it just escapes and doesn't go anywhere. However,
with hockey, something happens in boom like that energy just
kind of circulates throughout the building.
Speaker 5 (10:09):
You know.
Speaker 3 (10:09):
I think it kind of depends on where your team is.
Speaker 5 (10:11):
Obviously, the clubs that are really good, Like if you
go to a game at Citizens Bank Ballpark for the
Phillies play, it is as loud as anywhere. We were
just the Yankees Stadium to close out the year. Yankees
are trying to win the American League East end up
making the wild Card. But you go to places like
that where it's playoff atmospheres, the fans are ready to go.
(10:32):
They think their team can win the World Series. They
packed the place. And for us with the Oriols, like
we've been there in recent years where we packed the
place and it really comes to life. So I think
it's more about having a good team as opposed to
maybe an indoor environment.
Speaker 3 (10:47):
But I will say that you do.
Speaker 5 (10:48):
Have a point in some cases because one of the
loudest places that I have been since I've been doing
this has been what's now dyke in Field, but men
in made Park where.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
The eros like a guy can field.
Speaker 5 (11:01):
Now it's dyk In Park, Dyking I think it's Dyking Park. Yeah,
they changed it this year and I had to like
look up how to say it, but dyk in Park.
And but it'd always been a park to me. But
when they're good, and we've seen them a number of
times where they're really good, they packed that place. The
(11:21):
roof is always closed and it is always loud.
Speaker 4 (11:24):
Yeah, that's trip. Yeah, appear the Rangers. Now we have
a dome on ours, and it's fantastic. We should have
obviously done it years ago, but unfortunately, you know, we
kind of from what I heard, built it after the
Oriel Stadium.
Speaker 2 (11:37):
And I was like, oh, well, that's that's not smart.
That's much different weather. Why are we doing this we
need to put a roof on ours?
Speaker 3 (11:44):
Well, you know, it's funny.
Speaker 5 (11:45):
Oriel Park, as great as it is, it feels like
it's probably been a model that most teams when they
make their new ballparks or they design new pieces of
it Oriel Park at Camden Yards is always one that
people can look at just because of how well it
was built, how unique it is to the city that
it's in, and the atmosphere and the vibe that you
get going in there.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
It really is second and one.
Speaker 4 (12:07):
Yeah, I took a tour. Oh man, this was over
a decade ago, and I was.
Speaker 5 (12:12):
Just like, yeah, I think our service coming by so
getting at what we're doing.
Speaker 4 (12:19):
Good that you've ever had this happen on one of
your podcasts as I love it though.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
Well, I've actually had a cop stop.
Speaker 4 (12:30):
Me in the middle of one, so that was that
was a fun situation.
Speaker 2 (12:33):
He yeah, that's a that's a long story. I'll tell
it later. But uh no, we we did.
Speaker 4 (12:39):
Tour Camden Yards or Oriole Park years ago, and I
love that build. That brick wall that's just outside of
right field and catches all of those home runs whenever
they go out there, and I'm just like, yeah, the
whole place is fantastic because I think they also put
like actual markers wherever the ball is actually landed, right.
Speaker 5 (12:56):
They do yep, yep, everyone is marked, and at the
very end of the year they make up new plaques
and so you'll see all these chalk markings of where
these different balls landed on Utah Street, and then they'll
put different plaques out there, and so you can go
and check and see all these different home run balls.
But no, they do that every year and it's really cool.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
I love that. Now.
Speaker 4 (13:18):
I saw on your website, Jeff on Theair dot com,
by the way, for anybody wants to do it, says
you did a stint as an NPR host, and you
can do the voice.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
Obviously we have to hear the NPR voice.
Speaker 3 (13:31):
Well let's see here.
Speaker 5 (13:34):
Good morning, it's seven fifteen, and hope you're off to
a great start. Get out of bed, sleepyhead. Here's the
news for the day. Across Russia. Vladimir Putin is threatening Ukraine.
And like you just like stuff like that, just not
very low just trying to like expressions, trying to yeah,
(13:55):
expression list is trying to be very loose and relaxed
and good morning. You know, it's just like that's just
the way the way that it is. But no, I
started doing that when I was in my first job,
and it was another thing that I would do, just
the way to make money when you're going But it
was in Winstersale, North Carolina WFDD. The people that I
worked with there were so great. None of them were
(14:17):
sports people. They didn't really understand what it is that
I did, but they were a little bit like amazed
when I could just like there'd be breaking news or
something would kind of come out of thin air and
I would just kind.
Speaker 3 (14:28):
Of wing it, so to speak, because they had to.
Speaker 5 (14:32):
Have scripts for like everything, like, I don't know how
he does that, but I'm like, well, I live sports announcer.
Speaker 3 (14:37):
It's part of the part of the gig I do.
Most of the stuff I do is in script it anyways.
Speaker 5 (14:41):
But it was It was kind of the one of
the first jobs that I had, but honestly was probably
one of the better experiences I've had doing this.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
It is funny because it's you have a different tool
when you are a especially a baseball and live announcer.
You have to talk through a lot of stuff and
you're feeling a lot of time and again, if you
could just do that on the air normally, like it's
it's just a regular thing for you. Everybody else like, wait, oh.
Speaker 2 (15:06):
They can't do it. Their brain's not operated that way.
Speaker 5 (15:10):
Well, you know it takes a lot of time to
figure out how to do it. I would say that
it's a lot better now than it was probably when
my wife and I started dating, because that was pre pitchclock,
and when you have all these different reasons why the
game would get disrupted just somebody would step out of
the box.
Speaker 3 (15:27):
Pitcher would throw over three or four.
Speaker 5 (15:29):
Times just stepping off, meandering on the batter's pucks. Like
games between US and the Yankees, they'd go four hours.
I'm like, nobody wants to watch this, So I think
that it became necessary for the pitch clock to just
bring the old speed of the game back, and now
it's a million times better. You don't find yourself just
overfilling because some of the material that I had to
have just to get through these games. It was just
(15:51):
ridiculous because there was so much time to fill, and
you kind of worried you're overfilling or you were underfilling.
So I'm much happier now that we have a pitch
clock because I know that generally speaking, we're gonna be
out of there between two and a half and three hours,
and that's usually at most nights.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Sometimes you get a little luckier.
Speaker 5 (16:07):
Sometimes it goes a little longer, but even so it
usually is extra innings if you're going over three hours.
Speaker 3 (16:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (16:13):
I used to work at the ground screw for the
ballpark up here, and people be like, Oh, when you're
gonna get off, I'm like, I'm not gonna get I'm
gonna it's give me way later the game ends, I'll
be there for another hour after that, and I don't
know how long the game is going to be.
Speaker 2 (16:28):
Nobody does, so no, I can't beletely get it.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
I imagine that's so much easier now for you when
it does come to not having, like you said, feel
four hours where you're just you know, what is the
weirdest thing that you maybe had brought up other than
losing your passport twice in Toronto that you've had to
just kind of, like you said, just kind of fill
time with.
Speaker 5 (16:48):
Yeah, I've been called out like five times in different
situations across different mediums for doing that.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
You put it on your website, really.
Speaker 4 (16:56):
So yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 5 (16:58):
We've it's hard to identify one thing because what's great
about baseball is that sometimes it can be very off
the wall, Like I have an idea of like some
things i'd like to talk about. But the reality of
it is you never know what's gonna come up. I
mean recently I did. I can't remember.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
I think my I had a.
Speaker 5 (17:17):
Broadcast partner who brought up He said, you know, I
don't I don't notice any Bobs anymore.
Speaker 3 (17:22):
I'm like, well, what about Bob the Builder?
Speaker 5 (17:24):
And so we were like looking at how many years
of Bob the Builder there were, and it's like twenty
seasons of Bob the Builders, So it's twenty pretty wild,
but twenty seasons we looked at crazy. I mean, as
long as you believe Wikipedia, then it's it's twenty seasons.
But no, well we'll hit on some weird stuff and
kind of go different directions that you don't expect to go.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
But that's what makes baseball so great.
Speaker 5 (17:46):
Like you can talk about a kid show one moment,
and then you can be doing serious baseball the next.
Speaker 4 (17:53):
I do love that about That's one of my favorite things.
When people people love like, oh, I like going to baseball,
but I don't like watching it on TV. I'm like,
that's one of my favorite things because that feel that
filling in between is that anters my best. It's especially
when like there's a real good dynamic between you know,
your your partner and you like this, it could be
so good.
Speaker 5 (18:13):
Yeah, Brett Hollander and I are kind of that way.
I mean he will He'll call me Jeffrey my boy
every time I I toss it to him, and it's
it goes back to this. It goes back to this
old joke. Actually when when I we all have our
welcome to the Major League moments, So when I was
at the beginning of my career, John Stirling of the
Yankees with this at the very end of his John
(18:34):
actually just got nominated for the Ford Frick Award, which
is the Hall of Fame winner. So it's second second
straight year he has been nominated. I'm hoping he's gonna
get in one of these years. But but anyways, he
It's a Sunday game. I don't know if it was
Easter Sunday, but it was like around Easter time.
Speaker 3 (18:52):
And I walk into the men's room, like right before
the game.
Speaker 5 (18:55):
You know, you you're gonna be on for probably an
hour before you'll have a chance to go again. And
I walk into the men's room and I'm at one
urinal and he sidles up to the next one and
he just bellows out, hello, Jeffrey, my boy. And that's
kind of where I was like, John Sterling knows my
name and he let me know he knows my name
(19:16):
at the EARNL So that was a welcome to the
major leagues moment. But when you hear Brett say thank you,
Jeffrey my boy, that's where it that's where it comes from.
Speaker 2 (19:25):
I love it. It all goes back to that. Yeah,
that that first time.
Speaker 5 (19:29):
Bizarre, strange, but but that's that's what makes baseball baseball.
Were there one hundred and sixty two days out of
the year, so you're gonna have some some funny stuff
and some hilarious stuff happened to you.
Speaker 2 (19:42):
Just this is true. I think mine was. It was
the Yankees.
Speaker 4 (19:49):
It was a doubleheader just because it got rained out
the day before, and I was walking up to the infield.
You know, we're going to do our stuff before the game.
Yankees are kind of practicing. Ever, a Rod stops me
and the guy next to him from next to me
and he was like, hey, can you can you guys
make sure to uh, you know, water down the infield.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
It's really hard. I was like, yeah, sure, A rod,
I'll go tell our boss to go do that.
Speaker 4 (20:13):
In my head, I'm like, you're getting paid how much
you play on concrete if they want you to?
Speaker 3 (20:18):
Gosh?
Speaker 2 (20:19):
But also I was like, why did a ard stop me?
Of all people, do I look like.
Speaker 3 (20:22):
I'm in charge?
Speaker 2 (20:26):
I love it?
Speaker 3 (20:28):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (20:29):
Now, what what does research look like for you? Because
some people I know will have just a stack of
notes and some people almost wing it, especially toward the
end of the season because you you've kind of gotten
everybody down by Now what.
Speaker 2 (20:40):
Does your research kind of look like?
Speaker 5 (20:42):
Well, it is probably NonStop and ongoing at all times.
Just ask my wife about that and she'll she'll tell
you it's it's NonStop. It's player notes, it's team notes.
It's reading different stuff about like what's going on around
the ballpark when you have homestands and things like that,
and finding like different stories to tell and help people
(21:05):
learn about the cities that you're in. So we've been
a bunch of different places, you know where We'll like,
we went to Toronto last year when we went to
the Hockey Hall of Fame, we went to the gate
we went to the Gateway Arch and we were in
Saint Louis We went to a bunch of different breweries.
When we went to Milwaukee, we did a cheese steak tour.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
When we went to Philadelphia, we did a speech pitch.
Speaker 5 (21:26):
We went to the throw the speed pitch this year
when we were in Chicago. So like, we'll tell stories
about stuff like that too, And I think it kind.
Speaker 3 (21:33):
Of helps people learn who you are.
Speaker 5 (21:35):
And I think when you're doing baseball as many games
as we're doing, and I think especially when you're doing
baseball in the radio, you have to let people know
that you're a human being just like them. You were
just as weird, you have just as many issues as
they do, but you're fortunate that you get to do
a pretty cool job and have a lot of fun
for a living. And that's that's I think what we
(21:57):
try and get across. But I think what we really
trying show is that we're just like everybody else.
Speaker 3 (22:02):
We just happen to have micro funds.
Speaker 4 (22:04):
It's true, Yeah, you just happen to be gifted enough
to do the play by play. Whenever you see the
schedule for the next year, what cities do you kind
of get excited about? And then obviously toward the end
of the year, through end of the year. Which cities
do you kind of get excited about when it comes
to the team itself.
Speaker 5 (22:23):
I would say that it's always fun when you're playing
meaningful games inside the American leagues. So if you go
to Toronto, if you go to Boston, if you go
to New York, you know it's going to be a
rockous atmosphere. You know it's going to be exciting, you
know it's going to be fun. I'd say Boston is
one of my favorite places to go to anyways. Shar
Icago is tremendous, and my wife and I went this year.
(22:45):
It was her first time going to Chicago, and she
had a lot of fun and we got to do
some different stuff. Took one of the architecture tours, one
of those boat tours, which really really recommend doing that
if you happen to go to Chicago. Seattle is awesome.
It's probably one of my favorite ball t mobile park.
The weather there if you go in the middle of summer,
is always beautiful, and then you know you'll have some
(23:06):
that it might seem a little more surprising, like Minnesota
is a gem to go to in the summertime because
the weather's perfect target Field I think is one of
the coolest places. And then I love going to San
Francisco where you play the where you play the Giants
and you do games there. And then also San Diego,
Like San Diego is one of those cities ballparks places
(23:28):
that it's always at the top of the list. So
whenever you find out you're going to San Diego, it's
pretty awesome.
Speaker 4 (23:32):
Yeah, I'm trying to So I'm going to WrestleMania next year.
I'm trying to make it down to San Diego afterwards
and then drive over. It's going to be a big
weird loop, but I'm going to make it.
Speaker 3 (23:42):
Happen, do it.
Speaker 5 (23:44):
It's a it's a cool place, great micro brewery scene there.
Speaker 2 (23:48):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (23:48):
Yeah, and so many, so many people are just so
excited about the padres. I mean that the pottery fans there,
they're sold out every game and it's really cool. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (23:58):
If they've been getting so much better over the past
few years, it's insane to see what's going on out there.
Speaker 3 (24:03):
Mm hmm.
Speaker 5 (24:04):
Like, yeah, they have they have a lot of they
have a they have deep pockets and they will spend
and they have some superstar power and they're they're just
a fun They're a fun team. They got a lot
of talented players out there. We actually traded a few
guys there who were key guys for our team this year.
But yeah, it's a it's a fun place to go,
great atmosphere, plenty of stuff to do. It's a it's
(24:26):
a favorite, always at the top of always at the
top of our less.
Speaker 4 (24:29):
Now as we're recording, the postseason, for the most part,
is about to start. We're in the middle of wild
card games. Who do you see going on not to
the World Series, but to the game to the final,
the ALC Finals before the World Series.
Speaker 5 (24:47):
It's a real tough one because I think it could
go any number of ways. If I had to take
a guess, I'm gonna guess Phillies Mariners, if I if
I'm gonna if I'm gonna take a guess Phillies Mariners.
I think the Mariners in the past, they always had
the pitching, but they didn't have the offense.
Speaker 3 (25:04):
This year they have the offense.
Speaker 5 (25:05):
They won a really great run at the end of
the At the end of the regular season, they had
us long winning Street Calro probably hit sixty home runs.
Speaker 3 (25:14):
But they could pitch.
Speaker 5 (25:15):
They can fight out pitch, so that's a team if
they get on a run, I could see them making
a run all the way to the World Series.
Speaker 3 (25:20):
They've never done that.
Speaker 5 (25:20):
They've never gone to a World Series before, so I
could see Seattle.
Speaker 3 (25:24):
And then Philadelphia. There's a lot on the line for them.
Speaker 5 (25:26):
A lot of their players like Kyle Schwerber, jt Real Muto,
their contracts are coming up, so it's kind of viewed
as now or never for Philadelphia. They're without Zach Wheeler
who had to have a had to have a surgery
for thrastic outlet syndrome, I think, but their their pitching
staff is still really good even without him, and I
could I could see that being another another team that
(25:48):
they get into the World Series. And that is one
of the most raucous atmospheres. I think it is the
most raucous atmosphere in baseball right now. Philadelphia when when
they are good at their fans are as passionate as anybody,
and I could see it being a Philly Mariner World Series.
Speaker 2 (26:05):
Oh, I love that. That'd be fantastic.
Speaker 3 (26:06):
Mm hmm.
Speaker 2 (26:07):
I'm not going to ask.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Who you think would win, but if you were to bet,
where would you put your money.
Speaker 5 (26:12):
I would say, I would say the Phillies just because
they have so much they have so much experience in
big games, and they have so many big game players
in their lineup, right.
Speaker 4 (26:21):
Yeah, and again that those fans will get be super
ramid for it.
Speaker 3 (26:25):
They will.
Speaker 5 (26:25):
And by the way, I'll make these predictions and these
those two teams will lose when the division for sure starts.
So so I'm sure I'll get a lot of told
you sos from this.
Speaker 2 (26:34):
Yeah, there you go. Well I was saying about Shelley
called the five counts just five random questions. Okay, who
was your first concert?
Speaker 3 (26:42):
Mmmm?
Speaker 5 (26:44):
I think my first conscience. This is going to sound
sort of weird, but it was actually when I was
in FO Texas was one direction. One.
Speaker 3 (26:51):
It was a one It was a one direction concert.
Speaker 5 (26:53):
It was like the first event that I ever did
when I was with the Rough Riders. They needed to
move I think the concert to Doctor Pepper Ballpark because
where it was supposed to be I think I think
could have gotten out of hand. There wasn't enough security.
So one direction. As strange as that might sound.
Speaker 2 (27:11):
Did they put on a good show? I bet they would?
Speaker 3 (27:13):
They did. They were pretty good pretty good.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
Yeah, I never I never got to see them that.
I like Harry Stoslot.
Speaker 4 (27:19):
Uh, if you owned a liquor company, brewery, winery, coffee shop,
or dispensary, which one would.
Speaker 2 (27:24):
You own and what would the name be?
Speaker 3 (27:25):
Uh?
Speaker 5 (27:27):
I would say winery, it would be it would be.
My wife and I are huge winery people. We love
going to Charlottesville, Virginia, which is I think one of
the great wine regions on the East Coast. So if
you look at the East Coast, like the best wine regions,
i'd say are in Charlottesville, and then if you go
the Finger Lakes up in New York, and then if
you go to West Coast, there's so many different places.
You go to Napa, you go to Sonoma, you could
(27:48):
go to the Wallamotte Valley. You get all these different
different types of places. But I don't know, I probably
say I don't know what I would.
Speaker 3 (27:58):
I don't know what I would. I don't know what
i'd call it. You know something, I'm like looking at
my wife, what you got?
Speaker 4 (28:08):
You know what?
Speaker 3 (28:08):
Actually, she just gave me a good one.
Speaker 5 (28:09):
We call it saga. Seawan Arnold, Jeff Arnold. So yeah,
so maybe maybe saga. Yeah, that's what we're gonna hold
onto that in case we open.
Speaker 3 (28:18):
One one day.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
Now, you have to do it. Go buy it, go
buy the website right now and all.
Speaker 3 (28:22):
That I got. Yeah, I like that.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
There you go. I'm glad that. Yes, this is just
a think tank.
Speaker 3 (28:29):
Exactly. Just nobody takes Okay, give us, give us a
thirty year window.
Speaker 4 (28:35):
Hey, this won't come out for like two weeks, so
you have you have time. Who is the last person
you fan boyed out on?
Speaker 3 (28:43):
It's tough to like.
Speaker 5 (28:43):
It's hard with like with baseball players, it doesn't it's
a little.
Speaker 3 (28:47):
Bit different for the most part.
Speaker 5 (28:50):
I would say the guy that I'm kind of in
awe of whenever I see him is John Miller, the
former voice of the Orioles, long time voice his son
in a baseball I think he's the best baseball broadcaster
who's ever lived.
Speaker 3 (29:04):
I think he's hilarious. He's so good what he does.
Speaker 5 (29:06):
He has an incredible voice, and whenever we go to
San Francisco, he always takes us out to lunch. And
you know, Brett Hollander, who's guy broadcasts with He's.
Speaker 3 (29:14):
He knows John a little better than I do.
Speaker 5 (29:16):
He's always nice enough to let me tag along and
just listening to John's stories and all the people he's
gotten to know and all the things he's gotten to do.
I would say that for you know, as a baseball
broadcast dork, John Miller would probably be number one.
Speaker 2 (29:29):
Nice.
Speaker 4 (29:30):
Uh leads us right into number four.
Speaker 2 (29:32):
Who are what inspires you?
Speaker 5 (29:33):
Well, my wife inspires me every day. She's kind, smart, tough,
and she puts up with me. And that's that says
a lot. There you go, Yeah, I would say, say her.
And then I have a lot of friends that I
really admire for who they are as people and how
they're real and they're themselves. Like, authenticity is really big
to me with people that I'm friends with, And it's like.
Speaker 3 (29:56):
You don't have to agree with me on every single thing.
Speaker 5 (30:00):
You can be totally different, come from a totally different
part of the country, different walks of life, different socioeconomic status.
Speaker 3 (30:06):
Doesn't make a difference to me.
Speaker 5 (30:07):
Just be authentic and who you are, And then that's
what I really value about friends of mine.
Speaker 3 (30:12):
They're all authentic people.
Speaker 2 (30:14):
We waited and more are those in the world.
Speaker 3 (30:16):
Mm hmm.
Speaker 4 (30:17):
And number five, what would you tell your seventeen year
old self.
Speaker 5 (30:20):
You're going to live in a lot of different places,
You're going to try a lot of different things. You're
going to have some success and failures along the way,
but that's part of the journey. And just realize that
you'll end up at where you're supposed to be when
you're supposed to be there.
Speaker 3 (30:37):
Love it now.
Speaker 4 (30:39):
If people want to find out more about you, follow
you online, go to your website, listen to you call
baseball or any other sport.
Speaker 2 (30:46):
How can they do all the things?
Speaker 3 (30:47):
So I do have a website and I updated some.
Speaker 5 (30:51):
The reason I still have the website actually is it's
kind of it's kind of my excuse to go back
and watch some of my work throughout the year, just
to check myself and how I'm doing, and just sort
of to assess progress.
Speaker 3 (31:02):
You're in and you're out.
Speaker 5 (31:03):
So I do have a website called Jeff oneair dot com,
which is more just like you know, for my It's
it's kind of like something that people can look at
if they want, but it's more just for my my
tracking of my own progress, right, and then you can
follow me at Jeff on the Air. It's what my
social media handle is on Twitter and Instagram, so I
(31:24):
don't do TikTok just yet, but I'm on Twitter and
Instagram pretty periodically, so I usually when we're when I'm
not posting baseball picks, it's usually pictures of the wineries.
My wife and I go too, so so we we
tend to tend to post a bunch of pictures of
that stuff.
Speaker 2 (31:40):
There's nothing wrong with that. I love it.
Speaker 3 (31:42):
Yep.
Speaker 4 (31:43):
Well, Jeff, thank you so much for your time, and
thank you to your wife as well for allowing me
again to hop in here. So you guys go enjoy
your sprits, get a second round, and.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
We'll talk to you later.
Speaker 3 (31:53):
Awesome, John, thanks so much, Thank you.
Speaker 4 (31:54):
Sir, Thank you so much for Jeff for being on
the show again. Definitely make sure to go follow Jeff
and go to uh Jeff on the air because you
have all of his calls from the year the years prior.
(32:16):
He's updating on a regular basis because he wants to
get better at being a play by a play announcer
and he definitely wants to know what you think of him,
So definitely make sure to go follow him on social media,
and while you're following him, make sure to follow Wes
on social media at bruisers Pod that is b R
E W S the R S p O D on
the Instagram, the threads and the Twitter. If you want
to send us an email, it is Bruiserspod at gmail
(32:37):
dot com. If you want to follow me directly, it.
Speaker 1 (32:39):
Is Roady John. That is our O D I E
j O N. Roady John is the name on the
Twitter and are untapped in case you want to find it.
When I'm drinking babe, we can have a beer together.
If you want to follow me on the threads or
the Instagram, it is official Order John. So until next time,
make sure to enjoy life, drink local and cheers.
Speaker 3 (33:05):
Three two one
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Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by Audiochuck Media Company.
The Brothers Ortiz
The Brothers Ortiz is the story of two brothers–both successful, but in very different ways. Gabe Ortiz becomes a third-highest ranking officer in all of Texas while his younger brother Larry climbs the ranks in Puro Tango Blast, a notorious Texas Prison gang. Gabe doesn’t know all the details of his brother’s nefarious dealings, and he’s made a point not to ask, to protect their relationship. But when Larry is murdered during a home invasion in a rented beach house, Gabe has no choice but to look into what happened that night. To solve Larry’s murder, Gabe, and the whole Ortiz family, must ask each other tough questions.