It turns out older pitchers aren’t the only individuals with the New York Mets still working to adapt to the new MLB pitch clock.
“Before, when you would call an at-bat, you kind of had your foot on the accelerator, but you were cruising, going 40-45 [mph],” Mets radio announcer Howie Rose told Mike Puma of the New York Post. “And then when the ball is put in play, you press down on the accelerator, not necessarily flooring it, but you raise the tempo and the pace, but it was organic. What I found myself doing [last weekend] was basically keeping my foot on the floor through the entire at-bat … now the ball is in play and I’m trying to raise my tempo and there’s nowhere to go.”
Fox Sports MLB announcer and Los Angeles Dodgers voice Joe Davis noted last week that he loves the pitch clock and never wants “more time” to tell stories during a broadcast, while Mets television play-by-play announcer Gary Cohen told Neil Best of Newsday he was worried he and others wouldn’t “have as much spare time to gab” during games. Additionally, Cleveland Guardians radio announcer Tom Hamilton detailed to Joe Reedy of the Associated Press how he struggled with the clock during spring training.
Rose agreed with Cohen as it pertains to baseball announcers having to choose which, if any, tales they will be able to tell during games that may now run under two-and-a-half hours.
“I just might have to learn to deal with it in terms of brevity, editing myself or just staying away from anything that might be too involved or intricate. … For me that’s tough,” Rose said.
Rose admitted that he thinks MLB eliminating “dead time” is only a good thing for everyone involved, even if fans will miss out on some of his anecdotes. Like players and umpires, Rose and other announcers will need to quickly adjust to the new rules or risk becoming what Hamilton referred to as “a dinosaur” in what’s become a new era for the league.
