The Red Sox were in New York to play the Mets last season, and it was Pedro Martinez's turn to pitch. Hall of Famer Tom Seaver was at Shea Stadium to work the game as a color analyst for the Mets' carrier, WPIX, and while walking through a tunnel underneath the stadium, he saw Martinez with an entourage.
''It was like a walking press conference,'' Seaver recalled.
Martinez, however, surprised Seaver. The Red Sox' star righthander noticed Seaver and broke away from the crowd to come over and introduce himself. That made a strong impression on Seaver, who was quite a pitcher himself in his days with the Mets, Reds, White Sox, and briefly Boston.
''I am a huge Pedro fan,'' Seaver said. ''Not just as a professional but as a man. He knows the history of the game and also knows that there were men before him as there will be men after him.''
In a sense, the circle was complete. Back in his playing days, when Seaver had crowds following him around, something similar happened at Shea Stadium. Seaver's boyhood idol, Sandy Koufax, was on hand to call the game for NBC. Seaver broke away from his pack and introduced himself. ''I was scared to death,'' Seaver said.
Color commentators make their mark by providing viewers with interesting anecdotes and insightful analysis. Seaver is one such commentator. Jim Kaat is another. Both former pitchers downplay the fact that their positions afforded them unique perspective during their playing days, but it's clear that viewers are the better for it.
Kaat, who calls Yankees games for Madison Square Garden Network, said he picked up the skill of calling games when he sat in the bullpen on days off.
''Pitchers and catchers have a good perspective on all aspects of the game,'' Kaat said. ''We pitch, we field, and before the designated hitter rule, we also hit a little. All of those things give us an advantage.''
Born and raised in the small Michigan town of Zeeland (pop. 4,000), the 61-year-old Kaat has a quiet voice that lends itself nicely to baseball, much like the radio announcers of old. MSG has all the new technological bells and whistles, but he doesn't like them much. He prefers the old-fashioned way.
''I try to make viewers feel like they are at the ballpark,'' Kaat said. ''I try to give them a sense of what Joe Torre is thinking in the dugout. I want viewers to be as close to the game as possible.''
Kaat played in the major leagues for 25 years, so, as he says, ''There's not a lot I haven't seen.''
Since his TV days began in 1981, Kaat has worked alongside play-by-play men such as Greg Gumbel, Jack Buck, and Dick Stockton. Buck gave him some valuable advice: ''Never tell anyone how easy this is.''
As analysts, Seaver said, former pitchers have more to add.
''The whole game hinges on pitching,'' Seaver said. ''It's the one constant. No team can win without good pitching. Blowout games may be exciting for the middle-of-the-road fan who wants to see a lot of action. But for those fans who like the intricacies of the game, pitchers' duels are the best.''
Seaver has been around the broadcast booth for a while, too. He was with ABC when it had baseball in the '70s, and though the network didn't stay with the sport long, it was long enough for Seaver to call the World Series with Howard Cosell. Seaver later worked for NBC with Tony Kubek and Joe Garagiola.
Seaver majored in journalism at Southern Cal, but nothing really prepared him for the broadcast booth except practice.
''My producers tell me all the time to not be afraid of being too complex,'' Seaver said. ''Viewers will either get it or they won't. But most will look at a game differently as a result. The more the viewer understands about a game, the more they will appreciate the game.''
For instance, Seaver said, there are usually five key outs that a team needs to win a close ballgame.
''Watch how pitchers throw when a man is on base as opposed to when no one is on and there are two outs,'' Seaver said. ''It's all sorts of different situations depending on the pitcher, what's working for him that day or that inning, what batter is up, and what the game situation is.''
Getting an out is not always about striking a batter out or having the best stuff. ''An out is an out,'' Seaver said.
Like Kaat, Seaver is not a big fan of gadgets and graphics in broadcasts; he prefers to rely on description to tell the story.
Seaver, 55, took a lot of criticism last year when he accepted the job at WPIX after the team fired the outspoken Tim McCarver. Seaver was called a house man.
Quite naturally, he disagreed.
''It's not my job to be critical just for the sake of being critical,'' Seaver said. ''I have never been told what to say or how to say it. I say the same things on the air as I did on the field. And besides, the fans are not coming to the game to be hypercritical or listen to a hypercritical commentator. Most people want to relax and have fun.''
