Mets Radio Broadcasts
Lately, I’ve been listening to parts of the Mets broadcasts on radio, for whatever reason. Last year, I thought Howie Rose and Tom McCarthy sounded too much alike — I couldn’t tell which was which at times. But, it wasn’t a big deal — they both sounded fine to my ears and did a nice job of describing the game.
This year, however, with Wayne Hagin in the booth with Howie, it sounds … I don’t know … awkward? I couldn’t put my finger on what it was, exactly, and was going to write a post about it but I felt bad, because Hagin seems to be a nice guy and came here as a well-respected, well-liked announcer … I thought maybe it was me, perhaps I simply needed to get used to hearing Hagin instead of McCarthy.
However, I’m not the only one; MetsBlog recently broached the topic … and I’m glad Matt said it publicly first:
…speaking of broadcasters, i’m not sure what to make of Wayne Hagin, who took over as the play-by-play man for WFAN…i’m starting to think i’d rather listen to just Howie Rose…on his own…ala Vin Scully…i prefer howie’s play by play, and i prefer howie’s commentary…what’s more, hagin is almost too polished…he has a lot of gravitas and a traditional cadence, and i miss the genuine excitement that the broadcast used to have…sorry, wayne…
I’m not sure what “gravitas” are, but otherwise I’m with Matt — what he said.
About the Author
Joe Janish began MetsToday in 2005 to provide the unique perspective of a high-level player and coach -- he earned NCAA D-1 All-American honors as a catcher and coached several players who went on to play pro ball. As a result his posts often include mechanical evaluations, scout-like analysis, and opinions that go beyond the numbers.
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I absolutely, whole-heartedly agree.
I actually just wrote about this a few days ago after hearing Wayne Hagin for the first time. I really don’t like him.
He doesn’t get into the game and is way too descriptive.
Spoken in the same monotone voice: “The ball is hit deep, Angel Pagan is going back to the wall, he jumps, and he cannot make the catch at the wall and the ball is out of the park for a home run to [Insert name here] off of [Insert name here (probably Heilman)] and the Mets are now down 3-2.”
Just tell me “It’s outta here!”
I don’t like him one bit.
I don’t care for the sound of Hagin.