Baron’s Corner
Checking In with Tom McCarthy. Q&A with Phillies television announcer on his career, hectic off season and today’s game.
“TMac” is headed for his 22nd season in the majors, 15th on second tour with the Phillies. First stint was 2001–05 as the pre- and post-game host and play-by-play on radio. Following two seasons with the Mets (2006–07) he returned to the Phillies.
His on-the-air resume is extensive and impressive: ESPN radio Trenton locally and nationally; NFL games for CBS, Westwood One and Sports USA radio; baseball on FOX; college basketball (CBSN) and Westwood One. Add the radio voice for St. Joseph’s University (basketball), Rutgers University (football) and both sports for Princeton University. One can only wonder how many suitcases he’s worn out.
Meg and Tom’s oldest son, Pat, is following dad’s steps as the voice of the Phillies AAA club, Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.
At what point in you did you decide to become a broadcaster?
“I applied to six schools out of high school and was a different major at each school. Went to the College of New Jersey to play baseball. I was a biology major so I thought I would be a doctor. But as it turned out I wasn’t a very good biology major. Nor a very good baseball player. After being cut from the team my freshman year and instead of transferring, I decided to stay and started writing for a local paper. From there I started doing some interviews and after doing a high school show with Marc Narducci on WIP, someone from the station said, ‘You have a great voice, you should think about broadcasting.’ Switched majors during my junior year and started on a path of being a broadcaster. I think for a lot of us, we never knew anyone who was a broadcaster, so it was hard to relate to anyone who did it.”
Who was your favorite broadcaster?
“Growing up in New Jersey, I was privileged to hear broadcasters from three teams, Mets, Yankees and Phillies. All three were different but enjoyable. I attached myself to Bob Murphy of the Mets. Followed him the most. But I also thoroughly enjoyed Phil Rizzuto, Bill White and Frank Messer. They were normal folks on the air and that’s how I always want to be known. Just a normal guy doing games.”
Your very first broadcast in the minors?
“As a writer for the Trenton Times I even covered the Phillies during the 1991–92–93 seasons as George King’s backup, including the ’93 World Series. I was also doing a minor league report for the newspaper, a weekly column on a local minor leaguer, an excellent player by the name of Dave Lebak from CNJ. He was playing in Charleston (SC) and I was going down to there to do a story on him and meet some of my eventual wife’s family. I called their radio play-by-play broadcaster and asked if I could sit in and watch him do a game (1992). His name was Rich Jablonski. I tell this story in the book, Voices of the Game. Rich not only let me sit in, but he let me do PxP. It was awesome. I called a Shane Andrews inside the park grand slam. Rich invited me back to do seven more games later that summer. I used that tape to get the Trenton Thunder job two years later. Who does that? I try to call Rich every Opening Day to thank him.”
Your first game in the majors?
“At age 32, I had resigned as the Assistant GM of the Trenton Thunder earlier in the year. Felt like I had to show I wasn’t an administrator but a broadcaster. Rory McNeil of the Phillies called me to fill in in September of 2000. It was the night of the Emmy Awards in Philly and the Phils’ broadcasters were at the dinner. I filled in and, as it turned out, my crew from Trenton actually won the Award. Someone else had to accept the award on my behalf but it was well worth it!”
This winter you did college basketball, NFL radio play-by-play and a game on TV for CBS sports. Which required the most prep work?
“Every sport is different. I’ve been doing each of them for the last 30 years. But football on TV is always the most work. It starts on the Sunday before the game and doesn’t end the whole week. It’s the largest audience we will have as a broadcaster and there are so many elements, so I try to be on top of every bit of it. All three make me a better person and broadcaster because they show me different ways to do things.”
Describe your week leading up to the Jan. 9 CBS telecast with Tony Romo?
“That week was fun. I was preparing for two different basketball games on CBS when I received a call on Wednesday that I was going to fill in for Jim Nantz on Sunday. The study crunch began. I have been a sub in case anyone was sick for CBS the last two years so most of my charts were done. But the focus on that game and the crew was immense and fun!! I wasn’t nervous because I had so many talented folks helping. I just crunched my prep and really enjoyed the opportunity. Tony was great. The producer is a close friend so that helped. I was lucky. CBS put a lot of faith in me, and I genuinely appreciated that and all of the texts from folks in my world.”
Your most hectic week this winter?
“That was probably the most hectic because I was preparing for a ton of football and the two potential basketball games. My wife, Meg, was awesome through it all. She kind of just let me roll!! I have had baseball weeks where I would call six baseball games and a football game. But I enjoy that. I had Phillies game one year before I traveled where I was doing the pre and post-game and the fill in for a double-header while also doing PxP for Rutgers. It was fun and exhilarating.”
Biggest challenge in describing a Phillies game while watching a monitor in a studio?
“We have the best crew in Philly and it’s not close. I know what every camera person wants to do, and I know we are all on the same page. The same can be said for our amazing producer, Jeff Halikman, and directors, Nick Marchetta, JR Aguila and Mike Mulligan. On the road, I am at the mercy of the home crew. Camera switches, from one shot to another, are the toughest. You have to use some techniques to not “jump” the call and that is hard sometimes. But I recognize that sometimes it seems like we don’t know if a ball is gone, foul or fair. We just have to be transparent. If that’s the worst thing that comes out of this, it’s ok!! That is why I was so proud of my son when he called games for me while the team was in San Diego. He showed how good he is by not missing a beat. I told him his home run calls were better than mine, remotely.”
If you could change one thing in baseball, what would it be?
“That’s a hard one because I love the game so much. I try to change with the game. I wish more folks would try to change and accept the beauty of the game for what it is now, but I get the nostalgia. I respect that so much. If I had one hope for the future, it is that we let starting pitchers be starting pitchers and build them up the way they used to. So that 7 innings is expected, and not a surprise. Or a complete game is cheered but not relished as an oddity. I want to win and understand there are more ways to win than that but, to me, slapping a dude on the back for four innings or 3 1/3 is odd for my generation.”
