{"id":12516,"date":"2011-03-07T08:20:34","date_gmt":"2011-03-07T15:20:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.seamheads.com\/?p=12516"},"modified":"2011-03-07T08:20:34","modified_gmt":"2011-03-07T15:20:34","slug":"view-from-the-lone-red-seat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/2011\/03\/07\/view-from-the-lone-red-seat\/","title":{"rendered":"View from the Lone Red Seat"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a> <\/a>\"Fall<\/a>World Series 2007, Game 2<\/p>\n

The lone red seat<\/a> at Fenway Park offers a terrific view of the live action.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 No wonder they named a radio show after it.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Views don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get much better than this:\u00c2\u00a0 that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what my son and I were thinking one windless October night as Curt Schilling took the field in what would be the final game of his career.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153View from the Lone Red Seat\u00e2\u20ac\u009d made its debut on Blog Talk Radio<\/a> three weeks ago as Mike Lynch and Seamheads.com<\/a> went national in covering the major baseball markets.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Sponsored by Big League Chew bubble gum, the Boston show and its hosts Dave Rattigan, Chris Mascaro, and Bob Lazzari got me thinking about the curious appeal of baseball talk, the phenomenon of talk shows in general, and the significance of human conversation.<\/p>\n

Why do people tune in to this stuff?\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Why do the conversations of others engage us, especially when we participate only as passive listeners, seldom contributing?\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Where did the concept come from anyway?\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m guessing Johnny Carson, Dick Cavett, and Jack Parr had something to do with it.<\/p>\n

I wonder what we gain from being privy to a two- or three-way conversation that doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t include our own voices.\u00c2\u00a0 The concept is mystifying to me.\u00c2\u00a0 What piece of our nature does it satisfy?<\/p>\n

Talk doesn’t happen exclusively in sports, of course.\u00c2\u00a0 Daytime television provides countless examples of famous individuals enjoying personal conversations with invited guests.\u00c2\u00a0 Strong-minded women on “The View” converse among themselves every single weekday while an entire audience sits rapt and mute.\u00c2\u00a0 Mike and Mike have their microphones, Regis and Kelly their coffee cups, while Kathie Lee and Hoda favor wine.\u00c2\u00a0 Martha, Rachael, Ellen, Rush, Oprah, and Dr. Phil have conversations too, engaging with others while hungry audiences sit back and process information.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Even the nightly news is presented on CNN, MSN, FOX, and ESPN in the form of conversation.\u00c2\u00a0 Sports talk keeps us alert during the long commute home, Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy entertain us with their laughter in the evening, and Letterman initiates late night conversation.<\/p>\n

What\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s with all the talk?\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 We don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even know<\/em> these people.<\/p>\n

Are our own lives and personal interactions with kids, spouses, co-workers, and significant others so predictable, unsatisfying, or lacking in content that we turn to complete strangers to fill the void?\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 How curious that anyone should choose to listen.<\/p>\n

Conversations are a huge part of baseball, almost as significant as runs, hits, errors, and OBP.\u00c2\u00a0 First basemen can often be seen chatting amiably as they welcome opponents to the bag, sharing jokes or observations and exchanging a few pleasantries. \u00c2\u00a0Keith Hernandez comes immediately to mind.\u00c2\u00a0 Guys who gather closely on the mound or as a trio in the outfield during a pitching change always engage in conversation, though it’s likely their words have nothing to do with baseball.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ongoing chatter in the clubhouse, dugouts, bullpens, boxes, and bleachers; before, during, and after the game, conversation is the essence of baseball.\u00c2\u00a0 The possibilities are infinite.<\/p>\n

From what I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve experienced in the past twenty years, baseball talk comes easily to boys who routinely learn a lot of names, numbers, trivia, and stats.\u00c2\u00a0 Their conversation entertained me one cold January afternoon in a venue that smelled of wet hay and manure.\u00c2\u00a0 (The damp arena housed youth soccer leagues and an annual county fair.) \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0I sat on the cold bleachers with a few moms who paid attention to the game in fits and starts -\u00c2\u00a0 take it to the side!<\/em> – but mostly they discussed random errands and the week\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s menus, both carry-out and home-cooked.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 As if for counterpoint\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s sake, a few boys sitting behind us talked sports nonstop.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Their conversation effortlessly became a competition, and I happily tuned in.<\/p>\n

Name whateverMLBplayers you can fromAtoZwithoutstopping<\/em>.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Abreu, Bonds, Canseco, Delgado.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Leftover chicken parm, salmon is cheaper at Market Basket, potato skins at the Ninety-Nine, Niekro, Ojeda, Piazza, Sal\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Pizza, stuffed shells, Chinese, Yastrzemski, Zito.\u00c2\u00a0 Score.\u00c2\u00a0 One kid spoke all the way to Z without breathing.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 I love hearing what boys bring to the table.<\/p>\n

Baseball talk is a language I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t always understand, however:\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153If you drop the arm to the ten o\u00e2\u20ac\u2122clock position, you will get under the slider and the spin will become fat . . . if he could become very strong from his fingertips to his elbow, he could throw the slider effectively by just cutting through the ball . . . \u00c2\u00a0that means it moves faster and goes down with more bite.\u00c2\u00a0 That doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t necessarily mean the pitch will be better, but the tighter the spin the more controlled the pitch can be . . .\u00c2\u00a0 the quarter slider can back up and be a funky pitch.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Drop, fat, bite, slide<\/em>.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 In case you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t recognize the voice, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Tim McCarver talking about Steve Carlton.\u00c2\u00a0 The spin will become fat:<\/em> what exactly does that mean?<\/p>\n

I haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t fully mastered baseball\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s vocabulary, but I do love its sound.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 (That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s pretty much what Virginia Woolf said after hearing\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 T. S. Eliot read The Waste Land<\/em> back in 1922, by the way:\u00c2\u00a0 “I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t understand the meaning, but I liked the sound.”)<\/p>\n

When the Seamheads.com radio hour made its Boston debut a few weeks ago, I tuned in while eating supper at the kitchen counter, laptop near my plate.\u00c2\u00a0 The baseball conversation was like dinner music to my ears.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Maybe I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m wired a little differently, but I would choose \u00e2\u20ac\u0153View from the Lone Red Seat\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/a> over THEVIEW<\/a> any day of the week.<\/p>\n

Sports talk radio hosts are fascinating to me.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 They know so much.\u00c2\u00a0 They can sustain monologues for unbelievably long stretches of time.\u00c2\u00a0 They treat complete strangers as their good friends. \u00c2\u00a0They have trivia at their fingertips and never seem at a loss for words:\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153In 2009 and 2010 the majority of his fly-outs were to center field and left field; only 26 per cent of his fly-outs were to right field.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 I think that indicates he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s either late on the fastball and pops out, or he can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get his hands inside or tries to pull the outside pitch causing him to weakly ground out to the right side.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0 That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s an intelligent analysis of Jacoby Ellsbury\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s limitations.<\/p>\n

To my knowledge, the hosts of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Lone Red Seat\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0 had never met each other prior to going on the air; they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re connected simply by a love of sport, the common ground of Red Sox nation, and the magic of cyberspace.<\/p>\n

Unlike some forms of shrill talk radio and the noisy, contentious stuff I often mute on television, the Seamheads hosts generally agree on most counts while enhancing each other\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s understanding of the game.\u00c2\u00a0 Upbeat, intelligent, and respectful, all are good listeners.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0It doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t hurt that Mascaro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s smooth, articulate voice bears an uncanny resemblance to that of Theo Epstein, lending his substantive delivery added credibility; that Bob Lazzari<\/a> offers tons of broadcast experience together with a balanced perspective that considers the Yankees and Red Sox with equanimity rather than with extremes of venom and affection; and that Dave Rattigan displays the swift and sometimes self-deprecating wit of a stand-up comedian, which is precisely what he is.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Rattigan\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s appearance with Heidi Watney<\/a> in a popular Olympia Sports commercial may endear him even more to Boston fans.<\/p>\n

In just three weeks the trio has established a nice chemistry and pleasant sense of camaraderie.\u00c2\u00a0 The ensemble works.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Loosely scripted but sensibly outlined in advance, last week\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s broadcast featured at least sixteen different topics and a few entertaining digressions, all of which the co-hosts ably managed in a 60-minute time frame.<\/p>\n

They began with a consideration of the Opening Day lineup, prompted by the daunting news that Terry Francona\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s offense would be facing lefty C. J. Wilson in early April. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153What are we gonna see?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0 It’s only March 1,<\/em> I thought (participating inaudibly in the conversation), and we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re already worked up over Opening Day.<\/em><\/p>\n

The ensuing discussion focused on Ellsbury’s relative strengths and weaknesses (\u00e2\u20ac\u0153sure would be nice if he could get his hands a little further inside\u00e2\u20ac\u009d), with the inevitable comparisons to his predecessor:\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Everybody has been waiting for Ellsbury to turn into Damon.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 All agreed that Damon had been a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153sensational\u00e2\u20ac\u009d lead-off guy who \u00e2\u20ac\u0153saw a lot of pitches . . . hit with enough power . . . and\u00c2\u00a0 displayed a complete mental game as a hitter.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0 Mascaro wistfully concluded: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It was sad to watch him leave.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

Looking back on 2010, Rattigan and Mascaro remembered Daniel Nava\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s exhilarating first-pitch grand slam, though for a few seconds of genuine comedy they couldn’t remember his name.\u00c2\u00a0 They pondered the uncertain future of Saltalamacchia and the worthy contributions of Marco Scutaro, a career .267 hitter \u00e2\u20ac\u0153you can win a championship with . . . because he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s gritty enough.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0 They applauded Youkilis for being a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153good soldier\u00e2\u20ac\u009d in transitioning over to third after the Gonzalez trade.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0\u00e2\u20ac\u0153He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll make every routine play, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s gonna make that diving play to his right,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0 Rattigan asserted, voicing concern that Youkilis might not always handle the slow chopper.<\/p>\n

With Bob Lazzari situated in the tricky geographic territory where Boston and New York fans overlap, Tuesday evening’s conversations are bound to turn to the Yankees.\u00c2\u00a0 From their imaginary vantage point up near the lone red seat, the hosts looked toward the Bronx and\u00c2\u00a0 pondered the uncertain future of a mighty franchise and its aging marquis players.\u00c2\u00a0 Before long we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll be watching a whole new group of men in pinstripes, Lazzari reminded the audience, and what an unusual and profoundly strange sight that will be: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153You\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re replacing legends, not just good players.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

All agreed that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Boston\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s championship to win in 2011.\u00c2\u00a0 How great it is to hear such optimism early in the season. \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0Words like championship<\/em> and fun<\/em>, and happy prophecies:\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153This team is gonna be fun to watch in the field,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d said Lazzari.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 (You might be inclined to doubt this opinion if you happened to see the action on the infield at Ft. Myers this past Saturday in the top half of the first.)\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Nagging issues and questions will invariably surface day in and day out:\u00c2\u00a0 Beckett’s freak head injury; the lefties vying for a spot in a crowded bullpen. \u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s somebody\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s job to win.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Auditions are in progress on a Sunday afternoon in Port St. Lucie even as I write this sentence.<\/p>\n

All three hosts acknowledged that while a what-can-go-wrong-will<\/em>-go-wrong attitude has plagued Red Sox fans for decades, those days of gloom and doom are over.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 From a distant southern location many miles from Fenway Park, Mascaro offered an apt corrective:\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We moved out of that neighborhood.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 We used to live there . . . but we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re all about championships now.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

The momentum of a new season was picking up in the quiet of my kitchen, thanks to the pleasant rhythm and pure sounds of talk radio.\u00c2\u00a0 No visuals, no bells and whistles, just words.\u00c2\u00a0 A few friendly, intelligent voices, individuals who knew what they were talking about, agreeable company, and optimistic mindsets got me excited for a true spring.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00c2\u00a0The hour passed quickly and the show wrapped up as I cleaned my plate and took a final sip of inexpensive wine.<\/p>\n

Do you ever find yourself in the midst of a dull encounter while a far more interesting conversation is happening across the room?\u00c2\u00a0 That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s how I feel about baseball talk.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Someone at very close range might be speaking to me, but I have no idea what those lips are saying because my ears are tuned to a group of guys who are having more fun on the other side of the room.\u00c2\u00a0 Blahblahblahblahdugout.<\/em> Something about seats near the dugout at Fenway Park – that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the conversation I prefer to hear.<\/p>\n

Listening to sports talk on a quiet evening at the end of a long winter is not unlike dining in a restaurant alone.\u00c2\u00a0 Three guys at a nearby table are having a really\u00c2\u00a0 good time, more fun than anyone else in the place. \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re talking baseball nonstop.\u00c2\u00a0 They have no idea you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re eavesdropping on their conversation, but you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re privy to it anyway, and their lively exchange makes the night more interesting.<\/p>\n

Talk radio lets you in.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 You can partake of it anonymously without an invitation.\u00c2\u00a0 You’ll probably learn something, and heck, you can even call in:\u00c2\u00a0 347.945.7172.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 It’s a level playing field; just open the gate, and walk across the sweet turf.<\/p>\n

I love the give-and-take of a good baseball conversation no matter when and where it happens.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Familiar names and memories return, anecdotes are shared, predictions ventured, and baseball fans connect across the miles.<\/p>\n

Much as I like the sound of intelligent sports talk on the airwaves, the best conversation I know is the kind that happens, literally, up near the lone red seat, where my son and I once enjoyed a spectacular view and chatted about baseball the way it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s always best:\u00c2\u00a0 between pitches, between innings, at the end of a game, and finally in the car where our own animated discussion played out in counterpoint to a recap on the radio, and we talked about baseball all the way home.<\/p>\n

\"Fall<\/a><\/p>\n

“View from The Lone Red Seat” airs Tuesdays at 6 pm.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Click here<\/a> for podcasts. <\/strong><\/p>\n

To join the live conversation please call\u00c2\u00a0 347.945.7172.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to view more images of Fenway Park and the view from the lone red seat.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

World Series 2007, Game 2 The lone red seat at Fenway Park offers a terrific view of the live action.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 No wonder they named a radio show after it.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 Views don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get much better than this:\u00c2\u00a0 that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what my son and I were thinking one windless October night as Curt Schilling took the field in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":765,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[13329,13352,13349,13333,13337,13350,13345,13340,13341,2105,13348,13334,13346,1568,13351,13338,13330,13354,13343,13339,13347,13331,13332,13336,13344,13335,13353,13342],"class_list":["post-12516","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general","tag-big-league-chew-bubble-gum","tag-blogtalkradio","tag-bob-lazzari","tag-boston-show","tag-career-view","tag-chris-mascaro","tag-cnn","tag-coffee-cups","tag-countless-examples","tag-curt-schilling","tag-dave-rattigan","tag-dick-cavett","tag-dr-phil","tag-fenway-park","tag-heidi-watney","tag-human-conversation","tag-jack-parr","tag-lone-red-seat","tag-long-commute","tag-mike-and-mike","tag-mike-lynch","tag-passive-listeners","tag-personal-conversations","tag-radio-three","tag-rattigan","tag-regis-and-kelly","tag-seamheads","tag-terrific-view"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12516","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/765"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12516"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12516\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12516"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12516"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/seamheads.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12516"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}