Gumpy Sportscaster Feels Like Kid Again

I realize every day at work should be special, and in a way they are.  I never take my position for granted.  But after 25 years in local television, the days that standout as extra-special are rare.  

I'm sure even someone as legendary as Pat Summitt, who's been coaching nearly 35 seasons, has her share of ordinary moments.  You can't tell me a February game against Mississippi State means as much as a Final Four showdown with Connecticut.  

I had one of those extra-special moments recently.  

I got to interview Johnny Bench.

For me baseball is, well, a sort of nirvana.  I love it.  I'm at peace when I am near it.

I remember my first glove (from my grandfather, I had to be five.)  I remember my first major league game (Pirates vs. Dodgers, Forbes Field 1968-- I still have the box score framed).  I remember my first little league uniform and the diving catch of a line drive at second base (I didn't even know I had it).  I remember lying in bed and listening to Bob Prince, Curt Gowdy, Ken Coleman, Lindsey Nelson, and Phil Rizzuto calling games on a transister radio.  I remember developing a deep dislike for the Yankees and a deep allegiance for the Pirates and Red Sox.  

The Cincinnati Reds became a power in 1970, when Bench helped them reach the World Series.  They lost that year to Baltimore, but the Reds weren't ready to go away.   They became one of the greatest teams of all-time (of ALL TIME!), and they will always be remembered as The Big Red Machine.  Any worthy baseball fan (not just Reds fan) can recite their line-up, even today.

I won't wax on about how the Reds were a real rival for me, but given my baseball ties to Pittsburgh and Boston, you should understand.  Through it all, I repespected and feared them.

Bench joins the (very short) list of athletes/sports personalities I've interviewed with a certain sense of self-contained awe.  

I once saw Muhammad Ali while covering a UT football game in Louisville.  For me, and for many reasons, Ali rises above all (even baseball).  I never interviewed him, but hearing 50,000 fans chant "Ali" is one of my top experiences.  It was chilling.

I've interviewed many respected athletes/coaches: Peyton Manning, Phil Garner, Tom Lasorda, Neil Bonnett, Gaylord Perry, Richard Petty, Pat Summitt, Dale Earnhardt.

But here's my personal I'm Quietly In Awe List:  Henry Aaron, Johnny Bench, Catfish Hunter, George Steinbrenner.   Yep, the REAL home run king, two Yankees, and a Red.  Go figure.

It's throw-back stuff mostly, to an era before I worked in sports and was just a fan.  The fan in me enjoyed doing those interviews.  And I'm not afraid to admit it.