Listening to Baseball on the Radio

Sep 14, 2013; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Braves outfielder Justin Upton (8) waits on deck against the San Diego Padres during the first inning at Turner Field. The Braves defeated the Padres 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

With every game on TV these days the old pastime of listening to baseball games on the radio has become a rarity. Typically people just listen to the radio broadcast while in their cars, some may turn down Chip and Joe but are still watching the visual, but rarely do we sit down and turn on the radio without the TV at all. But I’m here to say it’s a lot of fun to do so.

I can remember growing up and visiting my relatives or going on vacation only to find there was no TBS. How was I supposed to watch the Braves that night? So I’d turn on the radio and listen to Skip, Pete, Don and Joe.

Some of my fondest memories as a child are sitting in the truck with my dad listening to Braves games when we visited our cabin in the rural country. We could only pick up night games, and there was still static over the airwaves. You couldn’t talk – you had to listen. Sometimes just close your eyes and imagine it – let the broadcasters paint the picture.

A couple of years ago I was at a friend’s house, enjoying the evening from their screened-in porch. He had speakers wired throughout the porch and turned on the Braves game. Even though we could have walked inside to watch the game on TV, we listened instead. We enjoyed the crickets, the night air and listened to the game. Imagined what it looked like. Just put our hurried modern day lifestyle aside for a couple of hours and relaxed. It was like the days of old.

I enjoyed that so much I decided to try it at my own house. So I went to Wal-Mart and discovered how cheap radios are these days. I got an AM/FM radio with an audio jack for my phone for only $20. Now I was set. Sitting in my formal living room (no TV in there, ha) or the bedroom or out on the porch on a nice night – listening instead of watching is both fun and relaxing.

I’m a huge college baseball fan. More specifically Mississippi State baseball fan. I’ve got a subscription to their audio and video package to keep up with all the games as 80% of them are not on TV. This past Sunday it was 70 degrees in north Georgia so I sat on my porch for three hours that afternoon and listened to baseball. And since the audio was coming from my phone I couldn’t play on it. I just sat there enjoying the day, listening to the game. I had some peanuts, a beer. My little girl listened with me. It was a perfect afternoon.

There are 162 games this year. I’m sure you’ll find time to go to a few games at the Ted, watch some here or there. But listen to some on the radio – or maybe at least parts of them. It’s a great way to unwind and enjoy baseball.