Steve Gelbs grew up around the sports world with his dad being a physical therapist for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League. In addition, his grandfather owned a dry cleaning business that served a regular customer by the name of Tom Seaver.
Gelbs would go onto the Newhouse School of Publications Communications at Syracuse University, where he would earn a bachelor’s degree. The Greenwich, Connecticut native would then get an internship at MSG covering high school sports before moving up to telecasts of the New York Knicks and Rangers.
SNY would then scoop up Gelbs and use him as a temporarily replacement during the 2014 season for Kevin Burkhardt. After the season, Burkhardt left to go to Fox and Gelbs took over Kevin’s gig on a full-time basis.
Gelbs has been a mainstay on SNY since, doing everything from postgame interviews to even learning how to play the trumpet for a live spot during a game.
I had the chance to talk to Steve recently on topics ranging from his daily routine to Pete Alonso.
MMO – How did you end up working for SNY? And how was it like to work with Kevin Burkhardt?
Steve Gelbs – When I first started out in the business, I was working at MSG Varsity. It was an awesome experience for four years, right out of school and covering high school sports. I was a good opportunity for me to cover a lot of different things, get a lot of reps, to stay local, and to really learn from the ground up.
While I was there, I started doing some stuff for the main network doing Rangers and Knicks fill-in on TV and radio. Then after four years of MSG Varsity it looked like they were either going to stop doing it or significantly downsize – which they ended up doing. So, I was looking for a full-time job, and I basically sent an email to SNY with my resume and reel.
It turned out the news director had seen some of the things I’d done. I came in and it was just a case of the right place at the right time. I started doing general assignment stuff like Geico SportsNite and a few other shows. Then a few months in it was announced that Kevin Burkhardt was going to Fox after 2014 season. I got a crack at filling in – like 55 games – then got lucky enough to get the full-time gig after that.
Learning from and working with Kevin, it was priceless. He is as good a guy as you’d expect him to be. He was great helping me to ease in, I spent some time with him in Spring Training and I would fill-in for him when Kevin was filling for Gary Cohen. It was great being able to pick his brain. He was so approachable and such a good guy. We still keep in touch, he will reach out to me right before Spring Training to wish me luck on the upcoming season.
MMO – What’s the first thing you’re going to eat when you get back to Citi Field?
Gelbs – Oh man, that’s a great question. I will go with the brisket mac and cheese at Blue Smoke, that is my go-to when I need something other than the media dining. But if the dumplings are still there this year, I’m all-in on those dumplings.
MMO – Cookie Club has been a big hit so far, how did it come about and will we continue to see it?
Gelbs – I think like every body else – when all of this started happening – you’re trying to look for ways to continue producing content, to keep the fans connected to the players. My initial idea was maybe to just catch up with a different player every week, so I reached out to J.D. Davis and Dominic Smith. They were both really enthusiastic about doing an episode – well really at the time – it was just going to be these one-off interviews.
J.D. actually had the idea of down the road doing an interview with Dom together. I started thinking about the fact that these two have a fun dynamic as the fans saw last year. They are such a pleasure to be around and to cover, they are just so much fun. So, I pitched it to them ‘rather than doing one down the road with the two of you, would you be down to do one a week’ as a bit of a catch up. They were so gracious with their time, and continue to be. It kind of snowballed from there. I thought Cookie Club would be a good name and they suggested bringing on some other guys, so we’ve done an episode with Jeff McNeil, one with Pete Alonso, and even one recently with David Wright.
The one with David kind of fell into our laps. He had recently did an interview with The Athletic in which he called out the Cookie Club saying he was the original guy. So, I sent David a text to see if he wanted to confront J.D. and Dom to their face just joking around. I think everyone – in an unprecedented situation – to make the best of it and if possible, bring some levity. That’s what we are trying to do. As for J.D. and Dom, I can’t ask for anything more than they’ve given.
Originally, I think we were hoping it wouldn’t be that long of a thing because we wanted baseball back. But we decided to keep this thing going through early June and see what happens after that. I think that we will probably get a solid 12 episodes in and then maybe shut it down until baseball season starts up. Then, who knows? Maybe, we start it back up in some form once the season begins, but we’ve been blown away by how much everyone seems to love it.
MMO – What’s your most memorable on-the-field postgame interview?
Gelbs – In terms of the walk-off interviews, I would’ve said (and would’ve said it confidently) that the Wilmer Flores one against the Nationals in 2015 was the most exciting one I’ve done and would never be topped, and then things started happening this past season. I have to tell you, the interview I did with J.D. Davis when he grabbed the microphone and I felt like he was doing a wrestling promo – where I was Gene Okerlund and he was Hulk Hogan – and he was screaming ‘we did it again, we did it again” was probably up there with the Flores one.
Those two have been my favorite ones so far, but with this group, who knows what’s going to come in the future.
MMO – What’s your favorite city on the road and what do you like to do when you’re there?
Gelbs – I would say my favorite city is San Diego. It’s just a perfect city, the weather is always like 70 with low humidity, sunny, and very little rain. There’s great tacos in San Diego, so we always go for those. I actually had a buddy that moved out there, we went jet skiing and there’s a great marina area to walk around. It’s just a perfect weather city.
MMO – Have you been using this down time to brush up on your trumpet skills?
Gelbs – You don’t think my trumpet skills are perfect? Haha. No no, I think that is a one-and-done situation. I have to tell you that I had never played the trumpet before – as shocking as it may be based on my incredible performance, haha – I was blown away with how hard to actually make a sound with it. I’m not sure if you’ve played a trumpet before, but you need significant lung capacity. I was just blowing hot air for about 25 minutes before anything came out when I was practicing.
MMO – You were around David Wright and now around Pete Alonso, do you see that Captain mentality from Pete?
Gelbs – Yes, I do. I didn’t get to see David really in the prime of his career and so much of what I covered was him dealing with injuries. But, you could see it with David, you could see the leadership he had and the respect of the room. You could really see how he took the pressure off of everyone else with the way he dealt with the media. That’s what was such a remarkable thing to see with Pete, it walked in and took ownership right away.
You see the way Pete’s teammates – both young players and veterans – respect him, but you also see the way that he is accountable after every game whether it’s good or bad. I think that combined with some of the things he’s been doing off the field like donating winnings from the home run derby to buying everyone on the team cleats for 9/11, that’s not something you see rookies typically do and he didn’t without stepping on the toes of veterans.
I do think he (Pete Alonso) is absolutely someone that could be the next Captain of the Mets organization.
MMO – What would be your suggestion for high school and/or college students that are hoping to get into the sports media world? And how did Syracuse help prepare you?
Gelbs – I would say two things. The first – and this is paramount- is get as much internship experience as possible and meet as many people as possible. Those internships expose you to a lot of different things and they are good in that regard to help see what you may or may not like.
More that anything, you meet people. If you meet people and stay in touch with them – don’t just stay in touch with them to get something down the road – really genuinely ask their advice about whatever you are working on, I think that really does help open doors down the road. That’s how I got my first job. I was interning at MSG Network and I met Al Trautwig one time. Then a couple years down the road he helped me get an interview with MSG Varsity. Those types of things are very important.
Then the second thing and specially this day and age from a high school perspective, get as many reps as possible. You can’t really read about this industry, you have to do it. With the technology now, just start your own blog or start your own podcast. Use your phone to create video content. Make yourself a lot of content you can show other people and give your self the reps that are invaluable.
That would be my two major pieces of advice.
When it comes to Syracuse, that practical experience is the most helpful thing. Like I said, you can’t really read about or go to a class to find out how it really is. You have to be in front of cameras and work on things, that’s what Syracuse did. You would have practical classes where you would do sports cast or live shots or we would do news cast, and I think that really prepared me to get into the field right out of school.
MMO – Have you gotten the chance to thank Tom Seaver for the ball he signed for you as a baby? (Steve’s grandfather ran a dry cleaning business where Seaver was a customer).
Gelbs – Man, I really wish I would’ve had that chance. Since I’ve been with SNY, Tom hasn’t been around much unfortunately because of his health deteriorating for a few years now, so I haven’t gotten the chance to meet him. It’s my most treasured piece of memorabilia, it connects my grandfather to me and then obviously Seaver to me. I wish I had that chance, but haven’t.
MMO – What goes into your preparation on a normal game day?
Gelbs – That’s a really good question, because it’s a lot more intense than people might think. It start before I get to the ballpark, I’m probably doing 2-3 hours of preparation based on what day it is. If it’s the start of a series I’m doing a little more prep, I spend about an hour reading up on the opponent coming in. Then another 45 minute to an hour looking up stuff on the Mets and taking a brief peak around the league. Then 30 minutes to an hour just brainstorming ideas that I want to pursue when I get to the park.
Usually if I have 10 good ideas going to the park, about two or three of them pan out. If it’s a 7 o’clock game, we get there around 3 and go to the Mets clubhouse for about an hour. Then the pregame press conference with the manager at 4 and then I usually head over to the opposition’s clubhouse if I have some questions for them.
Then another 45 minutes or so just hanging around the dugouts waiting for players to come in from BP. Then I spend some time writing down whatever interesting nuggets I’ve gathered for that day. Next, I prep for the pregame at 6:30 and then we are off and running.
It’s really a full day day process, then day in and day out. You really have to get yourself into a nice routine.
MMO – How do you juggle doing that almost every day then adding in all the travel?
Gelbs – It is something I think takes a full year to really understand how to do properly. I will never again question when I hear a team say ‘went out to the West Coast and struggled.” It’s an exhausting lifestyle. But it’s also an amazing lifestyle that I would trade for anything. But it is a marathon and you need to learn how to pace yourself. I think that first year I didn’t know how to do it.
I tell this story all the time: I think we were coming from San Diego to Phoenix during my first full year and we didn’t get into Phoenix until about 4 .a.m., I was absolutely exhausted. One of the benefits of traveling with the team is that they take care of your luggage, so someone brings it up to when you get to you room. I get to the room about 4:30 and I’m like ‘man, I have to stay awake just for 20 minutes’ so I turn on the TV and sit at the foot of the bed. Next thing I know, it’s 10 a.m. and I’m stilling sitting at the foot of the bed. My luggage is sitting at the foot of the bed. Meaning someone knocked on the door, came in, and left the luggage, and I never woke up. That just goes to show how exhausting it is, and I’m only watching these games, they are out there exerting themselves day in and day out.
It’s a lot. So, you learn how to pace yourself. You learn how to make sure you get the sleep when you need it and learn there’s going to be days when you don’t have any juice. Sometimes when I have seven stories ready for a game, I won’t unload all of them. I will save ones that can be used at any time, for days when I might be a little bit tired. It’s definitely a grind, but I feel like I’m in a rhythm now.
MMO – An easy one to finish up, choose one of Gary, Keith and Ron to quarantine with?
Gelbs – I love all of them, but it’s impossible not to answer Keith, right? I don’t think I need to explain any further.
MMO – Thanks for talking to us!
Gelbs – Absolutely, and hopefully we have some baseball soon.
You can follow Steve Gelbs on Twitter at @SteveGelbs
