The New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals took part in ESPN’s All-Access Spring Training broadcast on Wednesday from Clover Park in Port St. Lucie, where select players (and coaches and front office staff) are given an earpiece and an on-uniform microphone, and give the fans a glimpse of a side of the game they hardly ever get to see.
Needless to say, fun was had — by players and viewers, alike — and there could be more good times to come.
We found out Cardinals manager Mike Schildt is getting married on St. Louis’ off day on Friday (congrats, Mike), but it was Mets mainstays, Pete Alonso, Dominic Smith, J.D. Davis, and Jeff McNeil (who we learned begrudgingly accepts the Squirrel moniker that was bestowed upon him in college; “hates it”, Smith said, jokingly) who stole the show.
Davis, back in the mix at camp following some time off resting his now-healed shoulder, played the role of “bench heckler” (h/t Matt Vasgersian of ESPN) while Dom Smith, admittedly playing much more comfortably in left field this spring than he was last year, let his all-time personality run wild and McNeil added quips and flavor throughout.
These guys should seriously have a television show during the offseason. Even a podcast would suffice.
Despite dropping a very naughty word on live television while playing in the field, Pete Alonso revealed a natural affability that makes him a shoo-in for a broadcast career once his playing days are done if he chooses to go that route.
Until then, the 25-year-old, reigning National League Rookie of the Year will serve as an ambassador-slash-pioneer of sorts, acting as a bridge between the fans and something they seldom get a chance to see — what actually happens on the field.
After the game, Alonso confirmed — not before double-checking with a team official that he could share the news — that he has agreed to allow Major League Baseball to place a microphone on or near first base during select regular-season games this year and also shared his reasoning behind the move (via Anthony DiComo, MLB.com).
“I think growing the game is really important for the young guys, for young players, like middle school and Little League-age, because I think growing the game and growing the popularity of the game is awesome,” Alonso said. “Also, another interesting point I find, I think it’s kind of like a standard of where baseball is worldwide, globally.”
“If you look at Bryce Harper, Mike Trout, and Aaron Judge, it’s those guys who are great ambassadors for the game but if you look at their social media following, those guys clearly have the biggest following in baseball,” he said. “And if you look at Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi or LeBron James, James Harden, those guys, their reach is way more broad. And I think growing the game of baseball, globally, is extremely, extremely important.”
Judging by the response Alonso and his teammates got on Wednesday, this seems like an extremely marketable opportunity for the players and the league as a whole. All good things.
Here are some clips of Wednesday’s broadcast gold that made their way to the internet if you were unable to catch the game.
