From the Editor: Losing a ‘favorite uncle' brings sadness on Opening Day
For thousands, Herb Carneal and Minnesota Twins baseball were synonomous
A warm sunny day had given away to a cool summer night as I laid in bed trying to fall asleep. The little transistor radio sat beside my bed as I listened to my favorite baseball team play game on the West Coast.
The sweet sounds of baseball - brought to me by Minnesota Twins radio announcer Herb Carneal - provided the relaxing touch I needed and brought Mr. Sandman home to me. I was a child, yet I never quite outgrew the bond that is baseball and radio.
So the news on Sunday - Herb Carneal, the voice of the Minnesota Twins since 1962, had died at the age of 83 - hit me hard. And I'm positive that I'm just one of thousands of Upper Midwest baseball fans who were touched by the gentle voice that had called Major League Baseball for more than 50 years.
In a sense, I lost another part of my childhood Sunday. Listening to Carneal on WCCO was as much a part of my youth as pickup baseball games, mowing the lawn and family picnics. He, like so many other baseball radio announcers, felt like an extended part of my family.
Even when we went to games, Dad brought along the trusty transistor and listened to Herb. It was as if we might miss something if we didn't have him around.
Baseball, it is often said, is made for radio. The pace of the game - slower than say football or basketball - lends itself to the medium, but maybe more importantly, the announcers who call the game know their craft well. They know how to fill the time between pitches or between innings or during rain delays with not only statistics but also with stories that they effortlessly weave.
Baseball announcers - at least the good ones - let the game speak for itself. With the exception of the late, great Harry Carey, there are no Dick Vitales, thankfully, on the baseball radio airwaves.
When Carneal opened his broadcast with a simple “hello everyone,” it was as if he were talking to me personally. He might as well have said “hello Bob” because, self-centered as this sounds, it was like he was doing the broadcast for me.
He didn't shout, he didn't pander and he didn't take away the spotlight from the players, although God knows, there were some years in which Herb was about the only thing the Twins had going for them.
He was, to put it simply, understated in the best tradition of baseball announcers. He may have ‘lost a step' or two in recent years, but I didn't care much. He was the Twins to me as much as Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew and Kirby Puckett.
When the Twins won the World Series in both 1987 and 1991, we turned down the sound on the television and listened to Herb. It's what Minnesotans did. It's what all diehard Twins fans did. It wasn't so much that we didn't like the television announcers; it was just that Herb would tell us what we needed to know when we needed to know.
In so many ways, he was like a favorite uncle to thousands of young Twins fans, and I was lucky enough to meet him once. I was a kid, and he was in Mankato for one of those Twins caravans. Dad took the night off from work, not because the Twins were in town but because Herb was coming.
“Hi Herb,” I said shyly. “I think you're the best.”
I have no idea what he said in response, but I do remember flying through the front door to tell Mom that I had shaken Herb's hand. Even Mom, who never caught the baseball bug, knew whom I was talking about.
As corny as it sounds, I'm sure Herb's doing a game somewhere in heaven today. The good folks up there could only be so lucky.
JUST FOR FUN and to take away the sadness I'm feeling, here are my top-five baseball announcers.
5. Ernie Harwell: The longtime voice of the Detroit Tigers always seems like he's just having a conversation with his listeners, and like a lot of great baseball announcers, the southern accent is perfect for the game.
4. Bob Costas: The one television announcer in the bunch, but Costas is another guy who just knows how to let the game do the talking.
3. Vin Scully: Most baseball fans know him from his television work, but as good as he is on TV, he's ten times better covering the Dodgers on the radio.
2. Jon Miller: I spent a summer in Washington, D.C., in the mid-1980s when Miller was the voice of the Baltimore Orioles and I used to pray for rain delays because the now-famous ESPN announcer could weave wonderful stories to fill the time.
1. Herb Carneal: He was never a homer, but I'll be one today.
Bob Fenske is the editor of the Forest City Summit. He can be reached by phone at 585-2112 or by e-mail at editor@forestcitysummit.com
Story created Apr 03, 2007 - 12:31:35 CDT.
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