The opening night of the Orioles did not go well. Although expectations aren’t too high to start the season, a 13-2 loss to the Boston Red Sox showed that the 60-game season will consist of some pretty tough displays.
For a station, games like Friday night can be difficult to call. Without everything going well, nine baseball innings can move pretty slow. Former MLB pitcher and current color analyst for the Red Sox Dennis Eckersley, who was probably having a better time on Friday, made a joke about the situation on the NESN broadcast.
Dennis Eckersley on the NESN broadcast: “Do you know what a tough job would be? Being a broadcaster for the Baltimore Orioles.” 💀
– Jason Mastrodonato (@JMastrodonato) July 25, 2020
Now, as Jason Mastrodonato from the Boston Herald alluded to in more tweets, Eckersley’s comment was just a joke. It wasn’t meant to be a snub at the Orioles’ crew, but rather a quick search for former analyst Jim Palmer, with whom Eckersley is a good friend.
Putting it aside, the comment gave the new Orioles announcer Geoff Arnold a chance to have a perfect answer, and he took advantage of it. Friday night was his first call, or as he called it, his major league debut.
Arnold’s debut comes at a time when broadcasts for the Orioles will sound a little different in 2020. Due to COVID-19, MASN announced that Gary Thorne, Jim Palmer, Rick Dempsey, Tom Davis, and Jim Hunter will not be calling the games. as a health and safety precaution.
Arnold’s first MLB broadcast may not have been exactly what he expected in terms of scoring, but he showed here that, like most people making his debut, he is happy to have the opportunity.
