Michael Kay hasn’t called a Yankees playoff game in 25 years, but that changes on Tuesday when the Yankees television broadcaster returns to his roots of sorts inside the radio booth to call the Bronx Bombers’ AL Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium on ESPN Radio.
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broadcaster → call → Radio
The longtime voice of the Yankees has not been able to call a Yanks postseason game since he made the jump to television with the launch of YES Network in 2002, as national broadcasters take over exclusive television rights in the playoffs.
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broadcasters → call → playoffs
In a phone conversation Thursday afternoon, Kay told The Post that ESPN’s vice president of digital & audio production Justin Craig had reached out to him to see if he would be interested in calling the national radio broadcast of the Yanks’ Wild Card series.
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he → tell → series
“I said, ‘Yeah, I’d love it.
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I → say → it
It’d be great,’” Kay told The Post.
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Kay → tell → Post
“Worked it out with YES where I’m still going to do their pre- and post-game show on the field at the stadium.
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I → work → stadium
That’s important to me as well, and then just get an opportunity to do [radio].
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That → ’ → radio
I’m really looking forward to it.”
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I → look → it
Kay spent a decade as part of the Yankees radio broadcast team from 1992-2001, paired with broadcasting legend John Sterling.
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Kay → spend → Sterling
Sterling passed away earlier this year at the age of 87 and Tuesday’s Wild Card game will be the first time that Kay will call a Yankees broadcast on the radio since then.
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Kay → pass → radio
“I hadn’t thought about it till now. …
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I → think → it
It will be a little melancholy because when I think of radio, I always think of John, and we became great friends,” Kay said.
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Kay → think → John
“I thought that combination for those 10 years really worked and we got a chance to call five World Series, and four of them winners.
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four → think → them
So maybe I’ll just try to think about the good things and things like that.
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I → try → that
“Obviously, I’m close with [WFAN broadcasters Suzyn Waldman and Dave Sims] as well, and I don’t look at this as a competition or anything like that, but it’ll be odd doing a Yankee game without John Sterling sitting next to me.”
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Sterling → ’m → me
Kay will call the game alongside Eduardo Pérez and Tim Kurkjian and the national broadcast will air on 880 ESPN in the New York market, he said when he announced the news on “The Michael Kay Show” on Wednesday.
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he → call → Wednesday
Should the Yankees make it out of the Wild Card round, Kay said that he would not be on the call for any more games, but would be on the pre- and post-game coverage on YES Network.
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he → make → Network
While the playoff picture hasn’t been solidified yet, all signs appear to point to the Yankees taking on the Red Sox in the Wild Card.
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Yankees → solidify → Card
Asked about the balance of calling a game on a national broadcast compared to a more Yankees-centric one, Kay harkened back to his friend and former broadcast partner as an example.
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Kay → ask → example
“I always tell people this about John, [he] was a guy who very clearly wanted the Yankees to win, but if you listen to the last call of Luis Gonzalez’s base hit [in 2001], he called it like right down the middle.
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he → tell → middle
With the same excitement as if it was a Yankee doing a walk-off in the seventh game of the World Series,” Kay explained.
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Kay → do → Series
“I think that’s your responsibility.
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that → think → ?
That’s the way I look at it.
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I → ’ → it
I love baseball, and obviously, I have a 35-year connection doing the Yankee games on radio and TV.
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I → love → radio
But I get criticized a lot from some Yankee fans because I they say I get too excited for big moments for the other team, but I get excited for big moments in baseball.
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I → criticize → baseball
“So let’s say they face the Red Sox…Red Sox hit a big home run, I’m gonna get excited.
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I → let → run
I’m going to give it the same call for a Red Sox fan that might be listening.
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that → go → fan
Kay added that “in my soul” he’d like to see the Yankees advance in the postseason, but if they face Boston and the Red Sox win, he’ll “give it an excited call.”
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he → add → call
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