Joe Davis isn’t positive if it’ll ever totally sink in that his voice, very like Vin Scully’s on Kirk Gibson’s iconic blast, will endlessly be the soundtrack to one of many largest moments in World Collection historical past.
Even seven months later, it nonetheless doesn’t really feel actual.
“I’m nonetheless the child from Potterville, Michigan, who dreamt of doing this,” the MLB on FOX broadcaster mentioned earlier this week.
However the extra time that passes, the extra Davis acknowledges the magnitude of what transpired in Los Angeles on the night of Oct. 25, 2024, when Freddie Freeman — 36 years after Gibson made the not possible occur — wrote a brand new chapter in Dodgers lore along with his Recreation 1 walk-off grand slam.
When individuals see Davis now, Freeman’s hit and his name — “Gibby, meet Freddie” — are what they wish to discuss.
The identical method that Freeman grew up dreaming of coming via in a second like that, Davis grew up dreaming of narrating it.
“The extra distance I get from it, the larger appreciation I’ve for the place the second — and overlook what I mentioned or the decision or something — simply the place the second stands in baseball historical past,” Davis mentioned. “It was not possible to totally recognize that within the rapid aftermath, however the extra distance I get from it, the extra mind-blowing it’s that I acquired to be within the chair for that second. I’m, increasingly, appreciating what that second was.”
With the Dodgers and Yankees reuniting this weekend for the primary time for the reason that Fall Traditional, and with FOX Sports activities celebrating its thirtieth season of MLB protection this 12 months, Davis mentioned the decision, the aftermath, Gibson’s response, how he critiques and learns from his broadcasts, why an image in his workplace reminds him that each evening could possibly be the one individuals discuss endlessly and rather more.
(Observe: Some questions and solutions could also be edited for brevity and readability.)
Has it hit you but that the identical method we affiliate Vin’s name on the Gibson homer, your voice and your name now will endlessly be linked to one of many largest moments in World Collection historical past?
JD: “I don’t know if it ever will. I swear, man. And I believe that that’s a superb factor. That’s form of how I would like it. I by no means need, and I speak to my youngsters about this on a regular basis, too, let’s by no means take without any consideration how cool it’s to have the issues we now have and to do the issues we do. I believe that’s a terrific instance of that, the place I can form of follow what I preach to my youngsters. I’m nonetheless the child from Potterville, Michigan, who dreamt of doing this.
“In the identical method Freddie stepped into the field and won’t have thought to himself, ‘That is the second I’ve ready my entire life for,’ however you ask him now, yeah, that’s the second each baseball participant goals of getting. I even mentioned that proper earlier than he stepped in, on the published, in the identical method that that was the second that he grew up dreaming of, as he stepped into the field, that’s the second I grew up dreaming of, too. So I don’t lose that perspective. Due to that, it’s exhausting to essentially wrap my thoughts round logically the place that second stands and what it means to be tied to that second. I don’t permit any of it to really feel actual. It’s too loopy, too preposterous, for me to essentially permit it to really feel actual, even with the gap that we now have.”
Expertise the thrill of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ unforgettable 2024 postseason journey. From their intense showdown with the San Diego Padres within the NLDS, to their conflict with the New York Mets within the NLCS, and culminating of their epic World Collection battle towards the New York Yankees, the Dodgers’ run is etched in historical past as one of the legendary in MLB playoff lore.
Rowan Kavner is an MLB author for FOX Sports activities. He beforehand coated the L.A. Dodgers, LA Clippers and Dallas Cowboys. An LSU grad, Rowan was born in California, grew up in Texas, then moved again to the West Coast in 2014. Observe him on Twitter at @RowanKavner.
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