Home Run Calls

In the first three days of the season, big league sluggers hit 105 home runs. Batters from the National League West accounted for four of those. The Diamondbacks, Giants and Rockies are the only teams that have yet to hit one out of the park. I'm hoping San Francisco hits at least one today to avoid being the last team to homer, a distinction on par with being the first one voted off the island.

With so many home runs already, I thought it would be amusing to survey the various home run calls made by radio broadcasters around the league. For a sampling, I listened to highlights from Tuesday's games and this is what I heard...

• "High and deep to left/center/right field..."
• "Way back. Looking up. And it's gone!"
• "Fly ball. Well hit. It's a home run!"
• "Fly away!"
• "There she goes!"
• "That ball is history!"
• "Good-bye, baseball!"
• "Bang! Get up! Get up! Get outta here! Gone!"

Most announcers stick with rather conventional calls, but there are few that try to be original. I wonder how many of them stayed up late at night in their hotel rooms in search of that signature call, one they could call their own.

If I were announcing a game, the first two I'd try would be "And that one is up, up and away!" and "It's a bird. It's a plane! No, it's a home run!" I'm just not sure which one I'd use first since they're both equally lame.

Writing about this has me hankering to see a ball game at Insert-Latest-Name-of-Global-Telecommunications-Company-Here Park in San Francisco soon. The Giants are playing there this afternoon in their home opener against Atlanta.

The Giants won their first game of the season last night in San Diego behind the pitching of Matt Morris. Noah Lowry takes the mound today. He's one of three pitchers on my fantasy team this year (the free version offered by MLB), so I'm hoping he comes through for me. If he can also come through for the Giants, that would be a bonus.