Karl Ravech, the play-by-play voice of ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball, says neighbors always approach him wanting to talk about baseball.
Not MLB. Little League baseball.
In addition to his MLB announcing duties, Ravech also calls the Little League World Series and the College World Series. Both of these events will take place in the next two months, with the CWS beginning on June 14 and the LLWS starting on August 14.
Ravech recently told the Foul Territory show that he finds college and Little League baseball “refreshing.”
“The college game, Little League, the reason they are two of my favorite things that I’ve done over 30-plus years at ESPN is because there is a refreshing nature,” Ravech said. “We’ve learned from college kids that they’re funny, smart, silly; that’s what makes the College World Series so much fun. And even more so, the Little League World Series.”
The broadcaster points out one of the apparent drawbacks of youth baseball. As kids learn the game, some of the play can be brutal; there’s a reason, after all, an error-filled play ending with a player scoring is labeled a “Little League home run.”
But Ravech said that by the time players get to the LLWS, they are polished both on the field and as personalities.
“We’re blessed because you get really good players,” Ravech said. “In the beginning, it’s a bit of a chore. ‘We’re not good yet, we don’t deserve to be on any stage’ … but by the time they get to Williamsport (LLWS site), they’re really good teams, with really good players with decent personalities. And it’s our job to kind of mine the gold.”
Ravech said that the level of access teams provide for reporters at college and Little League games makes the players and their stories more interesting for fans.
“The Little League and college stuff, I think a lot of times they afford you opportunities to get to know them personally that you wouldn’t get with Major League Baseball,” Ravech said. “The access that Little League gives people like (reporter) Julie Foudy, who is an absolute rock star on the Little League World Series … the Little League World Series to me now has become what we all tend to do on different streaming platforms. It’s binge-watching for about 10 or 11 nights out of the summer.
The 2023 Little League World Series was ESPN’s most-watched event since 2015. Ravech enjoyed the thrill of calling California’s walk-off win.
“Curaçao has not allowed a home run at the World Series.” – Karl Ravech with the epic announcer jinx pic.twitter.com/9l3yoTmsCS
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 27, 2023
Yet Ravech doesn’t need TV ratings to indicate the popularity of Little League baseball. His neighbors tell him all he needs to know.
“I live in a neighborhood where there are people between 5 years old and men and women who are 95 years old,” Ravech said. “It literally crosses all those age groups; they will come up to me when they see me and absolutely talk about the Little League World Series. Not Sunday Night Baseball, not the College World Series … they love to talk about the Little League World Series because it has this mass appeal. It brings people back to when they were younger, to when they watched their kids or their grandkids … it just works.”
[Foul Territory]
