Joe Davis earned rave reviews of his historic call of Freddie Freeman’s walkoff grand slam to deliver Game 1 of the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but some MLB fans aren’t so thrilled about Davis calling the series for Fox alongside John Smoltz.
After all, Davis is the lead announcer for Dodgers games on Spectrum SportsNet. In a sport where fans constantly badger broadcasters about their homerism or bias (just ask Joe Buck), Davis gives fans a built-in criticism of him from his other job.
Yet in a recent interview on The Varsity podcast with John Ourand, Smoltz gave his new partner massive props for handling the situation with poise.
“I just think this year is the ultimate test for Joe Davis, and he’s passed it so far in my opinion in flying colors,” Smoltz said. “He’s the play-by-play announcer of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and he’s had to do this entire run on the Los Angeles Dodgers. There’s no gain in that. All you’re going to do is get flak, especially from the San Diego Padres or the Mets.”
As Smoltz learned opposite Buck for six years, local fans and media hammer whoever calls the game.
“When this World Series is over, mark my words … the opposite radio stations of the team that loses will accuse me and Joe Davis of rooting for the other team,” Smoltz said. “It happens every year … it is the most nonsensical thing there is, but I understand it. Because they’re used to their home play-by-play announcing teams who never say anything about the other team in a glowing fashion.”
And to make matters worse, the nature of Davis’ role effectively proves fans right. For most of the year, Davis is probably hoping for good things to happen for the Dodgers. He is hyping up the local fan base after every Shohei Ohtani home run and Mookie Betts web gem.
Earlier in the postseason, Davis alluded to a Dodgers win over the San Diego Padres prematurely while calling their game in the NLCS. But that tiny gaffe is the only blemish on a closely watched postseason run for Davis, who took over for Buck in 2022.
For Davis, the World Series is not so much about pretending he doesn’t care about the Dodgers. Instead, it’s about doing the play-by-play job so well that fans aren’t thinking about Spectrum SportsNet.
The call of Freeman’s walkoff homer in Game 1 is a perfect example. Davis brought the significance of the moment and the history of the Dodgers into the booth with him, delivering a call that rose above the passions on either side.
Yankees fans might still hate him for it. But so long as they’re the only ones bothered, Smoltz thinks Davis is acing the test.
