Short and to the Point: Rich Hollenberg on mentoring, Tampa Bay Rays, pitch clock rules, and more

Host Jessica Kleinschmidt talks with Tampa Bay Rays studio host and ESPN college basketball play-by-play commentator Rich Hollenberg. Jessica and Rich discuss a variety of topics including mentoring future broadcasters in his Break In and Break Through program, covering the Aaron Hernandez case while at NFL Network, the Tampa Bay Rays being playoff contenders, and more.

Here’s the full breakdown.

• 1:31: Welcome Rich Hollenberg to Short and to the Point
• 1:44: Being versatile in broadcasting
• 5:09: Being a specialist vs being versatile
• 8:37: When Rich could be more selective with his workload
• 12:22: Does Rich’s kids think it’s cool their dad is on TV?
• 14:27: Building relationships with college basketball players as they enter NBA
• 18:13: Being authentic
• 22:28: Having too little or too much confidence in broadcasting
• 26:53: Break In and Break Through program
• 30:22: Biggest challenge with teaching aspect of the program
• 32:47: Covering Aaron Hernandez case
• 37:59: Learning about the justice system while covering Hernandez
• 40:36: Thoughts on the pitch clock and rule changes to speed up games
• 45:46: Kevin Cash as manager and Tampa Bay Rays being annual contenders
• 51:25: Shohei Ohtani to the Rays???

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