Flashback: Summer 2008.
I was an on-field emcee for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, the AA-level affiliate for the Toronto Blue Jays.
Between innings, I hosted the usual assortment of wacky minor league fare: the "Irving Oil Sumo Showdown," the "Amato's Great Tomato Race," the "New Hampshire Highway Safety Buckle-Up Challenge"...you name it.
It was my first season on the field, and admittedly, it was rough. Although I worked in radio, I had no self-awareness on-camera or any concept of timing whatsoever.
After fumbling my way through another hot, humid summer evening, then-team Vice President Mike Ramshaw recognized something, pulled me aside on the stadium concourse, and pointed up to the press box.
What he said next changed my life from that point forward.
"You belong up there."
Fast forward to the 2019 Winter Meetings in San Diego--the annual gathering of the sport's executives from around the world who travel in to meet and discuss the business of baseball.
Mike is now Fisher Cats Team President and I'm beginning my eighth season as the Voice of Petco Park for Major League Baseball's Padres.
At the annual gala, we reminisced about that muggy New England night, and the eventual paths it led us on.
For me, it meant five more seasons upstairs as the full-time Fisher Cats announcer, a shot to be the Voice of Wrigley Field for the Cubs in 2011 and a fill-in appearance at Fenway Park in 2012... all before landing permanently in San Diego in 2014. Beginning with the 2019 release, I took over the role of PA Announcer in Sony's "MLB The Show" franchise where I'm the voice of every ballpark in the game.
My self-awareness and timing came with practice, but had it not been for Mike's intuition to identify and capitalize on my raw talents, I may not be where I am today.
Thank you for believing in me, friend.
Let's play ball.
For a look at Alex's work in Major League Baseball click on the Live TV & VO Demo. It features introductions during Opening Day at Petco Park, and the 2016 MLB All-Star Game live on FOX.