With the Rays having Friday off before resuming their series with the Detroit Tigers following their Opening Day win, I re-discovered a conversation from June 2020 when the pandemic shut down sports between Rays Radio broadcasters Dave Wills and Andy Freed and Lightning play-by-play man Dave Mishkin. The three discussed how they broke into the broadcasting industry, the grind of the minor leagues, and how the goal for each broadcast is to be good company for those who take the time to listen.
I hope you’ll listen to this conversation, and smile hearing the stories of Dave Wills, who we all miss so much.
Steve Carney is the founder and publisher of St. Pete Nine. One of the people most associated with baseball coverage in Tampa Bay, he spent 13 seasons covering the Rays for flagship radio station WDAE, first as producer of Rays Radio broadcasts, then as beat reporter beginning in 2011. He likes new analytics and aged bourbon, and is the owner of one of the ugliest knuckleballs ever witnessed by baseball scouts.
