M’s Hire AAA Guy to be Full-Time Radio Broadcaster….Awww, Man
Today, the M’s announced the hiring of 29-year old Aaron Goldsmith to be Rick Rizzs’ full-time partner in the radio booth. They’d rotated several people through that role since Dave Niehaus’ death in 2010, and wanted to bring someone on for continuity and consistency. Goldsmith served as the announcer for the Red Sox AAA affiliate in Pawtucket last year, and with the Rangers’ AA team in Frisco, TX before that. I’m sure he’ll be great, and while I don’t get as passionately upset/elated about announcers as many of you, I look forward to hearing how he works with the long-tenured Rizzs.
Many of you know that this blog is fond of a different AAA announcer, and were openly pulling for Mike Curto in this process. I am in absolutely no way an impartial, unbiased observer, so my two cents is worth even less here, but I’m disappointed Curto didn’t get a chance. That’s not a slight on Goldsmith, who didn’t create this situation and wasn’t involved the last time Mike got passed over. But I’ll be solipsistic for a minute and say that if the team wanted to undo some of the damage from yesterday’s news, they didn’t exactly do that.
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23 Responses to “M’s Hire AAA Guy to be Full-Time Radio Broadcaster….Awww, Man”
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Perfectly said, Marc. I think a lot of us were pullin’ for Curto.
How are they going pass on Curto. It’s almost like the team has forget how to evaluate talent…
“Forgot” implies they ever knew. History and experience imply otherwise.
I met Curto once, really nice guy. I can’t really say anything about his talent, but i was pulling for him, too.
I would have thought he’d have an advantage, that hiring him would have been a good way to lure some Rainiers fans to become Mariners fans.
Free Mike Curto!!!
Wow I can’t believe it. Surprised Beane didn’t ask for Jaso and Curto.
No wonder the GM who can’t buy a vowel for his own last name wouldn’t like those guys flaunting such an excess they can waste an “o” at the end of theirs’.
Heard the new guy’s sample. Like his voice and clean style. He’s 29. They are probably hoping he’ll be the guy for the next 30-40+ years.
I hope he’s fine. I like Mike Curto and I like Ken Levine. Presumably I’ll be able to hear the former at least with Tacoma until someone does indeed snap him up.
The real problem here is Rizzs.
Maybe he’ll get hired someday on the TV side (*cough*.. Sims..)
Ken Levine has a voice that sounds perfect……
for silent movies.
It’s amazing how strong our biases can be regarding announcers. I’m okay with Rico as an announcer, although I strongly dislike him in any other role (like when he’s on the Hot Stove League right now). I like Sims a lot. Blowers as a color guy has started to grow on me, largely because he seems willing to move out of his comfort zone on occasion (gamely trying to explain UZR for example).
I like Levine. I think Ken Wilson got a great radio voice, but unfortunately he’s not that great as an announcer. Reid’s pretty bad, but his stories about the old Dodgers are fun.
I think my opinions on the M’s announcers have benefited from listening to some of the other teams’ announcers. Our guys are usually willing to compliment an opponent, or admit when the M’s caught a break… or laugh when Liddi dives for a ball that lands 5 seconds later and 20 feet away. Compared to a lot of others, our guys are relatively fair and balanced (apologies to Faux News).
(Also apologies to the folks offended by my play on words at the end there
I was hoping for Curto too.
I just hope Goldsmith doesn’t add a “y” to the players’ names.
It’s funny how most of you guys just jump on the bandwagon of whatever the post is and say some affirming comment as to how it’s correct. And then it usually circles back to the ineptitude of the front office. Next we’ll probably have people complaining about how Lincoln could find a better Moose if he’d only had more skills evaluating talent.
I like Curto. He’s well deserved. However, has anyone posting here actually ever heard Goldsmith? Though they would never admit it, maybe they wanted to get a young guy who would have the potential to be the M’s announcer for, say, the next 30-40 years.
Here is a video with Goldsmith making some calls.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wOawij2Rvn0
Spidey: I don’t speak for all, but I bet I speak for most in saying THIS IS NOT A THREAD ABOUT AARON GOLDSMITH, this is a thread about Mike Curto. If we’re here, were big enough baseball fans to have been listening to Curto for years, and many of us have had the pleasure of meeting Mike (at one of the many USSM events he’s attended or otherwise) and getting to know him. I don’t mean to knock Goldsmith *at all,* but I was absolutely rooting for Mike to get that job and I am genuinely disappointed that he did not. No me-too-ism here, just disappointment that I think is widely shared here.
Pete summed it up well, but seriously Spideysage, this is *not* a post about how incompetent the FO is. This was a post in which I tried to make it absolutely clear that I, personally, was bummed out that a guy I like didn’t get a job.
I’m in full agreement with Westside’s analysis – except with respect to Rizz as an announcer… I just can’t stomach Rizz’ incessant golly-gee Pollyannaish homerism (which I am sure is exactly what Chuck & Howie like, want and expect from him). On the TV side at least, we get a bit more honesty led by Sims. My only concern with Goldsmith (as it would be with any extremely young, relatively inexperienced & largely unestablished hire for the job) is that he will be expected to (and will) take all his cues from Rizz, will view Rizz as his mentor – and will just become a junior version of the same thing…
I don’t mind the sound of the guy they’re bringing in. A little bland, but a very traditional “I could fall asleep to this” voice.
However, this is yet another step in the descent of the M’s. Man, I just don’t understand what this organization is doing.
Arrrg! I was really pulling for Mike Curto. Worst move of this off-season.
I kinda like Aaron Goldsmith, and don’t have any personal attachment to Curto.
I definitely prefer Mike for the same reason I loved Mr. Niehaus: he just sounds different and distinct. Mr. Goldsmith is very good, but I’m certain on a good listen that he sounds much like Don Orsillo.
That’s not a bad thing, but it doesn’t sound like it’s *our* thing.
Good god, we were spoiled and lucky.