Caitlin Clark isn’t planning to quit her day job to become a baseball announcer, but she did have some fun during a foray into an imaginary broadcast booth.
The Indiana Fever rookie went viral Friday when teammate Lexie Hull posted a TikTok of her trying her hand at play-by-play in a game between the Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies. A day later, she told reporters the experience left her with new respect for baseball broadcasters, and an interest in commentating a game for real.
Via Matthew Byrne of ClutchPoints:
“Well I told Lex that sometimes I’ll just commentate some games and she’s like ‘Alright, we’ll do it right now.’ I didn’t really know she was recording until a little bit way’s too, but I don’t know, it’s just kinda fun. I’ve kind of been following the Phillies, so I kinda know some of their players and stuff.
“It was pretty funny, I messed up a few times, but that’s a hard gig! Also, I was out of breath and exhausted, so shoutout to all the commentators out there. I did it for two minutes and I needed a break … I don’t know if commentating’s in my future, but who knows, maybe one time for fun, someone will let me do it.”
So it turns out when you’re an athlete known for your singular ability to draw unprecedented audiences to your sport, MLB teams will be very interested when you signal a willingness to do a game broadcast. Especially when you jokingly comment “@Phillies hire me?“
Both the Phillies and the Brewers posted offers to Clark the next day to join them for a game. The Phillies included a message from play-by-play man Tom McCarthy praising her commentary and inviting her to the booth “whenever you want.” He also said to bring her boyfriend Connor McCaffery, a Phillies fan.
Clark also told reporters Saturday that she follows the Phillies through McCaffery, and still likes the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees. The latter fandom has already seen her join the Yankees radio booth last month.
As for when Clark will be able to call a baseball game, those teams will probably have to wait a while. The MLB regular season finishes next weekend, a span of time in which Clark will be focused on getting the Fever through the first round of the WNBA playoffs. The Fever and Connecticut Sun tip off for Game 1 at 3 p.m. Sunday.
So it’s more likely Clark will be in the broadcast booth next season, either during spring training or early in the regular season. WNBA training camps typically begin during late April, a few weeks after the MLB regular season begins.