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Part 1 of the Mike Wilner Interview

Most Batter's Box denizens will be familiar with the work of Mike Wilner. Studio host of the Blue Jays radio broadcasts on the FAN radio network, Mike's work goes out across the country before and after every Jays game. He was kind enough to sit down a few weeks ago to answer some questions from Batter's Box. In Part One, we learned about the path to becoming a broadcaster, and a bit about the job. Today, Mike gives us a closer look at this current Blue Jays organization, from the GM to the bullpen coach.

First, though, the acronyms. Kent Williams, while skulking around the field during batting practice as Da Box's official reporter and unofficial Reed Johnson stalker, has noticed that Mike talks in a language all his own, to the amusement of the rest of the press. It turns out that these are acronyms for his various features on the radio.

"'DBR' is the Daily Baseball Report, which airs every weekday at 5:55pm on The Fan 590. It's my own column, 90 seconds where I get to say whatever I want. The "RRT" is how I affectionately refer to the Writer's Round Table, which goes on the Pre-Game Show about once a month or so.”

But what about “hoots”? Mike says that “it's probably really 'HHOOTS' - the Home Hardware Out Of Town Scoreboard. It's just pronounced 'hoots'. And never on the air!” Mike also has an additional regular time slot which he hasn't acronymized yet, the Full Count (airing weekdays at 2:40 through the regular season). As well, Mike is hosting the pre- and post-game shows for the playoff games on the Fan Radio Network this fall.

As someone who spends his working hours researching and thinking about baseball when he isn't talking about it on the air, Mike has strong opinions about the Blue Jays, both the players and the organization. He spends hours every week talking to the players, the management, and the fans, so his insights are worth noting.

Like a lot of Blue Jays fans, Mike bemoans the half-empty SkyDome. "The only thing that can be done is to win... for the big crowds, especially. There has been more buzz about the Jays in Toronto this year than any season since the strike, and the fans have responded by packing the place, but the Jays have really stunk it up those nights. In front of their three biggest crowds of the year, they've been absolutely smoked. I think if they'd performed in those games, they would have gotten at least a small bump the rest of the way. I really think the only thing they can do to get the numbers to really jump is seriously contend, regardless of the marketing strategy. Though $2 nights aren't a bad idea." Mike doesn't think that there are a lot of baseball fans in Toronto, but that there are a lot of Blue Jays fans. "We saw that in May and June when the Jays were red-hot. You could feel the resurgence in baseball in this city."

The media doesn't help. "I think it's terrible that hockey is a lead story on radio and TV sportscasts in the summer. This July, when every broadcast outlet led with the fact that Dominik Hasek was THINKING about coming back, and every paper had that story on the front page of its sports section. That was just ridiculous." Part of the problem, too is that the Blue Jays-only fans "know what they know - Devon White was the best centerfielder ever, Joe Carter is the greatest clutch-hitter in history...." But those fans will be back, Mike says, "when the Jays become a year-in, year-out contender again."

Ask Mike if that's possible, and his enthusiasm for the new regime is evident. "I don't think the Jays will ever be able to reasonably compete on an equal basis with the Yankees and Red Sox from an economic standpoint, but I do think they will be able to compete with them on the field." He doesn't believe the Jays are doomed to ten more years of third-place finishes: "I really don't believe that money is the be-all and end-all to success on the field.

“The Jays are up against it, absolutely, because the Yankees and Red Sox have the combination of money and smart GM's, but the presence of George Steinbrenner can lead the Yanks to panic moves that Brian Cashman has nothing to do with - Ruben Sierra, Dan Miceli - and the glare in Boston might make Theo do something he may regret. Guys like Bush, McGowan and Arnold probably won't really contribute until mid-2005 at the earliest, but I think the Jays can be right up there for a long time if they stay on course. Although, who knows what bounty the young outfielders may bring? There's not going to be room for all of Rios, Gross, Griffin, Werth, Johnson, Wells and Kielty."

On J.P. Ricciardi, Mike gushes. "I love the guy, in a completely platonic way. He's got a straight-forward, no-nonsense attitude, and doesn't need people to like him or approve of what he's doing. He knows what he wants to do and is sticking to the plan. Ricciardi is brutally honest for the most part, utterly transparent about his motives and agenda, and always available. He's surrounded himself with people he respects and trusts, and isn't afraid to let others take the spotlight. Of course, it helps that he thinks basically the same way I do."

Mike defends the deal to pick up Luke Prokopec - "didn't work out, but a great gamble to take," and the transient pickups of Davis, Acevedo, and Service are "great moves". He acknowledges that it's not all rosy - Tam, Creek, and Sturtze got major-league deals "when there was really no need" - but Mike points to far more good ones - a litany of sharp deals from Mondesi and Lopez to Bordick, and Myers and Catalanotto, through Shannon Stewart and Cliff Politte.

It's normal for the manager to be one of the most frequent targets of a fan's ire, and despite the fact there's no cheering in the press box, Mike's like many of us in wanting to have a go at Carlos Tosca. Saying straight up that "I don't think Tosca is the guy who will be running the show when the Jays get to championship calibre," Mike grants that he has the respect of the players in the clubhouse - who play hard for him - unlike Buck Martinez. But he can't approve of the strategic decisions of the Jays skipper. "Playing match-ups to the nth degree, which he's calmed down a bit about the last month and a half or so, got ridiculous in the middle part of the season. It seemed as though he never allowed a pitcher to face a hitter of the opposite side. I can remember him lifting a guy with a six-run lead in the 7th or 8th because he put a runner on and there was a hitter of the opposite side coming up." All of the relievers Mike spoke to "thought it was just a mess. Guys need to be shown that you have confidence in them, whether they've earned it or not, because if you're going to have them in your bullpen, you have to be able to trust them to get an out."

Tosca's lineups also come in for their share of criticism. " I don't like the fact that he forgot about Josh Phelps for two months... I also can't believe he puts so much faith into such small sample sizes, sticking a guy in a line-up because he's 1-for-2 against a specific pitcher, or not using a guy because he's 0-for-3." Even the manager's motives come in for criticism... "I think that even though he says all the right things, he really isn't on the same page as J.P. at heart, and wants to bunt, and steal bases, and hit and run."

But the mood of the team, Mike says, is still positive despite having fallen out of contention. "I think for the most part, the team is still pretty loose. I think Mike Bordick helps with that a lot, as does Vernon Wells. I think the team realizes that at this point, it just doesn't have the horses to seriously contend, but that it's definitely moving in the right direction, so that keeps the guys happy.

“I don't think the relievers are happy, though - you could see that on the face of Cliff Politte against Oakland this weekend and earlier this season with Tanyon Sturtze (though really, he has no case). Tosca hasn't made any friends in the pen this year... the rest of the team is still responding to him, though, evidenced by Carlos Delgado's continued hustle, and the reaction of the club immediately following that big closed-door meeting."

The coaches? "They've all been tremendous. It's a wonderful teaching staff." Mike Barnett is "a great hitting coach. Calm, understated, detailed, knows his stuff backwards and forwards, and respected by his hitters." Gil Patterson "has a tremendous knowledge of the game from the mound, and the attention of his pitchers, as well," and Bruce Walton "does his job well". John Gibbons has "shone the three times he's taken over for Tosca as manager. He knows how to handle a pitching staff, lets relievers work out of jams, and often goes out to the mound himself to talk strategy with pitchers. He wouldn't be so terrible as the next manager of this ballclub, I don't think"

Brian Butterfield, in particular, is singled out... "a great baseball mind, also with a great attitude. Orlando Hudson has given him a ton of credit for helping him become the great defender he is. Butterfield has yet to be able to work his magic with Woodward, and he's trying everything he can with Hinske. I think the greatest challenge of his career as an infield instructor will be to make a major-league third baseman out of Hinske." Mike, though, notes one tiny blemish on Butter's copybook. "The double play appeal play on that liner off the pitcher against Texas. Buck Showalter knew Bordick had to go back and tag first and second before advancing, neither Bordick nor Butterfield nor Carlos Tosca did."

Tomorrow, Mike gives his take on the Blue Jays players. Stay tuned.
An interview with Mike Wilner - Part 2 | 15 comments | Create New Account
The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.
_Wildrose - Tuesday, October 07 2003 @ 11:34 AM EDT (#88706) #
Good stuff. Wilner was a revelation to me this past summer as I was without T.V./internet at the family cottage and relied upon the radio for my Jay's fix. I'd never heard of this guy until then, boy I was impressed.I think I enjoyed the post game show more than the game itself.

Roger's needs to increase Wilner's exposure.Punt Faulds and put Mike in the T.V. booth now! The Jays are utilizing a radical approach to building a baseball team and need to communicate this new philosophy to the average fan.(God knows that the Leaf addled Toronto media is not up to the task)

Now,I realize some radio guys tend to freeze in front of a camera, but I'd like to see this guy given a shot. His comments on Tosca show he's no spineless corporate acolyte either. Forget about all this Baseball North crap...market sabmetrics.
_Tenobia - Tuesday, October 07 2003 @ 12:16 PM EDT (#88707) #
Is anyone else getting the impression that Warren Sawkiw may become the Jays colour guy on Sportsnet?

He's doing the playoff game commentary and I think he also worked some Jays games on Rogers Cable.
Craig B - Tuesday, October 07 2003 @ 02:13 PM EDT (#88708) #
Sawkiw was good partnering Dave Van Horne a few times that I remember.
_Jordan - Tuesday, October 07 2003 @ 02:17 PM EDT (#88709) #
Craig, great work again. The more I read about Mike Wilner, the more I love the fact that he's reporting on the team. A few comments:

I really think the only thing they can do to get the numbers to really jump is seriously contend, regardless of the marketing strategy. Though $2 nights aren't a bad idea

This last thought is virtually the only thing Mike says that I don't agree with. The first couple of $2 nights did generate a little buzz, but only because they were so novel. By the third or fourth time around, the fun had worn off and the Jays were attracting the wrong kind of crowds. I was at the fourth $2 game (along with many Bauxites) when a flock of drunken morons kept charging onto the field in the ninth inning. When it costs about the same to get onto the subway as into the ballpark, you're going to get some people who just aren't good company. Moreover, I think the $2 nights diminish the perceived value of the product. Would the Leafs ever do this? No -- not only because they'll be selling out the ACC till the sun goes supernova, but because fans perceive a Leafs ticket to be incredibly valuable. Ditto, to a lesser extent, with the Raptors. Not even the Argos have $2 Days. It's too minor-league for my liking, and I don't think the team should do it next year. (And while we're talking about marketing, I really don't want to see Chris Woodward dressed like a Mountie next year either.)

Mike doesn't think that there are a lot of baseball fans in Toronto, but that there are a lot of Blue Jays fans.

I think this is right, and pretty profound. It goes without saying that Toronto is primarily a hockey town; most Canadian burgs are. But Toronto is exclusively a hockey town: other sports teams are cheered when they win and ignored when they lose, and the city's sports fans don't bother learning anything about those sports. Even much-maligned Montrealers understand baseball better than Torontonians. I don't think the Jays will ever capture the city's hearts like they did back in '92. That was a love affair based partly on the long-awaited consummation of a championship, but even more on the fact that the Jays' WS win perfectly coincided with the city's obsessive need to be considered "world-class." It didn't hurt that it was baseball, the national pastime of our jealously regarded southern neighbour, and that Canadians could briefly celebrate beating the Yanks at their own game. The Jays were loved back then because they were long-suffering underdogs who became champions; that won't happen again. Too much water has passed under the bridge, and the civic spirit of the city suffered badly in the 90s in any event They'll sell out the Dome again and they'll be in the World Series again, but it'll never quite be the same. Because it's not about baseball, it's about their home team winning something while they're waiting for the Leafs.

"I think it's terrible that hockey is a lead story on radio and TV sportscasts in the summer. This July, when every broadcast outlet led with the fact that Dominik Hasek was THINKING about coming back, and every paper had that story on the front page of its sports section. That was just ridiculous."

Amen, brother.

It's normal for the manager to be one of the most frequent targets of a fan's ire, and despite the fact there's no cheering in the press box, Mike's like many of us in wanting to have a go at Carlos Tosca.

Just wanted to note and appreciate Mike's incredible candour here. Keep in mind, he may have to speak with Carlos Tosca about 400 times next year (spring training and regular season, pre- and post-game), and to provide this kind of sharp criticism (which is dead-on, IMHO) about the guy is just remarkable. It may even be a little unwise. But it sure is appreciated by us fans. :-)

Once more, terrific stuff. Looking forward to Part 3.
_Matthew Elmslie - Tuesday, October 07 2003 @ 03:01 PM EDT (#88710) #
Good article.

While I'm here, though . . . wasn't there supposed to be a Part 10 of the Griffin/Baker series?
Craig B - Tuesday, October 07 2003 @ 03:08 PM EDT (#88711) #
Matthew, Part 10 is coming... it's been delayed at the printers'. :)
_jason - Tuesday, October 07 2003 @ 05:31 PM EDT (#88712) #
"But Toronto is exclusively a hockey town: other sports teams are cheered when they win and ignored when they lose, and the city's sports fans don't bother learning anything about those sports."

Judging from the commentary ones hears on the FAN et. al. i would say they know very little about hockey and are unwilling to apply themselve to learning more. "Make Domi the Captain".

This attendence thing is a troubling matter. What I find puzzling is that for ten years this town suffered for the Blue Jays. Ten years of close calls, playoff defeats, playoff contention and finaly a world series. And then the thrill was gone. I myself suffered some of this let down, but I never stopped being a baseball and Jays fan.

What I would like to see is the corporate citizenry get on board with this team. Imagine what flats they would be if the Jays became a contending team and the only people at the game are actually baseball fans?

Oh Yea. Great read. Keep up the great work. You Go Mike Wilner.
Craig B - Tuesday, October 07 2003 @ 05:48 PM EDT (#88713) #
Toronto is exclusively a hockey town

Nope, not that either, and it will be proven when the Roadrunners fail to draw flies... just as the OHL teams do. Toronto was - at one time - a hockey town; now it's just a Leafs town.
_Ryan - Tuesday, October 07 2003 @ 09:04 PM EDT (#88714) #
Great, great interview. Wilner is going to do great things.

And what's wrong with Sawkiw?
_Norm - Wednesday, October 08 2003 @ 12:53 PM EDT (#88715) #
Mike can replace Tom Cheek immediately, as far as I'm concerned.

Keep Jerry, turf Tom - he's a stiff.
_Steve Birnie - Wednesday, October 08 2003 @ 01:26 PM EDT (#88716) #
Toronto was - at one time - a hockey town; now it's just a Leafs town.

I don’t completely agree. I think the reason the OHL draws limited crowds is that Toronto sports fans, with their ‘world class’ fixation, only flock to sports that are perceived as ‘big league’ sports. Hockey games not involving the Leafs still draw good ratings—the NHL playoffs get better ratings than any other sport’s post-season (except of course the Super Bowl), despite The Leafs’ woeful record of participation.

Speaking of the OHL, it deserves much better support. Watching a game is a very good way to spend a winter afternoon or evening. I’ve been to see all three GTA teams, and have watched very good hockey for about the same price as a movie ticket. Mississauga has the nicest rink (though Brampton is close, and has the most loyal, fun fans), but my loyalty is to St. Mike’s, since they represent the 416.

The lack of support this city shows for so-called ‘lower echelon’ sports like junior hockey, amateur baseball or even the Argos is regrettable, and an indicator of the city’s tendency towards insecurity.
Craig B - Wednesday, October 08 2003 @ 02:11 PM EDT (#88717) #
The lack of support this city shows for so-called ‘lower echelon’ sports like junior hockey, amateur baseball or even the Argos is regrettable, and an indicator of the city’s tendency towards insecurity.

I just think it shows that people in Toronto don't like sports overly much. No shame in that. Anyone who grew up in Toronto at the same time I did, when the Leafs were a Ballard-era joke, the Argos were regularly going 3-13, and the Blue Jays were a bunch of chokers (and basketball was something played in other countries by guys in tight little shorts) wouldn't naturally have much interest in sports either.

Ironically, one of the things that makes Toronto just a fair "sports town" is that it is a world-class city, and has awesome music and cinemas and theatre and a thousand niche pursuits catered to and a diverse, interesting population. Unless you're a true obsessive, why bother with sports when you have all that to choose from? Music, for example, is about having fun and letting loose. Being a professional sports fan is about suffering. I know which sounds better to me.
Dave Till - Thursday, October 09 2003 @ 10:56 AM EDT (#88718) #
In front of their three biggest crowds of the year, they've been absolutely smoked. I think if they'd performed in those games, they would have gotten at least a small bump the rest of the way.

I seem to recall that they've had this kind of luck for years.

For many people I talk to, the Blue Jays are a "been there, done that" phenomenon. Jays fans were a bit spoiled, or perhaps sated, by the 1983-1993 years. Most baseball fans get to enjoy a close pennant race once every few years or so, at most, whereas the Jays were in tight races in 1985, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, and 1993, with winner-take-all end-of-season series in at least three of those years.

I also agree with Craig B's comment that Toronto has a lot to offer besides sports.
robertdudek - Thursday, October 09 2003 @ 11:03 AM EDT (#88719) #
The fans will return. I'm betting on 2 million plus for next year. I think many people now understand what the GM is doing and the results on the field have been encouraging.
Thomas - Thursday, October 09 2003 @ 03:08 PM EDT (#88720) #
Great job with the interview and thanks a lot to Mike for speaking his mind and giving us his honest assessment of the 2003 Jays. It's great to see someone in the broadcast booth who understands and is on board with the plan for the Jays. Especially after having to listen to McCarver and Buck or Morgan and Miller talk about the "Yankee Mystique" and "how the A's just aren't built to win in the postseason."

I think that there will be a significant attendance increase next year, but I don't really see it being substantially over 2 million. If we are looking at another offseason with relatively minor signings, many casual fans will be discouraged seeing Maddux, Tejada, Guerrero and so forth leave for other cities. This will be compounded if Escobar signs elsewhere, and when it's combined with the NHL season, we'll inevitably see small crowds at the Dome for the first month or so. The big difference will be the fact we have an easier schedule the first month, hopefully (I believe we open against the Tigers), and that will lead to greater success at the beginning of the season, which might attract more casual fans in the summer. Although, to be fair there wasn't a great increase this year during our two hot months. Regardless, I expect a small improvement, as more people begin to understand the philsoophy of the team, especially if we are looking at a slightly improved tclub that will about 90 games.
An interview with Mike Wilner - Part 2 | 15 comments | Create New Account
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