Expect to hear a lot of wacky stories and Grateful Dead references when NBA Hall of Famer Bill Walton calls a baseball game between the Chicago White Sox and the Los Angeles Angels next week.
“Doing a game with Bill Walton is a gift,” said White Sox announcer Jason Benetti, who will join Walton in the booth August 16 at Angel Stadium. “His mind is a playground, an orchestra and a volcano all rolled into one. It is impossible to think of someone who takes the audience and his broadcast partner on more of a journey through the world, and to have that next to me is an honor and a treat.”
Walton, 66, is one of the most colorful broadcasters in sports, and he is known for his antics and odd stories. He was named by the American Sportscasters Association as one of the top 50 sports broadcasters of all time in 2009.
He was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers with the No. 1 overall pick in 1974, and he won a championship with the Trail Blazers and another with the Boston Celtics. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993.
Walton is replacing Benetti’s partner, Steve Stone, who is taking a few games off.
“Anyway, take me out to the ballgame, put me in Coach, I’m ready to play today,” Walton said. “California, preaching on the burning shore, California, knock, knockin’ on the golden door. Please, where is the game, what time does it start, who’s playing, what sport is it, and what’s your name again? Give me a chord, and I’m on my way. I hope the noise in my head is not bothering you.”
Though this will be the first time that Walton has called an MLB game, he is no stranger to the sport. He was a special guest for the San Diego Padres’ Grateful Dead tribute night on Thursday at Petco Park, and he threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
Two, actually, since the first try was so bad that he was given another chance.
Afterward, Walton stuck around for the lineup card exchange and caused a game delay when he decided to chat it up with the managers and umpires.
