A Sunday baseball matinee on ESPN could be the ideal background for a lazy afternoon on the couch that might develop into a nap. Especially if you’re coming off an Easter brunch. (But maybe you’re a bit more tuned in since it’s the first Sunday of the 2018 Major League Baseball season and the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets are playing.)
If you were drifting off to napland, perhaps you thought might be dreaming of how fun it might be for Jim Brockmire (the golden-voiced, debaucherous baseball broadcaster played by Hank Azaria on IFC’s comedy series) to sit in on the ESPN broadcast and call an inning or two.
But if you heard Jim Brockmire on Sunday afternoon, it wasn’t a dream. Fresh off the announcement of Brockmire being renewed for two more seasons and in anticipation of Season 2’s April 25 premiere, the third inning of the Cardinals-Mets telecast did indeed feature the former voice of the Morristown Frackers, joining Karl Ravech, Tim Kurkjian (who appeared on Season 1 of Brockmire) and Eduardo Perez.
Asked to revive some of the more obscure calls from his days in Kansas City (before his legendary on-air meltdown following the discovery of his wife’s infidelity), Brockmire did not disappoint:
Let’s hope no one tries to use that “Maria Conchita A-gone-zo” call while narrating baseball highlights. We’ll know where you got it from, and we’ll know you’re trying too hard.
Some more vintage Brockmire calls soon followed:
“That ball cannot be buried in a Jewish cemetery, because it just got tattooed” is a Brockmire classic. It was nice to see ol’ Jim back in the majors, even if it was only for one inning.
Prior to getting into character and donning Brockmire’s signature red plaid blazer, Azaria — a huge Mets fan — met up with new Mets manager Mickey Callaway.
https://twitter.com/freifeld10/status/980479383264808961
Did Brockmire offer some sage wisdom on Matt Harvey’s New York escapades or Noah Syndergaard’s desire to bulk up like his Norse god namesake, Thor? Or was Azaria just enjoying some behind-the-scenes fandom? We may never know.
Brockmire premieres on IFC April 25. Until then, keep it Brockmire.
