Oakland A's Games Broadcasted on High School Station

[Cincinnati Kid]

This would go back perhaps into the 1980's or so, but I remember reading an article that at the start of one season, no commercial radio station chose to broadcast the Oakland Athletics games. As a result, at least for a part of that season, a low-power FM, high school station was originating the broadcasts. Does anyone recall this that can provide the story? Thanks.

 

[pard]

Cal's radio station KALX carried the A's for part of one season (don't remember which) in the 70s. 10 watts at the time, you couldn't get the broadcast at the stadium.

 

[BossRadioDJ]

Cal's radio station KALX carried the A's for part of one season (don't remember which) in the 70s. 10 watts at the time, you couldn't get the broadcast at the stadium.

From the KALX website (http://kalx.berkeley.edu/history.htm):

In April of 1978 KALX became the first college station in the world to act as a flagship for a major-league sports franchise. Larry Baer (now a VP with the San Francisco Giants) and Bob Kozberg broadcast the Oakland A's opening game from Anaheim...

By May of that year, A's owner [Charles O. Finley] had found a commercial station to take on the broadcasts, and KALX bid farewell to the A's. It was an exciting time, running the board in the studio and answering the phone calls of irate A's fans who couldn't pick up our 10-watt signal in Oakland!


DJ

 

[djj]

Starting in late May/early June, when the A's actually got off to a hot
start before cooloing off badly in mid-June (they had made a several-
player trade earlier with the Giants for Vida Blue), the A's new radio home
became KNEW 910, with old pro Bud Foster (before he retired at the old
AM 1230 in Redding) partnered with ex-St Louis Cardinal Curt Flood...

A most interesting duo, I must say. Lon Simmons and Russ Hodges they
weren't, although I understand Foster in his Oakland Oaks (PCL) prime
was great...

In 1979, Red Rush and Hal Ramey took over, then in 1980 Red Rush and
Dom Valentino (ex-Yankees announcer, I believe) on KDIA, before our
beloved Bill King and Simmons took over in 1981 at KSFO...

It was sad in 1978 - I couldn't receive the 10-watt KALX in Vallejo, so
I heard no A's games until the KNEW transition...
--jay

 

[Cincinnati Kid]

In 1979, Red Rush and Hal Ramey took over, then in 1980 Red Rush and
Dom Valentino (ex-Yankees announcer, I believe) on KDIA, before our
beloved Bill King and Simmons took over in 1981 at KSFO...

I wonder if this is the same Red Rush who previously did Loyola of Chicago basketball and White Sox games on WMAQ? Dom Valentio did the Cincinnati Royals (now Sacremento Kings) games in the last three years the franchise was here. He was friends with Bob Cousy who had become the Royals coach.

 

[pard]

Undoubtedly the same Red Rush. Charlie Finley lived in suburban Chicago (Indiana) and listened to Chicago baseball. He nicked players and broadcasters from both the Cubs and Sox. Billy North and Ken Holtzman to name just two players. Red Rush, Harry Carey and Bob Elson to name just three radio guys. Red Rush was a character. He was known for cliches such as "six, four, three sweet as it can be" to describe a short-to-second-to-first double play and on Warrior radio the amazing call "eyes it, tries it, BUYS it!" for successful free throws. Hank Greenwald did a great send up that with "shows it, throws it, blows it"! Sorry too much sporttalk.

 

[djj]

Don't apologize, pard...this is great!
Red Rush also had a fetish for saying "The Swingin' A's" and "How
SWEET IT IS!," the latter to borrow from 'The Great One,' Jackie
Gleason...or when I runner got thrown out trying to steal a base,
he refered to the runner as a "gone gosling!" (refering to the huge
crop of A's youngster in 1979, perhaps?)

I forgot all about Rush's basketball call: "eyes it, tries it, BUYS it!" til
you mentioned it.

P.S. - I did not know Hal Ramey, now at KCBS 740, did San Jose baseball
in the mid-1970s until I saw an old San Jose Missions scorecard guide on
eBay some months ago...
--jay

 

[BossRadioDJ]

Don't apologize, pard...this is great!

Okay, trivia hounds, what do the following three people have in common:

MC Hammer

Mrs. Fields

Jon Miller

Answer in my next post...

 

[BossRadioDJ]

What do the following three people have in common:

MC Hammer

Mrs. Fields

Jon Miller

All three were employed by Charlie Finley and the Oakland A's in 1974.

MC Hammer was batboy/clubhouse gadfly Stanley Kirk Burrell.

Mrs. Fields (of cookie fame) was then teenaged Debbie Sivyer, working as a "ball girl" down the foul lines at the Coliseum.

Jon Miller was a 22-year-old kid -- still with some hair -- fresh out of the Dan Odum School of Broadcasting (a/k/a the College of San Mateo) by way of KFTY-TV in Santa Rosa. His first big league job: working alongside Monte Moore on A's radio.

DJ

 

[Newname]

What do the following three people have in common:

MC Hammer

Mrs. Fields

Jon Miller

All three were employed by Charlie Finley and the Oakland A's in 1974.

MC Hammer was batboy/clubhouse gadfly Stanley Kirk Burrell.

Mrs. Fields (of cookie fame) was then teenaged Debbie Sivyer, working as a "ball girl" down the foul lines at the Coliseum.

Jon Miller was a 22-year-old kid -- still with some hair -- fresh out of the Dan Odum School of Broadcasting (a/k/a the College of San Mateo) by way of KFTY-TV in Santa Rosa. His first big league job: working alongside Monte Moore on A's radio.

DJ

If you look on YouTube, there's a clip of a KFTY newscast from 1972, including a few snatches of Miller doing sports...leading into a clip of one of his Oakland Seals NHL broadcasts(Finley owned the Seals, too...Miller later said his hockey career was short-lived due to 'mispronouncing the world "puck"!