From the Beach to the Booth
Several ESPN broadcasters got their career jump-started at the Cape Cod Baseball League in Massachusetts. As SportsCenter’s “50 States in 50 Days” splashes down in Chatham today, a few ESPN play-by-play commentators shared memories of the fertile training ground for players and media alike.
Teenagers’ summer jobs often have one key thing in common: they’re temporary.
But what happens when the temp job leads to your dream job and goes from a shrewd way to avoid real work to an ACTUAL, sustainable career? Well, that’s what happened for four former Cape Cod Baseball League interns who now wear headsets while calling some of the biggest sporting events in the nation.
ESPN commentators Drew Carter (Chatham, 2017); Mike Couzens (Falmouth, 2008-09); Kevin Fitzgerald (Orleans, 2012-13) and Mike Monaco (Wareham, 2013-14) all spent time calling games from the shores of the Cape before landing at ESPN. Here’s a look at how those experiences shaped their careers and lives:
Mike Couzens, Multiple Sports, Play-by-Play, joined ESPN in 2012
“It taught me that the people we cover in any sport are human beings first; the audience I was broadcasting to in 2008 and 2009 was almost exclusively family and friends, and it helped me shape how to celebrate athletes when things are going well while being empathetic when they aren’t. The Cape League also gave me my foundation for what I do today – trying to paint the most accurate description of a game while being informative, educational and perhaps even entertaining.”
Kevin Fitzgerald, College Sports Play-by-Play, joined ESPN in 2016
“I spent two of the best summers of my life calling games for the Orleans Firebirds in the Cape League. The hands-on experience is invaluable, and in my eyes, it goes much further than just calling every game and being the ‘voices’ of a team – we learned how to format a broadcast, how to run a show, how to interview, how to create fun content. You can make mistakes and try new things, and that alone is a powerful concept for a young broadcaster trying to find their style and voice.
“I think the Cape provides young broadcasters a truly empowering opportunity to learn and grow. We had a blast. And, oh, by the way, being 10 minutes from the beach on off days is a nice perk as well!”
Mike Monaco, Multiple Sports, Play-by-Play, joined ESPN in 2019
“The Cape League was crucial in preparing me for my career. It was the first time I regularly called play-by-play. It helped me go from practically whispering on the air without any confidence to learning how to be around a team every day and tell those stories on air. I’m forever indebted to the amazing people of the Wareham Gatemen.”
Drew Carter, Play-by-Play and studio host, joined ESPN in 2021
“Looking back on my time in the Cape League, the first thing I learned was that I needed to do something different with my hair. Beyond that, I felt like I was learning how to be a pro while still a college student, covering players who were doing the same. I absorbed a ton of valuable lessons from the guy who hired me, Dan D’Uva — the radio voice of the Vegas Golden Knights and a godfather of Cape League broadcasting. It was like taking the best sports broadcasting class available in the summer (or anytime), but instead of a classroom, we were in a Rockwell painting. I’ve never been to Heaven, but I imagine it looks something like Chatham. That summer had and still has an immense impact on my life — D’Uva’s still a mentor and close friend, my broadcast partner Max Herz is one of my best buddies and my parents moved to the Cape full-time a few years ago, partially thanks to the memories we made in 2017. I owe the CCBL a lot. Go A’s.”
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