The following is an excerpt from Major League Mindset:  Elevate Your Baseball Play-by-Play.

“When I was broadcasting minor league baseball, one of my colleagues who broadcasted for a losing team used to have a running joke when describing many of his broadcasts. He used to say, “You know, before the game starts, my scoresheet is like a beautiful painting, so neat and clean. By the time the second inning rolls around, the team has crapped all over the canvas.” ”

Announcing for a losing team can be frustrating and challenging.  In 2003, I had the pleasure of broadcasting the Detroit Tigers, a club that lost 119 games.  That club started the season 0-9 and had it not won five of its last six games, it was headed for the most loses in major league history.  The New York Mets lost 120 games in 1962 and the Tigers were breathing down their necks before showing a late season pulse.

I am often asked how in the world I got through that season as a broadcaster.  The truth is, it really didn’t affect how we performed in the booth all that much.  In fact, it probably made me a better broadcaster.

When your team is down 3-0 before it gets its first at-bat on a nightly basis, it certainly becomes a challenge to make it interesting and keep your credibility.  You have to be careful not to make excuses for the team while at the same time telling it like it is and keep fans engaged.  It’s a tricky juggling act.

The approach I took was to view each game as a clean slate, but as my colleague in the excerpt above indicated, the slate usually got very messy by the 2nd inning.  Yet, as a broadcaster, losing challenges you to find ways to keep the broadcast flowing and interesting.  Anyone can make a cleanly-played, fast-paced game sound good.  It’s the four-hour, 10-0 clunkers that test your mettle.  These games afford you the opportunity to search beyond the play-by-play and dig for storylines that can keep viewers or listeners engaged.

Don’t think of a losing team as a handicap to your broadcasts.  Instead, look at it as an opportunity expand your skills and find a way to make it engaging.  Every team has untold stories and going the extra inch to cultivate them by forming relationships with the players and coaches can go a long way toward making it through a losing season.