Courtesy of Jim Edmonds
For 17 years, Jim Edmonds patrolled big league ballparks as one of the best center fielders of his generation. Now, Edmonds is well into his second career in baseball. The former Cardinal is entering his fifth season in the broadcast booth as an analyst for Fox Sports Midwest, though he acknowledges this summer will be unlike any that came before it, at the plate or in the booth.
Edmonds recently chatted with St. Louis Magazine about broadcasting during a pandemic, the upcoming season, and his own experience dealing with COVID-19.
Let’s start with the broadcast side. What will it be like for you to call games this season, given all the new rules and regulations? It’s going to be really interesting. With all the new rules put in place, I’m sure that everything is going to be a little chaotic at first. The broadcasters aren’t going to go on the road. We’re going to try and do it from home, based in a studio. They put a lot of restrictions on what we can do at the stadium, as far as where we can go and how much area we can cover. So basically everyone’s going to have to stay in their area. That’s going to be quite interesting, I think. We’re used to walking around, talking to people and getting information. I think that’s going to be really restricted also.
As an analyst, a big part of your role involves being able to see the game from your vantage point above the field and explain all the little details that often go unnoticed. How will that work for road games when you’re working from a studio? The way I understand it now is they’re going to do as much as they can to give us plenty of TVs and coverage of the stadium. But it’s definitely not going to be the same as being able to sit up there and actually watch the game, because I get a lot from watching the game live and not on my monitor. So it’s going to be a different challenge for me.
What kind of effect will the empty ballparks have on players? I look at it in two ways. I think it’s going to be weird, especially being on defense and it being totally quiet out there. Then, on the other hand, you’re a professional, and when you step out in between the white lines, you’re going to turn it up, regardless. We’ve all played some games in spring training on the back fields when no one’s around and you pick it up a notch when it’s game time. I don’t think they’ll have any problem. It’ll just be a little awkward at first.
Looking at the Cardinals, which storylines are you most eager to follow in a 60-game season? A couple of spots [are up for grabs], including the closer situation. You have to figure out who’s going to be the closer because this is going to be a sprint and you don’t have time for guys to settle into roles. Then, I think the left field situation is going to be interesting. I think Tyler O’Neill is ready to have a breakout season. You also have guys like Lane Thomas and Dylan Carlson. I feel like the way this season is going to be played, it’s going to be about riding the hot hand. Whoever is doing well, I think they’re going to stay in the lineup until they start to struggle because every game is going to be important from Day 1.
I know you had a bout with COVID-19 earlier this spring. First of all, how are you feeling these days, and what would you want people to know about the experience of dealing with the virus? I’m doing good. I had it a long time ago. I don’t know how long I had it for. It turned into pneumonia. I didn’t feel terrible until about a week into it, then I had three really tough nights. All of a sudden, I kicked it, it turned around and the pneumonia went away. It’s something to be taken seriously. … I think you just do the best you can for your family, try to be respectful and wear a mask and, like I said, it’s no joke. If you have anyone in the high-risk category, be careful.
It seemed like at least a little bit of good came out of that experience, in that you were able to donate plasma after you recovered. How did that opportunity come about? Something that I really enjoy is being able to give back, especially in that type of scenario. I heard about it through some friends, so I did some investigating with the doctors. They gave me the criteria I had to follow, and when the window opened, they got me in there. It was maybe an hour out of my day. I sat there, they took the blood out, mixed the plasma up, then they put the blood back in. I actually enjoyed it. It was fulfilling for me and something I did where I was able to help people. I believe that they told me that, with the amount that I gave, I was able to help four people.
