Chicago Cubs: Getting to know Tennessee Smokies broadcaster Mick Gillispie

Chicago Cubs: Where did your love for baseball begin?

We all have a love affair with the game. For some, it’s a late-dawning relationship as we grow older and understand the subtle intricacies that make it so beautiful. For others, like Gillispie, it’s a lifelong relationship – one full of highs and lows and a tremendous amount of emotion.

"It’s hard to pinpoint when I fell in love with baseball. I can’t remember a time when it wasn’t the focus of my attention. My father grew up in Baltimore in the late 60s and early 70s when the Orioles were great. He talked about Brooks & Frank Robinson, Boog Powell and Jim Palmer all the time. I remember him reliving the 1971 pitching staff that had four 20-game winners. The first major league game I attended was at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. We were pretty much poor, but back then on Sunday’s tickets to the right-field bleachers were one dollar. Those were the games we attended. The players were larger than life, like Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken."

Hearing these stories from Mick helped to bring back my memories in growing up and finding my love for baseball. Like him, it was my family who was a considerable influence as my grandfather used to sit me on his knee. We visited them, and he would make me watch Cubs games with him.

We both played in pick-up games growing up, as well. Living in a neighborhood with a front yard, I used to go out and play games with my friends. On days nobody could play I would put flour in a ziplock bag and pretend it was a rosin bag, before playing my own imaginary game for hours.