For ESPN announcers on MLB's Korea series, pandemic memories come flooding back

It was just four years ago, but it feels like a lifetime ago.

It was the time of the coronavirus pandemic, a period that changed our lives forever.

We were introduced to Zoom. We discovered that office space was no longer a necessity, but a luxury. We re-examined our priorities. We took time to appreciate the beauty of the outdoors.

We also were reminded how much sports means to all of us.

When Karl Ravech and Eduardo Perez step into the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, South Korea on Wednesday [6 a.m. ET, ESPN] for the first time to broadcast the 2024 season-opener between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, the sheer and raw emotions of their 2020 experience could completely overwhelm them.

“I’m sure walking into the stadium, seeing some of the same faces, the cheerleaders at the ballpark," Ravech tells USA TODAY Sports, “it’s going to hit us. I think there will be an emotional reaction coming here and remembering just what transpired.

“It wasn’t an enjoyable time. There were people desperately looking for food, Kleenex, toilet paper. It was tragic. You’re wondering, when does this end. Will the pandemic ever end?’’

Says Perez, on a Facetime call from his hotel room in Seoul: “Just being here, remembering what happened then, it’s just so surreal."

Ravech and Perez were the ones who brought baseball back into our homes beginning May 5, 2020, after being without Major League games in the month April for the first time since 1883. Televising games from the Korean Baseball League was the brainstorm of Phil Orlins, ESPN vice president of production, and MLB producer Andy Jacobson.

Sure, no one ever heard of the teams from the KBO. No one knew any of the Korean players.

They weren’t in anyone’s fantasy leagues.

But hey, the mound was still 60 feet and 6 inches from home plate. The bases were 90 feet apart. And, no matter that it was being played halfway across the world, it was still baseball.

“It was an amazing time with no live sports out there," Orlins said. “So, it literally was like, 'Let’s figure out a way to bring live sports to a place, ESPN, that is built around live sports.’ And from there, it really became a question of how do we make this reasonably entertaining and how do we approach it from like a talk radio or podcast aspect to it."

Really, it took Perez and Ravech a while just to wrap their heads around the idea of trying to broadcast games when they’re more than 7,000 miles away from the action.

“I remember Phil called me and told me and said we’re going to do the KBO," Perez says.

“I told him, 'Phil, there’s a two-week quarantine over here. I’ve got to take my family there. They’ve got to come with me."

Orlins quickly interjected. He and Ravech aren’t going anywhere. They would install video equipment at their homes. They would watch the KBO on TV screens in their house, and they would broadcast the games as if they were there.

They were required to get up at 3:30 in the morning, set up the equipment, and then go on the air at 5:30, three days a week.

Ravech did the entire season from his Bristol, Connecticut, bedroom, with his wife, Christine, who was still asleep, but still got up to make sure Ravech stayed alert with fresh cups of coffee.

Perez did the games from his Miami garage where he had just built a studio, with his dog, Mickey, by his side.

“I’ll be honest,’’ Ravech says, “I never thought there would be something like COVID. I never thought we’d be broadcasting baseball games from our houses. I never thought we’d be broadcasting games from Korea. It was crazy."

Still, they had fun, and were entertaining bringing on special guests from everyone from Perez’s high-school geography teacher to the cheerleaders at the games. And, oh, did they ever learn to improvise.

It was the first week of games when the original scheduled game was rained out, forcing Ravech and Perez to scramble, knowing they knew nothing about the teams they were about to cover.

“We didn’t know the two teams we were doing let along the two teams we haven’t studied," Ravech says. “So, I found the teams on the internet, printed out the rosters walk back from the headphone, and hear Eduardo welcoming KBO from ESPN.

“I didn’t know if he was rehearing or was live. I missed the welcome. I thought the game started at 5:30, not 5:25. I couldn’t believe it.

“I mean, you can’t make this stuff up."

The Major League Baseball season, shut down in spring training on March 12, finally started four months later on July 23 with a condensed 60-game schedule. Even with baseball back, Perez and Ravech lobbied to broadcast Korean Series in November, volunteering to travel to Korea to do the games in person.

The travel proposal was nixed, but when ESPN got the rights to televise 2024's opening two-game series in South Korea, it was an easy decision on who to send: Ravech and Perez.

Four years later, here they are broadcasting games again from South Korea, only this time, in person, and major-league games that count in the regular season.

“It was 100% therapeutic to do those games,’’ Perez says. “We had a purpose in getting up. As hard as COVID was for the entire country, I was blessed to do this, bringing baseball into households.

“Korea kept me sane, it kept me going.’’

Ravech is clinging onto the first home life equipment kit ESPN ever used for the remote telecasts. It remains in his office: HLE kit, 0001.

“I don’t want to ever give it back," Ravech says. “I’m hanging onto it. Maybe one day, it’ll be in someone’s museum."

Together, Ravech and Perez will reunite with Daniel Kim, ESPN’s KBO analyst, cheerleaders from the KBO games, mascots, and a female disc jockey who wrote songs for their broadcasts.

“Having Daniel Kim in Korea, he not only gave us instant credibility,’’ Ravech says, “but he introduced us to so many people in South Korea. They were so open to letting us introduce themselves into our own world, and a different side of Seoul."

It was never about the ratings, Orlins and Jacobson said. It was never about trying to make the KBO players into household names. It was simply a form of entertainment, allowing everyone a momentary reprieve from the cruelty of the pandemic.

“It was a crazy time, we knew the fan base was craving live sports, just something to follow,’’ Jacobson says. “We attacked those sports shows almost like we’re doing a spring training game. The game is there as a back-drop, and we certainly didn’t expect viewers to all of a sudden know the players and just publicly become consumed by it.

“The goal was to watch some baseball over a cup of coffee at whatever time in the morning that was, and just enjoy some sense of normalcy again."

It worked.

Sure, it wasn’t like you were listening to St. Louis Cardinals announcer Jack Buck on summer evenings on KMOX, or Vin Scully on Dodgers’ games throughout Southern California, but during all of the fear, anxiety and heartbreak of the pandemic, it was soothing.

“Baseball is not just a sport, baseball is part of the fabric of people’s lives,’’ Ravech says. “It’s such a routine during the summer. Even though you’re not always paying close attention, you want to hear the sound, the voices, night after night. It’s reassuring.

“All of that was taken away."

The Korean Baseball games on ESPN at least dulled the pain, brought some enjoyment, and everyone who got up early can say they saw Padres shortstop Ha-Seong Kim play before becoming a star in San Diego, along with a first look at new San Francisco Giants outfielder Jung Hoo Lee.

“We have such immense amount of gratitude to everyone there,’’ Ravech says. “They brought joy into our lives. Now, four years later, we get to thank them in person.

“It’s going to be special.’’

Around the basepaths

The Houston Astros, who exchanged contract proposals this week for two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell, now appear to be long-shots to sign him. They have balked at Snell’s asking price of at least a two-year guarantee for $60 million, including an opt-out after the 2024 season. The Astros’ biggest concern is that they will be over another luxury tax threshold if they pay Snell close to $30 million annually.

They have a projected luxury payroll of $256.828 million, according to Cot’s Contracts, and will eclipse the second tax threshold of $277 million (45% surcharge) if they sign Snell to a contract exceeding $20 million a year.

The San Francisco Giants are now looming as the favorites for Snell, who have been engaged, but were also waiting for the price-tag to drop.

≻ The San Diego Padres and outfielder Tommy Pham are in talks, and could be moving closer to reuniting on a one-year, $3 million to $4 million deal. Pham earned $8 million last season, including incentives, while helping lead the Arizona Diamondbacks to the World Series. He played for the Padres in 2020 and 2021.

The Chicago White Sox also have interest in Pham if his potential deal with the Padres hits a snag.

≻ Yankees ace Gerrit Cole was informed that he’ll be out 10-12 weeks with his sore elbow, and the best-case scenario is that he could rejoin the starting rotation in early June. He’s not expected to pick up a baseball for the next 3-4 weeks and will then be re-examined by doctors.

This will be the first time since 2005 that neither of the defending Cy Young award winners will be pitching opening day with Cole sidelined and Blake Snell still unsigned.

≻ Agent Seth Levinson says that veteran free-agent starter Mike Clevinger is seeking only a one-year contract with opening day less than two weeks away.

≻ Seven-time All-Star and MVP Sammy Sosa, who wants to reconcile with the Chicago Cubs, visited Chicago this past week for the first time in 17 years, did an autograph show in Rosemont, Illinois, and did interviews at philanthropist Stewart McVicar’s Club 400 home in Lake in the Hills, Illinois.

Sosa may never be invited to Cooperstown, but would love one day to be in the Cubs’ Hall of Fame where he richly belongs.

“He misses the game,’’ McVicar says, “but he misses the fans more.’’

≻ So, what was more impressive? Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani sleeping 11 of the 12 ½ hour flight to South Korea or new Padres pitcher Dylan Cease scrambling to find his passport, packing up all of his belongings at his Phoenix rental condo, shipping his car to San Diego, going to the Padres complex to workout, and then flying to Los Angeles and then to Seoul, South Korea to meet his new teammates?

≻ The Kansas City Royals finally forgave GM John Schuerholz for leaving the organization for Atlanta, and announced that he will be inducted into their team Hall of Fame this summer with Bo Jackson and former GM Cedric Tallis.

Schuerholz, 83, who was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2017, led the Royals to the 1985 World Series championship before moving to Atlanta in 1990 and guiding that franchise to 14 consecutive division titles.

≻ Classy for Jackson to publicly thank legendary scout Art Stewart for making his baseball career possible when they drafted him after winning the Heisman Trophy.

“Art was the first person that I thought about," Jackson said on a zoom call with Kansas City reporters, “because he took a chance on me. When everybody else was saying, ‘No, he’s not going to do this,’ Art knew. Art took a chance on me, and to this day I honor that man. …

“Without Art Stewart, there wouldn’t be a relationship between myself and the Kansas City Royals. So, thank you, Art Stewart.”

≻ The Dodgers’ massive appeal with the signings of Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto is reflected by the fact that the average ticket price to see their home opener against the St. Louis Cardinals is $533, according to StubHub.

≻ It cost him about $3 million, but third baseman J.D. Davis at least got an everyday job by signing a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Oakland Athletics after being released by San the Francisco Giants.

Davis, 30, was expendable when the Giants signed third baseman Matt Chapman to a three-year, $54 million contract. Davis was scheduled to receive a $6.9 million salary after winning his arbitration case against the Giants, but instead was left with just $1.112 million in termination pay to go along with his new A’s contract.

He was a victim of baseball’s collective bargaining agreement that guarantees contracts for arbitration-eligible players, but not for salaries decided by an arbitrator.

Certainly, it was eye-opening, and a cruel reminder for players who opt to go through the arbitration process next season.

≻ The Yankees have not re-engaged in talks for Snell, and instead have expressed interest in signing free-agent starter Michael Lorenzen.

≻ Fabulous gesture by Cubs reliever Hector Neris, who took 70 Latino minor leaguers, along with teammates Adbert Alzolay and Daniel Palencia, to eat at a local Dominican restaurant, paying for the entire tab.

≻ Texas Rangers manager Bruce Bochy is optimistic now that World Series MVP Corey Seager and third baseman Josh Jung will be ready by opening day, despite not having played any spring-training games.

Seager, who underwent sports hernia surgery on Jan. 30, will start facing live pitching early this week. Jung, who sustained a calf injury in February, just started facing live pitching.

≻ Angels outfield prospect Nelson Rada, 18, is opening eyes this spring with several officials believing he could be a perennial All-Star. He’s already a Gold Glove outfielder, and stole 55 bases last season, and now just needs experience. He could be in the big leagues by 2026.

≻ Dodgers prized outfield prospect Andy Pages, who missed most of the 2023 season with shoulder surgery, has impressed scouts this spring and could join the Dodgers sometime this summer.

≻ The Angels, who have had a tough history with free-agents, now will open the season without reliever Robert Stephenson, who has had a sore shoulder all spring. Stephenson, who signed a three-year, $33-million contract in January, was expected to be the main setup reliever for closer Carlos Estevez.

≻ The Mets plan to fully to jump into the free-agent market next winter with the likes of Juan Soto, Alex Bregman, Max Fried, Corbin Burnes and Walker Buehler available. Yet, rival teams still believe that All-Star first baseman Pete Alonso won’t be retained, and could be available at the July 30 trade deadline.

≻ Angels outfielder Jake Marisnick, 32, has had a terrific spring but still is highly unlikely to break camp with the Angels expecting to keep Jo Adell and Mickey Moniak. Marisnick has an opt-out on March 20, which could intrigue teams.

≻ If the Dodgers get leery about the Mookie Betts’ ability to play shortstop, after not playing the position on an everyday basis since high school, they plan to turn to the Milwaukee Brewers and make a run at shortstop Willy Adames, who’s a free agent after the season.

≻ The Oakland A’s may not be a .500 team, like manager Mark Kotsay projects, but scouts agree that they’ll be much better than their 50-112 record of a year ago.

≻ Scouts keep waiting for Cincinnati Reds young starter Hunter Greene to develop consistent off-speed pitchers to become an elite starter and live up to the hype. He still relies too often on his 102-mph fastball, particularly when he gets in trouble.

≻ Scouts have been enamored by the rising progress of shortstop Jackson Merrill, who has played only 46 games above Class A, none in Triple-A, and now will be the Padres’ opening-day center fielder. He has shown tremendous discipline at the plate, just putting the ball into play. He’ll be just the third center fielder to start on opening day before the age of 21 in baseball history, joining Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. (1990) and Andruw Jones (1998).

≻ Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo, on hearing that the Padres acquired Chicago White Sox ace Dylan Cease:

“I wish the best players would quit coming to the NL West.’’

The D-backs spent $136.5 million in free-agency this season, but they were dwarfed by the Dodgers ($1.087 billion) and the Giants ($261.25 million).

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: MLB's Seoul Series brings back COVID memories for ESPN announcers