The baseball broadcaster in the industry for decades advises the younger generation to find an audience

Aug. 15 — The “Voice of Yankee Stadium” for more than 15 years was the voice of Gonzaga University Thursday night as Paul Olden recalled his years as the name behind the broadcast announcements for the Spokane Indians and Yankees.

Before his official career as a baseball broadcaster, Olden worked for the Dodgers handing out programs, but he was interested in broadcasting from an early age.

After handing over the money he collected, he would practice the announcement, Olden explained at a Northwest Passages/The Black Lens event Thursday.

He was interviewed by The Black Lens interim editor April Eberhardt and Spokesman-Review executive editor Rob Curley.

After years of trying to find his way in the industry and sending out audition tapes to a variety of baseball teams, including the White Sox, Olden came to Spokane at age 26 to broadcast for the Indians after accidentally sent a box intended for a hiring manager. in Portland.

The tape addressed to the director in Spokane went to someone in Portland.

While the Portland director tossed the tape, the Spokane director decided to give it a shot, so Olden moved north with excitement for the snowy winters and the opportunity to work with the baseball team. He hadn’t heard much about the city before he moved, but he knew it must have been good because some of his favorite Dodgers players came through Spokane.

As a baseball game broadcaster, he creates scenarios where he can fill in the blanks, he said. One of his most memorable moments was when a player hit a milestone hit, and Olden was the only broadcaster who didn’t have a generic call for the home run.

In the offseason, he worked for KXLY, where he began his television career covering sports, weather and other topics the station needed.

“I pride myself on being versatile,” Olden said.

He knew he wanted to be involved in baseball broadcasting and didn’t have a backup plan, although it’s unusual for 15-year-olds to know what they want to do in life.

But Olden said that when a person finds something they’re passionate about, it’s easy to stick with it for years, or decades in his case.

Olden is now 70 years old, and despite being in the broadcasting industry for so long, he still loves baseball as much as he did when he first started.

“My relationship with the game is still very strong,” he said.

But Olden also advises young people entering a new career to learn to write and not take no for an answer, noting that it’s now easier to be viewed via YouTube or TikTok.

“If you can build an audience, someone will pay attention and pay you,” he said.