- [Dempster] All right guys. Here we are, Inside the Friendly Confines,
and we're going to take a stroll around the bases with radio voice for the Cubs,
Ron Coomer. Ron, man, thanks for coming on.
- [Coomer] Absolutely Ryan, for sure.
- This is a blast. So we'll just stroll around, catch up. How's life?
- Couldn't be much better. The World Series champs, I'm calling games at
Wrigley. It's my home town team, pretty good.
- Yeah and what a great feeling too to be able to play here, be a Cub,
and then to come back, for somebody that has this such a special feeling for the
Chicago Cubs and then sit there and watch a game every day and call it.
How great is that?
- It's as good as it gets really. I mean you know for all of us who've played
a long time and you struggle to get to the big leagues and you get here,
and you just know how hard it is to be in the big leagues as a player and now as a
broadcaster, and now to be able to get kind of the best of all of it.
To play here and now broadcast with Pat day in and day out.
We got a great team, World Series champs, I mean this is pretty,
pretty good.
- And speaking of working with Pat, like I mean this guy you know,
Hall of Fame broadcaster, just an amazing man, so knowledgeable.
You guys, I listen to you guys so much. Don't tell Len and Jim but I listen to
you guys more than I watch them. So just to hear you guys, you have tremendous
chemistry up there, how much fun is it working with him?
- Awesome. Pat, I've learned so much in four years of working with Pat,
of his professionalism and his generosity, I guess is the right way,
maybe the right way to put it, of air time because as you know,
there's a lot of egos and a lot of stuff in our business. Pat has,
he checks it at the door everyday. He just wants the best broadcast to come out.
And he has been a phenomenal partner in the booth for me, yeah.
- Yeah. So as a player when you were here, we're walking our way from second base
over the hot corner.
- Yeah, right.
- There's got...I know you know you got a ton of great memories here.
Something that you can share with us whether it was, you know,
a third base coach saying something, a fan saying something over there,
or a moment where you're like, "Oh my god, this is hilarious,"
or, "What a great play," something that, you know,
that you just bring back from third base where...
- The first day I ever played in Wrigley field. I was a twin so I hadn't come to
the Cubs yet and I remember standing here for the first pitch.
So I came out and I just went...I had to look around and go, "Wow,
we're in Wrigley now. This is cool." And then that same day, Harry sang and I just
stood here. I remember, I was standing right here by the bag and the third base
coach comes and I just...No balls in between, what the heck, I'm not doing
that. You know, my arm's warming up. I just stand here and watch Harry sing,
and I thought, "We're good now. We're good."
- Life is good.
- Yeah. That's awesome. And then to get a chance to come here and be a Cub,
put that uniform on. Man, how lucky, how blessed.
- Yeah, it is. I was a free agent for three hours, three whole hours.
- It was an easy decision.
- My dad just told me, I called him when the contract came to the house the first
morning of free agency. He said, "Don't screw this up." And I didn't.
I signed the next day.
- Smart advice and a smart man for taking it.
- Yeah, absolutely, yup.
- And last year obviously, winning the World Series, we were just talking about
that. What an amazing moment and going through that parade and driving around
through the city. Tell us a little bit, just to, you know, quickly
what that was like, how awesome that was.
- Very different. You know, for you, you played in the World Series.
I didn't. So we didn't get that opportunity. I played here and you wanted
to bring that to our city as a Cub, didn't get to do that. So I never imagined
calling the World Series. And so to call a game with Pat, call the World Series and
then call Game 7, I was nervous as hell before the game. I really was.
I'm like, "Wow, this is Game 7. Don't screw this up," like my dad,
"Don't screw this up," right? And I just remember them going into the final half
inning after we'd taken the lead again and just taking roll call for myself
without saying anything, just saying, "Okay, this is going to be our moment,"
for the Cubs and it was. And it was just, it was pretty surreal.
- Well I was glad to share a hug with you after that game.
- Yeah, a little champagne.
- Yeah, I'm glad to take a walk around the bases right here with Ron Coomer guys,
Inside the Friendly Confines.