San Francisco - Home Away From Home

I devote a whole chapter in my book (http://www.cuttingthegame.com/) to the great visitor's crew in San Francisco.
Tonight's telecast was a rare side-by-side show with a common result.
I know how successful our shows are in San Francisco when we are in a dual situation and I was excited to televise in San Francisco with a full show.
During the telecast tonight, I wanted to discover what it is that makes this TV crew so special.
I watched and I listened and I studied and I learned.
As I watched and I listened and I studied and I learned, I came to this conclusion:
1 - this crew loves what they do for a living.
2 - this crew loves the game of baseball.
3 - this crew LISTENS.
Therefore:
1 - this crew gets better and better and learns from every game/telecast.
2 - this crew respects the game and the players.
3 - this crew reacts better than other crews.
When I say this crew listens, I do not mean that they listen only to me. They do listen to me and they give me the shots that I ask them to give me.
However, they also listen to the announcers and react to the play-by-play and color analyst in a concise manner.
During a telecast, I am listening to the producer, the tape room, graphics, and the announcers.
I hear everything.
While I am directing a baseball game, I am constantly talking. While I am talking, I am listening.
The camera operators can hear me and the announcers.
During action, I may be in conversation with the producer about, let's say, a upcoming replay sequence or promotional item.
During this time, the camera operators are listening to the announcers and providing compelling shots. This helps me as the director because I am able to begin following the announcers after being led by the camera operators.
As I wrote in Wednesday's blog, camera operators should never stop working during a telecast. Some of the greatest replays we have had have occurred between innings.
This crew in San Francisco never stops working.
The camera crew is always looking for shots.
The tape room is constantly building packages.
The fox box operator continually keeps the producer and director informed about pitch counts and game stats.
The video operator doesn't just set levels and coast. She rides the levels and the video quality was excellent.
The TD did a great job and was a complete pro.
Our audio engineer fought through some early technical issues and had a nice mix.
Graphics flowed with the show.
Our announce team was very pleased with the stage manager.
Yes, this telecast was a rare side-by-side in San Francisco.
But the result was common for this city.
Thia was a great telecast.
The comfort level while working with the San Francisco crew is very, very familiar.
If I could just put a handle on it...........
Hmmmm.........That's it!!
It's almost like working with our home crew.