Emotional Moment

The most important factor, in fact the only factor, for the producer and director when televising a sport is to "cover the game".

For local sports television coverage of any sport be it baseball, basketball and hockey (football is the only major sport that is not locally televised) relationships are developed between the TV production team and the players and coaches.

These relationships should NEVER play into the outcome into the delivery of the telecast. The TV production team should never let a relationship with a member of the team being covered affect the coverage of the game/

Because of this reason, a moment during tonight's game/telecast proved to be very difficult for me to cut.

I have found Cardinals' pitcher, Ryan Franklin, to be one of the nicest, friendliest, professional athletes I have ever met in my almost 30 years of covering professional sports. I have respected his remarkable baseball talent as much as I have respected him as a person.

This former NL all-star has had a difficult season.

He has lost the closer's role that he owned starting the season and he has been rarely used since the first month of the 2011 baseball year.

Tonight, Ryan gave up back-to-back homeruns in a game that had already been put away by the home team Washington Nationals. During the second homerun, I took a shot of Franklin on the mound, and I will never forget the affect that shot had on me. This tight look of Ryan's face told the story of a man who believed he was "done".

His career had just ended.

I continued to try to cut the game but I had a huge lump in my throat.

I felt so bad for this wonderful person.

I knew that I could not let this feeling affect the coverage of the game.

I tried the best that I could, but I could not let go of this tremendous sadness that I felt.

I will never forget this moment, this emotional moment of my TV baseball career.

This was the toughest moment of my career.

This was the toughest telecast of my career.

I cannot let this telecast affect me tomorrow.

I know it will.