Dave Flemming
Encyclopedia
David Braxton "Dave" Flemming (born May 31, 1976) is an American sportscaster
and television personality, currently working as a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants
of Major League Baseball
as well as the Stanford Cardinal
football
and basketball
teams.
Flemming grew up in Alexandria, Virginia
, listening to current Giants partner Jon Miller
call Baltimore Orioles
games. In 2004
, Flemming began his first full year in the Giants' radio booth, working with Miller, Duane Kuiper
, Mike Krukow
and Greg Papa
on San Francisco station KNBR-AM
. He is still currently calling all games on KNBR with Miller unless there is a scheduling conflict with ESPN or Stanford.
In addition to his work with the Giants and Stanford, Flemming began calling college basketball for ESPN
in 2010.
from Stanford University
and a Master’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University
. While at Stanford, Flemming broadcast Stanford baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, and football and served as Sports Director at KZSU-FM
. In 2000, he broadcast play-by-play for the Visalia Oaks
and served as the assistant General Manager, before moving on to the Pawtucket Red Sox
.
Flemming teamed with PawSox radio broadcaster Andy Freed
for three seasons on the eight-station PawSox Radio Network
. His rise in the baseball broadcasting industry was nearly unprecedented as he went from Class-A ball (Visalia) in 2000 to Triple-A from 2001-2003 (Pawtucket) and now the Major Leagues. Starting in 2008, Flemming began broadcasting for the Stanford Cardinal
football and basketball teams, which is the main reason why Flemming is not heard on Saturdays during the Cardinal football season.
when he was set to call Barry Bonds
' 715th home run
, passing Babe Ruth
for second place on the all-time home run list. However, as he was making the call, his microphone went dead:
Flemming, unaware of the problem, continued to make the call, but all listeners heard was about ten seconds of dead air. Then his broadcast partner, Greg Papa
, stepped in to try to salvage the call. Only Duane Kuiper
's call on Fox Sports Net
's broadcast was sent to the Hall of Fame. On September 23 of the same year, during Flemming's third-inning call of a game against the Milwaukee Brewers
at Miller Park, Bonds hit a home run off left-hander Chris Capuano
. This was Bonds' 734th career homer (26th for the season), which broke Hank Aaron's record for National League
home runs. (Aaron hit his last 21 homers as an American League
player.) Eventually on August 4, 2007, Flemming was able to call Bonds' record-tying 755th home run in San Diego on the radio against the San Diego Padres
.
On July 14, 2006, for a Friday night home game, Flemming made his television broadcast debut for the Giants. Since then, he has appeared both on CSN Bay Area and KNTV
during the baseball season. On selected weekend games (usually road games), Flemming usually calls the first three and the last three innings on the radio, and innings 4-6 on TV. However, Flemming usually fills in for Kuiper if Kuiper is unable to call games on CSN Bay Area.
Fellow broadcasters Krukow and Kuiper give Flemming a number of new nicknames each year. The most commonly used are "Flem," "Flame," and "et al." After his fellow announcers learned his middle name was Braxton, they also took to referring to him by his complete name. Jon Miller's common introduction for him is "Daaavid B. Flemming".
On July 16, 2010, Flemming was among the handful number of people honoring Miller before the game against the New York Mets
. In one instance, Flemming described how he has listened to Miller on the radio when he was a kid. This came about a week before Miller was scheduled to be honored with the 2010 Ford C. Frick Award.
On November 1, 2010, during the seventh inning in Game 5 of the World Series
at Rangers Ballpark, Flemming made the winning home run call that eventually sealed the Giants' win, and thus the World Series:
In past seasons Flemming served as lead radio announcer for Sunday games when Miller was on assignment with ESPN Sunday Night Baseball although this has changed as of 2011, as Miller is no longer employed by ESPN and now works full time for KNBR. When Miller, Kuiper, and Krukow are in the radio booth due to a national telecast, Flemming will only do the lineups and the post-game radio interviews while still being the moderator during discussions.
Sportscaster
In sports broadcasting, a commentator gives a running commentary of a game or event in real time, usually during a live broadcast. The comments are normally a voiceover, with the sounds of the action and spectators also heard in the background. In the case of television commentary, the commentator...
and television personality, currently working as a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
of Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
as well as the Stanford Cardinal
Stanford Cardinal
The Stanford Cardinal is the nickname of the athletic teams at Stanford University.-Nickname and mascot history:Following its win over Cal in the first-ever Big Game in 1892, the color cardinal was picked as the primary color of Stanford's athletic teams...
football
Stanford Cardinal football
The Stanford Cardinal football program represents Stanford University in college football at the NCAA Division I FBS level and is a member of the Pac-12 Conference's North Division. Stanford, the top-ranked academic institution with an FBS program, has a highly successful football tradition. The...
and basketball
Stanford Cardinal men's basketball
The Stanford Cardinal Men's Basketball team represents Stanford University, located in Stanford, California, United States. The school's team currently competes in the Pacific-12 Conference. The team has won 13 conference championships , the last in 2004, and one NCAA championship, in 1942...
teams.
Flemming grew up in Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
, listening to current Giants partner Jon Miller
Jon Miller
Jon Wallace Miller is an American sportscaster, known primarily for his broadcasts of Major League Baseball. He is currently employed as a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants. He was also a baseball announcer on ESPN until the network chose not to renew his contract following the...
call Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland in the United States. They are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's American League. One of the American League's eight charter franchises in 1901, it spent its first year as a major league...
games. In 2004
2004 in baseball
-Headline events of the year:*The Boston Red Sox win their first World Series since , ending the Curse of the Bambino.*With 262 hits, Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners breaks George Sisler's record of 257. Suzuki also sets the record for most singles in a season, with 225.*2004 also marked the final...
, Flemming began his first full year in the Giants' radio booth, working with Miller, Duane Kuiper
Duane Kuiper
Duane Eugene Kuiper is a former Major League Baseball second baseman, and is currently a five-time Emmy award-winning radio and television sportscaster for the San Francisco Giants...
, Mike Krukow
Mike Krukow
Michael Edward "Mike" Krukow is a former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. He is currently a television color commentator for the San Francisco Giants.-Early life:...
and Greg Papa
Greg Papa
Greg Papa is an American sportscaster working in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has been broadcasting for most of the Bay Area professional sports franchises for 21 years, covering the Oakland Raiders, Oakland Athletics, Golden State Warriors and San Francisco Giants.Currently, he is best known as...
on San Francisco station KNBR-AM
KNBR
KNBR, The Sports Leader, is the on-air branding used by two AM radio stations in the San Francisco, California, area broadcasting a sports radio format, owned by Cumulus Media....
. He is still currently calling all games on KNBR with Miller unless there is a scheduling conflict with ESPN or Stanford.
In addition to his work with the Giants and Stanford, Flemming began calling college basketball for ESPN
College Basketball on ESPN
College Basketball on ESPN is a presentation of the college basketball television package on the ESPN family of networks. The television network broadcasts games of all the major conferences and many mid-major conferences of Division I NCAA basketball....
in 2010.
Early life and career
After graduating from St. Stephen's & St. Agnes School in 1994, Flemming received Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in ClassicsClassics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and a Master’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism from the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University
Syracuse University
Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
. While at Stanford, Flemming broadcast Stanford baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, and football and served as Sports Director at KZSU-FM
KZSU
KZSU is a freeform FM radio station broadcasting from the campus of Stanford University in Stanford, California, USA.KZSU broadcasts in stereo at 90.1 MHz FM with an effective radiated power of 500 watts. The station is owned by the Trustees of Stanford University and is governed by a Board of...
. In 2000, he broadcast play-by-play for the Visalia Oaks
Visalia Oaks
The Visalia Rawhide are a minor league baseball team in Visalia, California, U.S. They are a Class A - Advanced team of the Arizona Diamondbacks operating in the California League and have recently agreed to renew their affiliation through 2012....
and served as the assistant General Manager, before moving on to the Pawtucket Red Sox
Pawtucket Red Sox
The Pawtucket Red Sox are the minor league baseball Triple-A affiliates of the Boston Red Sox and belong to the International League...
.
Flemming teamed with PawSox radio broadcaster Andy Freed
Andy Freed
Andy Freed is currently one of the radio play-by-play announcers of the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team. He and Dave Wills have worked as the team's radio duo since 2005 and are currently signed through the 2013 season...
for three seasons on the eight-station PawSox Radio Network
Pawsox Radio Network
The Pawsox Radio Network is the radio network of the Pawtucket Red Sox, a minor league affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. There are 9 stations in the network, including the flagship & part-time stations.-Massachusetts :...
. His rise in the baseball broadcasting industry was nearly unprecedented as he went from Class-A ball (Visalia) in 2000 to Triple-A from 2001-2003 (Pawtucket) and now the Major Leagues. Starting in 2008, Flemming began broadcasting for the Stanford Cardinal
Stanford Cardinal
The Stanford Cardinal is the nickname of the athletic teams at Stanford University.-Nickname and mascot history:Following its win over Cal in the first-ever Big Game in 1892, the color cardinal was picked as the primary color of Stanford's athletic teams...
football and basketball teams, which is the main reason why Flemming is not heard on Saturdays during the Cardinal football season.
Career with the San Francisco Giants
On May 28, 2006, Flemming had the chance for his voice to go into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and MuseumNational Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
when he was set to call Barry Bonds
Barry Bonds
Barry Lamar Bonds is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. Bonds played from 1986 to 2007, for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He is the son of former major league All-Star Bobby Bonds...
' 715th home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
, passing Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
for second place on the all-time home run list. However, as he was making the call, his microphone went dead:
Flemming, unaware of the problem, continued to make the call, but all listeners heard was about ten seconds of dead air. Then his broadcast partner, Greg Papa
Greg Papa
Greg Papa is an American sportscaster working in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has been broadcasting for most of the Bay Area professional sports franchises for 21 years, covering the Oakland Raiders, Oakland Athletics, Golden State Warriors and San Francisco Giants.Currently, he is best known as...
, stepped in to try to salvage the call. Only Duane Kuiper
Duane Kuiper
Duane Eugene Kuiper is a former Major League Baseball second baseman, and is currently a five-time Emmy award-winning radio and television sportscaster for the San Francisco Giants...
's call on Fox Sports Net
Fox Sports Net
The Fox Sports Regional Networks, or simply Fox Sports Net , are a collection of cable TV regional sports networks in the United States owned and operated by News Corporation.- Beginnings :...
's broadcast was sent to the Hall of Fame. On September 23 of the same year, during Flemming's third-inning call of a game against the Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
at Miller Park, Bonds hit a home run off left-hander Chris Capuano
Chris Capuano
Christopher "Chris" Frank Capuano is an American professional baseball player.-Early life:Capuano graduated from St. Thomas School in West Springfield in 8th grade...
. This was Bonds' 734th career homer (26th for the season), which broke Hank Aaron's record for National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
home runs. (Aaron hit his last 21 homers as an American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
player.) Eventually on August 4, 2007, Flemming was able to call Bonds' record-tying 755th home run in San Diego on the radio against the San Diego Padres
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego, California. They play in the National League Western Division. Founded in 1969, the Padres have won the National League Pennant twice, in 1984 and 1998, losing in the World Series both times...
.
On July 14, 2006, for a Friday night home game, Flemming made his television broadcast debut for the Giants. Since then, he has appeared both on CSN Bay Area and KNTV
KNTV
KNTV, channel 11, is the NBC owned-and-operated television station in the Bay Area market. It is licensed to San Jose, with its transmitter located on San Bruno Mountain, just south of San Francisco. It shares facilities in San Jose with NBC Universal sister station KSTS and CNBC's Silicon...
during the baseball season. On selected weekend games (usually road games), Flemming usually calls the first three and the last three innings on the radio, and innings 4-6 on TV. However, Flemming usually fills in for Kuiper if Kuiper is unable to call games on CSN Bay Area.
Fellow broadcasters Krukow and Kuiper give Flemming a number of new nicknames each year. The most commonly used are "Flem," "Flame," and "et al." After his fellow announcers learned his middle name was Braxton, they also took to referring to him by his complete name. Jon Miller's common introduction for him is "Daaavid B. Flemming".
On July 16, 2010, Flemming was among the handful number of people honoring Miller before the game against the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
. In one instance, Flemming described how he has listened to Miller on the radio when he was a kid. This came about a week before Miller was scheduled to be honored with the 2010 Ford C. Frick Award.
On November 1, 2010, during the seventh inning in Game 5 of the World Series
2010 World Series
The 2010 World Series was the 106th occurrence of Major League Baseball's championship series. The best-of-seven playoff, played between the American League champion Texas Rangers and the National League champion San Francisco Giants, began on Wednesday, , and ended on Monday, , with the Giants...
at Rangers Ballpark, Flemming made the winning home run call that eventually sealed the Giants' win, and thus the World Series:
Commentating style
During the game Flemming often acts as the foil to Jon Miller's tangential stories. After the game, Flemming acts as the moderator to discussions with veterans Miller, Krukow, and Kuiper. He also fills in on sports talk shows on KNBR. At the beginning of most games, Flemming will introduce the lineups before handing over to the lead broadcaster (either Miller or Kuiper).In past seasons Flemming served as lead radio announcer for Sunday games when Miller was on assignment with ESPN Sunday Night Baseball although this has changed as of 2011, as Miller is no longer employed by ESPN and now works full time for KNBR. When Miller, Kuiper, and Krukow are in the radio booth due to a national telecast, Flemming will only do the lineups and the post-game radio interviews while still being the moderator during discussions.