Apr. 12—Young Mike Boyle used to watch sports on television with his father.
Not unusual for kids to share that connection with parents.
Except little Mikey, perhaps as early as age 5, had a strange compulsion: He would turn off the sound so he could do the play-by-play himself.
Later, at age 24, in his first radio job in Lamar, Colorado, he called eight games in one day. It was a high school basketball tournament, and from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m., he was nonstop. Never off the air.
As he recalls, he scarfed up a snack or two through the day. But not a single bathroom break.
So, yeah, he's been at this a long time, and he's an indefatigable iron man with a mic in his face.
His count of games broadcast over the radio, he said, is above 3,000 (not including the unofficial prekindergarten gigs).
The count has ballooned since Boyle became both "The Voice" of the Spokane Chiefs (since 2002) and the Spokane Indians (since 2011).
But Sunday is the first time he'll be the voice of both on the same day.
Advancement into the second round of the Western Hockey League playoffs has stretched the Chiefs' season into an overlap with the Indians of the Northwest League (High-A).
Sunday, Boyle has a 1:05 p.m. first pitch at Avista Stadium for the Indians vs. the Vancouver Canadians, and will motor over to the Arena for a 6:05 puck drop between the Chiefs and the Victoria Royals in the first game of the Western Conference semifinals.
Will this crosstown, multisport doubleheader be a challenge for "The Voice" of Spokane?
Boyle didn't think it will strain the pipes, but it's a definite shift in gears.
"It's two different types of broadcasting," said the 62-year-old Boyle. "Hockey is such an action-intense game, constantly describing action, whereas baseball, you can go a little slower and work in some stories about previous baseball history or background information regarding a pitcher or hitter. So, yeah, it's going to be two completely different things."
Boyle's broadcast of Friday night's Indians game against the Canadians at Avista Stadium (8-6 Indians win) provided an example of his work. He set the stage with resonance and clarity, outlining the fence dimensions, the teams' uniform colors. Lineups and batteries.
Standard.
But he also brought the listeners into the park, describing which parts of the field still glowed in the evening sun, and the slight breeze coming in from right field. His tone matched that of the game, organically delivered. Nothing forced. A natural conversation that can only be achieved by exacting preparation and subject mastery.
"He's really good at what he does," longtime Spokane broadcaster and former colleague Dennis Patchin said. "He's A) informative, and B) energetic, and that's a really good combination. He gets excited when you're supposed to and doesn't when you're not supposed to. You don't have to listen long to his broadcasts before you're getting the information you need."
Boyle has been a one-man, media conglomerate, also serving as a KREM-TV sports anchor and reporter, as well as having a byline as a Spokesman-Review reporter for a while.
A common theme among those who spend their lives in radio booths: It's a strong, early calling. Boyle is another who discovered the romance of the radio at a young age.
"I grew up on the East Coast (Maryland), and every time the Orioles were playing in Anaheim or Oakland, they didn't start until 10 o'clock Eastern, and I'd listen in bed and fall asleep with that transistor up against my ear," he said. "Like a ritual, my mom would always come in and turn the radio off."
Later, in ...
