Steve Edwards Rooting for Dodgers in Skivvies
First published on LAist on October 15, 2009.
Good Day LA’s Steve Edwards is a huge Dodger fan. He’s also an honest Dodger fan.
While 3,000,000 confirmed they were at Dodger Stadium on that fateful night Kirk Gibson hit his iconic home run exactly 21 years ago today, Edwards admits the truth.
“You know that shot of when he hits it you see the parking lights of the cars go on in the parking lot,” Edwards asks. “I was already out of the ballpark. I was in my car the moment it happened.
“That’s why it’s my favorite moment. My wife never forgave me. She made a t-shirt that I had to wear on AM Los Angeles that said, ‘I left early.’ I had to wear it for two days.”
Edwards is a veteran broadcaster in LA having started in 1978 on Channel 2. He moved over to KABC 7 in the mid-80s hosting the aforementioned AM Los Angeles, a precursor to Live with Regis and Kathie Lee”. In 1994 he hosted a sports talk show on AM 790 KABC called “Sportstalk 790”.
“I broadcasted from a booth at Dodger Stadium for all the games,” Edwards said. “I absolutely had the best seat in the house.”
As for now, “My favorite place to watch playoff games is in my underwear in my living room. The party is wherever I am. ”
“I think for some reason having been to all those games at that point, that the underwear in the living room became even better.”
As for this Dodgers team, Edwards finds a lot to like in this group.
“The team seems to be at that stage of development where everything’s working,” Edwards gushed. “The players are not very very young. The Ethiers and the Kemps are now growing up. They have really blossomed in many ways.”
The midseason acquisitions also helped a lot in Edwards’ mind.
“They take Vicente Padilla the pitcher. Who was he? No one liked him. He’s been Sandy Koufax here. [Ronnie] Belliard has been terrific. Somebody’s doing something right over there.”
A lot of those fingers can be pointed to manager Joe Torre.
“I believe that the team is somewhat determined by the personality of manager Joe Torre.
“He’s here two years, two postseason series. It’s funny because when he left New York we thought why would he keep going after doing what he did. He looks much more relaxed out here.”
Edwards thinks the starting pitching is the key in this NLCS rematch with the Philadelphia Phillies.
“I think they have enough,” Edwards explained. “They have timely hitting. It really comes down to how the starting pitching goes. If they get six good innings against these guys, I think they can win. I think they can possibly win easily.”
Although Edwards does have a fear that Torre could leave the starters in too long, I did remind him Torre didn’t hesitate to snatch Randy Wolf out after 3 2/3 innings in game one of the NLDS against the St. Louis Cardinals.
“His managing changes into the playoffs,” Edwards said a little relieved. “His patience can be challenged a little more quickly.”
Looking to the future the prospect of a Freeway World Series is the most tangible as it’s ever been. But Edwards doesn’t envision epic Braveheart-like battles to be waged on the LA-Orange county border.
“It’s not like the Yankees-Mets where there’s passion and strong feeling,” Edwards explains. “Dodger fans do not have strong feelings against the Angels and vice versa.
“The interesting factor is Mike Scioscia because to most people in Southern California he’s a Dodger. He’s the guy who should have been managing the Dodgers the last seven years. Dodger fans love Mike Scioscia. And if you notice all of his coaches are Dodgers.”
But a Dodgers-Yankees World Series would be epic.
“That’d be like a baseball revival. All of the traditions clash together. Their most successful manager Joe Torre is the Dodger manager.”
At the end of our conversation, Edwards asked me if I was going to any of these games. I told him I would only be attending the World Series game.
“What if it’s Yankees-Phillies,” Edwards asked. “Forget I said that.”
Sorry Steve. The tape don’t lie.
You can catch Steve Edwards every weekday morning alongside Jillian Reynolds and Dorothy Lucey on FOX 11 from 7:00 – 10:00 am.
Game 1 of the NLCS will begin at 5:07 pm and can be seen on TBS and heard on the radio at AM 790 KABC.
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