Mariners announcer ready for Hall

SEATTLE (AP) - Before Junior, A-Rod, The Big Unit and Ichiro, the Seattle Mariners' lone icon was Dave Niehaus and his golden Midwestern voice.

For 32 years, from Diego Segui's first pitch in the concrete dungeon that was the Kingdome, through yet another loss Wednesday at palatial Safeco Field, Niehaus has been the narrator for plenty of losing seasons and a few memorable moments that defined Mariners history.

Now, Niehaus is preparing for another audience this weekend, when he will be honored with the Ford C. Frick award at the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies in Cooperstown, N.Y.

"I'm a fan, No. 1. I'm a lucky guy. I love the game. If I wasn't out here doing the games broadcasting I'd be out here sitting in the stands," Niehaus said this week before leaving for Cooperstown. "I've been very lucky. I've said this a million times: I've never had to go to work a day in my life. And I hope that comes across to the people that have listened to me for generations."

He will join the likes of Mel Allen, Jack Buck and Niehaus' childhood idol, Harry Caray, as the 32nd recipient of an award named after the former baseball commissioner. While a few players and managers with Mariners connections have found a place in Cooperstown, Niehaus is the first Seattle star to be honored in the Hall.

Since the Mariners' inception in 1977, Niehaus has served as instructor for baseball fans in the Pacific Northwest, a region void of the major league game sans the Seattle Pilots one-year experiment in 1969. Adults and kids regularly tuned in on summer evenings to hear Niehaus try and put his best spin on what were among the worst teams in baseball during much of the club's history.

But no matter how bad the Mariners were, Niehaus never let the on-field product affect his approach to the game. He always brought enthusiasm and drama to some horrible teams, horrible games and horrible seasons. Day in and day out, his calls were often punctuated by his raised voice and trademark "My oh My!" and "It will fly away!" during a moment to celebrate.

"All of us in this business, guys, this is the toy department of life," Niehaus said. "It's a narcotic. Anyone who is involved in this business, whether it be my end or (the writing) end or the front office end, we're lucky. We're lucky people."

Niehaus almost missed his shot at working in the toy department. He stumbled into broadcasting as a student at Indiana, after deciding that waking up at 8 a.m. every day to stare at teeth as a dentist wasn't the job for him.

He worked for the Armed Forces Network in Los Angeles and New York before anchoring himself in the L.A. market in the late 1960s and early '70s, calling games for the California Angels and UCLA football. In 1976 at the baseball winter meetings, Niehaus was encouraged to interview for the lead play-by-play job with the expansion Mariners.

As much as Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez, Randy Johnson, Edgar Martinez and Ichiro Suzuki are responsible for making Seattle relevant in professional baseball, it was Niehaus telling their stories along the way. Perhaps fittingly, Griffey was the first person Niehaus heard from when the Frick award announcement was made in February, and the one Niehaus wishes would be there with him in Cooperstown this weekend.

Even though Niehaus has never announced a World Series game with the Angels or Mariners, his calls during Seattle's remarkable rally during the 1995 season still bring chills to those who fondly remember the brightest time in Mariners history, even surpassing their 116-win season in 2001. Seattle trailed the Angels by 13 games on Aug. 2 before surging to win the AL West for its first playoff berth.

Niehaus chokes up when reminded of the one-game tiebreaker with the Angels that Seattle won 9-1 to clinch the division title, and fans in the delirious Kingdome turning toward the broadcast booth to salute Niehaus after the celebration on the field died down.

"It's hard to express. It's probably the biggest thrill of my life until this weekend," he said. "I didn't know I meant that much to them."

And of course, many in the Northwest will never forget Niehaus' call of the most seminal moment in Mariners history - Martinez's double in the bottom of the 11th inning that scored Joey Cora and Griffey to beat the New York Yankees in the 1995 AL division series:

"Right now, the Mariners looking for the tie. They would take a fly ball, they would love a base hit into the gap and they could win it with Junior's speed. The stretch … and the 0-1 pitch on the way to Edgar Martinez, swung on and LINED DOWN THE LEFT-FIELD LINE FOR A BASE HIT! HERE COMES JOEY, HERE IS JUNIOR TO THIRD BASE, THEY'RE GOING TO WAVE HIM IN! THE THROW TO THE PLATE WILL BE … LATE! THE MARINERS ARE GOING TO PLAY FOR THE AMERICAN LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP! I DON'T BELIEVE IT! IT JUST CONTINUES! MY OH MY!"

Now 73, Niehaus has no plans to slow down. Entering this season, he had missed only 82 games in team history. He'll miss the Mariners' series in Toronto this weekend for the Hall of Fame ceremonies, but will be right back with the team in Texas on Monday.

"I can't imagine not doing it," Niehaus said. "I can imagine not doing it, but might as well dig a hole and put me in it."