Young Chugiak Chinooks baseball broadcaster hones his voice

On a rainy Thursday evening in late June at Mulcahy Stadium, 19-year-old Chugiak Chinooks radio broadcaster Caleb Duarte is tossing a football with head coach Jon Groth.

Duarte is helping Groth loosen his shoulders. Groth next hits grounders to his infielders to get them prepared for an Alaska Baseball League game. Duarte's pregame routine is finished, but his work is just beginning.

Duarte has spent the day, like every day, at team functions. He'll spend the next three hours calling a game between the Chinooks and Anchorage Bucs. This is Chugiak's 19th game of the season, and Duarte's 19th game doing play-by-play.

Duarte, who wrapped up his freshman year at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, speaks with a deliberate tone, enunciates clearly and isn't afraid to joke on the air. He credits six years of musical theater for helping him create his persona.

"You have to be able to separate yourself," Duarte said. "Honestly I don't want to sound like the next person."

He draws inspiration from excitable March Madness announcer Gus Johnson and longtime Los Angeles Dodgers radio legend Vin Scully.

"I want to be like that, where you hear his voice and you go 'Hey that's Gus Johnson.' " Duarte said. "… (Scully) can compel you and entertain you for three hours. You can sit back and go 'Wow, this guy knows a lot.' And that's what I want to be."

Duarte, a native of Morgan Hill, California, "retired" from playing baseball as a fifth-grader. He continued to follow the game, and the San Francisco Giants in particular, with avid interest.

His family was also friends with Joe Will, assistant general manager for the NHL's San Jose Sharks. Will saw one of Duarte's theater performances and approached him about a possible play-by-play gig. Will then inspired Caleb to find an internship opening though Athletes in Action, the Christian-based organization which runs several teams, including the Chinooks.

Duarte paid his own way to Alaska through fundraising and scholarships. He is staying, along with Chugiak outfielder Levi Gilcrease, at a host family's home. He has used daily conversations with Gilcrease to improve his broadcasts.

"I'm not a baseball player, I'm not as in the loop as them," Duarte said. "So having a guy like Levi that's very accepting makes it easier and be more natural around the players."

Ryan Beck, son of Chinooks general manager Chris Beck, joins Duarte on air for road games. The two play off one another, as they did when Bucs outfielder Todd Lott swung through a pitch and lost his grip on his bat, which flew through the air.

"That should count for two strikes when you lose the bat," Beck joked.

"I think that's whiffle ball rules," Duarte countered.

A broadcast for Duarte is paperless, except for team rosters. Ten minutes before first pitch Duarte attaches a webcam to his laptop. He broadcasts using Google Hangouts through YouTube. Beck communicates with YouTube viewers through the website's live chat feature. Duarte clicks between lineups and stats on the fly.

"One thing God has blessed me with is improvisation," Duarte said.

Duarte hopes to work in sports media after college, like 2016 Mat-Su Miners media manager Josh Grissom. Grissom graduated this spring from the University of Idaho and is sports editor of the Moscow-Pullman Daily News in Idaho.

Duarte's dream job would be hosting his own talk show. He doesn't want to be limited to one sport. But the Chinooks broadcaster will be happy with whatever job he can land in sports media.

And Duarte is dreaming big.

"I mean I always say, shoot for the moon, you're bound to fall on a star," he said.