YES Network Yankees Producer Troy Benjamin Reflects on Memorable 2022 Season, Aaron Judge Home Run Chase

YES Network Yankees Producer Troy Benjamin Reflects on Memorable 2022 Season, Aaron Judge Home Run Chase Benjamin: You live for these types of moments' By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital

Saturday, October 15, 2022 - 11:07 am

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A 99-win season. An AL East Division title. Another trip to the postseason for the New York Yankees. With considerable highs (April-June) and substantial lows (August), there was plenty of drama. And there was one undisputed superstar of the 2022 baseball season in New York: Aaron Judge.

As the Yankees slugger took aim at the American League and the team record of 61 home runs in a single season (set by Roger Maris), the broadcast team at YES Network was thrust into the spotlight as its live game coverage was seen on screens across the country.

For the network that typically sets the gold standard for RSNs, YES Network was more than up to the task and reaped the benefits. The network saw its linear viewership jump 27% over last year and enjoyed its best season of ratings in 11 years. According to the network, YES's Yankees games reached more than 694,000 Unduplicated Total Viewers per game.

YES Network's Troy Benjamin: It was definitely a fun ride for all of us. (Photo: E.H. Wallop/YES Network)

It's certainly a season that the YES Network Lead Producer, Yankees Baseball, Troy Benjamin will not soon forget. In just his second season at the front bench, he played a key role in the night-in/night-out storytelling of Judge's historic run.

It felt great because, in baseball, you never know what you're going to get, says Benjamin. You can do 100 games, and you might never have a genuinely great moment to document. So, while Aaron Judge was giving chase, you knew what was happening, and you had to be ready. I'm an amped-up, passionate person anyway, but, when you knew what's happening, it is game on. It was definitely a fun ride for all of us.

How did one of the biggest truck shows in the sport gear up for a special moment like this? By identifying its star characters. Besides Judge himself, focus was on his mother, Patty Judge, and the son of the Yankee icon, Roger Maris Jr., who were in attendance as Judge closed in on the magic numbers. The crew added a couple of cameras to its lineup to ensure shots of their reactions and even miked Patty Judge during selected games.

We ensured we had an iso on her, says Benjamin. She kind of turned out to be the star. Aaron Judge is not an emotional guy. When he hits a home run, he puts his bat down and runs around the bases. So dedicating the iso to his mother was important to get those emotions.

YES Network's production arsenal is already substantial. There wasn't a whole lot needed to dial up the show. YES Network entered the season with a new lineup of Sony HDC-5500 cameras and an upgrade to its EVS network with XT-VIA servers. All made it possible to do a full-1080p show.

One very effective new camera angle was a super-slo-mo on the low third-base side pointing at the plate. Suggested by Director Dan Barr, the angle captured a compelling behind-the-back shot of Judge in the foreground with reactions from the Yankees dugout and the crowd down the first-base line in the background.

Benjamin (far right) following the Yankees final regular-season game in Texas with (left to right) tape producer Luke Miller, graphics coordinator Sean Sullivan, and director Dan Barr. (Photo: Troy Benjamin)

It fit the Yankees this year with big right-handed hitters like Judge and Stanton, notes Benjamin. We started iso-ing on the camera there when we started seeing how the home run looked. It ended up being a great look.

On the night of Judge's 61st home run, the Yankees were in Toronto, and Benjamin credits the operations team at Toronto-based Sportsnet for its generosity in sharing most of its resources to ensure that his team could tell the full story. That included a shot from a camera at a position called the swing seat. Set down the first-base line, it proved the perfect angle to capture the shot of the fan catching Judge's homer over the left-field wall.

While in Toronto, YES Network was able to add two more cameras of its own, as well as RF microphones to better capture the sound of the Yankees dugout and the seats where Patty Judge and Roger Maris Jr. were sitting.

That weekend, the Yankees returned home for a three-game set with the Orioles, but Judge didn't hit a home run. It wasn't until the season-ending series in Texas and a doubleheader on the penultimate day of the regular season that he hit No. 62.

Although 61 and 62 were the milestones, Benjamin calls Judge's 60th home run the best inning of baseball I've ever produced. On the night of Tuesday, Sept. 20, Judge hit No. 60 in the bottom of the ninth with the Yankees down four to the Pirates. Soon after, Giancarlo Stanton would hit a walk-off grand slam.

Benjamin adds that his core philosophies as a producer served him well when Judge's at-bats became must-see TV in September: the game always comes first.

When I produce, it's not about me. It's about the game, he says. It's not about trying to show the audience how smart I am. You've got to respect the game. The game comes first. I'm not trying to show people how fancy I am. The game will tell you the story. It's important to listen to your announcers and use them as your guides. You document what's happening in front of you. We weren't going to try to find some clip of the time Judge hit a home run whenever. No, people turn on the TV to see Aaron Judge in a Yankee uniform right now hitting the home run. I'm going to make sure they get that.

Perhaps no one has a greater appreciation and historical perspective on Judge's accomplishments th

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2022/10/15/yes-network-yankees-producer-tr...
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