At the Ballpark: How MLB Teams Produce a Fan-less In-Venue Experience Similarities include safety measures, rehearsals, fabricated crowd noise By Kristian Hernandez, Associate Editor Thursday, August 20, 2020 - 7:02 am
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2020 has forced the industry to roll with the punches that came with the COVID-19 pandemic and to pivot strategies for adapting to this new era of live sports production. When Major League Baseball decided to postpone competition until late July and prohibit fans from attending games, in-venue staff across the nation needed to figure out how to operate videoboard elements without their priority audience. SVG's At the Ballpark Series takes you inside the control room to learn the similarities and differences of producing a spectator-less show.
MORE AT THE BALLPARK INTERVIEWS:
New York Mets' In-Venue Show Entertains Players On-Field
Mariners Productions Keeps Players, Onsite Staff on Schedule With In-Venue Routine at T-Mobile Park
Detroit Tigers Focus on Fan Engagement, Rely on Scrimmages for In-Venue Strategy
Upper Tier: COVID-19 Protocols Present New Logistical Challenges Mariners Productions' Ben Mertens: The team has absolutely crushed it so far. Without them, we couldn't be doing what we're doing.
While other leagues have opted for bubble environments, MLB forged ahead with games played in home ballparks. This choice has come with not only increased testing and other safety requirements for players but medical procedures for in-venue professionals as well.
Some of us have to take our temperature a couple of times to get two readings, you may have to fill out an application to find out if you have any COVID-19-related symptoms, and, if all that checks out, you're granted access to come into the ballpark, says Ben Mertens, senior director, Mariners Productions. When you pull into the stadium, you almost go through the same process again. Once you get through all of that, you get to walk into the building.
Along with temperature checks outside the stadium and re-testing inside, COVID-19 has produced a complex tiering system that limits entry to certain parts of the ballpark to designated employees. Players, coaches, and essential personnel who work directly with the production team have access to Tier 1. Tier 2 comprises individuals who may come into contact with Tier 1. In-venue crews make up a portion of the third tier.
Ben Mertens (standing) and his Mariners Productions colleagues power in-venue elements from the control room in T-Mobile Park.
With this system in place, behind-the-scenes access has been decreased exponentially. This is being done to prevent a potential outbreak, but the result is that the majority of the content featuring players comes from the action on the field.
There's a sense of safety when you get there, but it's a challenge, says Joe Devito, executive producer, content and marketing, New York Mets. You can't get the camera angles that you normally want, so it's a positive challenge to say, How do we still deliver high-quality content and bring the fan into the game without having as much access as we would normally have?' There are times when I would have a camera follow Pete Alonzo into the clubhouse after a big win, but I can't do that anymore. We're relying on collaboration with the rest of our staff at different access levels, and everyone has been great at filling in those blanks that are now part of this situation.
Making Some (Fake) Noise: Development of Fabricated Crowd Sounds One of the hardest adjustments has been the added responsibility of executing fake crowd noise. The league has provided an iPad packed with familiar sounds and chants deriving from the popular MLB The Show videogame. The role of an audio mixer is usually a difficult one, but, to pull off this effort, production teams have deployed a pair of mixers who handle stadium music and crowd noise, respectively.
New York Mets' Joe Devito: There's nothing that I could possibly do without all of these folks. Everyone has been unbelievable throughout this season so far.
Fans realize that the seats are empty (or populated by cardboard cutouts), but, with a suspension of disbelief, this dual-headed audio effort is giving a sense of auditory realism to games. It's a tough job that requires maximum focus from those involved.
To do it well, Mertens explains, you have to be paying close attention to the game. You can't be checking your phone or having a conversation with somebody on comms, because you don't know when something's going to happen in the game of baseball. Getting the sense and rhythm of a game but also watching previous broadcasts and understanding what it sounds like were key points in the learning process.
Producing this aspect of a show is a major focus, but the audio system is being used for more than just automated crowd noise. With players as the main audience, teams are constructing playlists of music that cater to the home players on the field.
Summer Camp: Scrimmages Offer Extra Production Reps With the start of the season delayed a couple of months, intrasquad scrimmages began occurring in each stadium and were ultimately treated as a second Spring Training or Summer Camp. While broadcasters used these games to learn the nuances of this odd season, in-venue teams leveraged this downtime to get comfortable with what was to come.
The New York Mets' in-venue team is adapting to a new way of production in 2020.
We used those games as a testing ground to see how the crowd noise would play out, how the players would feel about it, how it would actually sound in the ballpark, and how loud we needed to make it, says Stan Fracker, director, broadcasting and in-game entertainment, Detroit Tigers. Bal
