Got Mike?

Have you seen these post game interviews in baseball where interpreters assist  the non-English speaking baseball players? The interviewer asks these way too long questions that the interpreter has to quickly translate to the player. The player then responds to the interpreter and the interpreter quickly translates the message back to the interviewer. It’s quite fascinating.  As I watch them I’m trying to learn Spanish.

The latest technique is to interview the player as he plays. That’s right. A defensive player wears some type of headset and is “miked up”. The player reportedly receives $10,000 compensation from the network for wearing the mike on the field. Unfortunately, this concept only works for the English speaking players. A Spanish speaking player has never been “miked up”. To give everyone the same opportunity, I’m proposing that Spanish guys get “miked up”. The interpreter will need to be on the field with the non-English speaking “miked-up” player so we know what he’s saying. Put him or her in a protective shelter of some sort next to the player. This seems fair to me.

Sometimes you have to think inside the box.