Talk About Called Shots: Cubs’ Caray Has Had Two

On this night, the spot happened to be in Qualcomm Stadium.

The sites may vary, but one thing has emerged in this remarkable year of baseball: Chip Caray’s had the best seat in the house.

Only two men in the history of baseball have surpassed 61 home runs in a season, and Caray, the television play-by-play announcer for the Chicago Cubs, was on the air providing words for the televised images both times.

The timing of the schedule and the prolific seasons of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa allowed Caray to be at the microphone when each hit his 62nd home run. Most play-by-play guys go their whole career waiting for a magic, historic moment to call. Few get it.

Caray is only 33, a youthful guy who looks like Jim Carrey without the wild facial contortions. And he got to make the call twice in six days.

He was in St. Louis with the Cubs for McGwire’s 62nd on Sept. 8, then watched Sosa hit Nos. 61 and 62 at Wrigley Field on Sunday. “To say the least, it’s been a whirlwind,” Caray said. “It’s just a matter of luck, and being at the right place at the lucky time. We thought that Sammy and McGwire would have a chance, somebody would have a chance of hitting 61, 62 around the time we played the Cardinals. It just so happened that that’s the way it happened.

“I grew up in St. Louis, I know what the Cardinals mean to that town, I know what that moment meant to those fans, who are some of the greatest in baseball. To see that as a native of St. Louis and feel just a little bit a part of the joy that they felt was just a very special treat. And then just a week later to see Sammy Sosa do it in Chicago, hitting two home runs, to win a game that nobody thought they were going to win, to keep the Cubs in this playoff race . . . you find every day you’re just exhausted.”

When McGwire hit No. 62, it was a line drive that barely cleared the left-field wall.

“When it went over the fence, I was surprised--like the 50,000 people there--that he did it,” Caray said. “All I could think to say was, ‘He did it! He did it! He did it!’ I think that’s what everybody in America was saying when the ball went over the fence. And then I finally figured out, ‘OK, he did it. Now shut up.’ ”

When Sosa crushed No. 62 onto Waveland Avenue on Sunday, Caray said, “Move over Big Mac, you’ve got company.”

Later, he realized that sounded a lot like Jack Buck’s call on McGwire’s 60th home run.

“He said, ‘Wake up Babe Ruth, you’ve got company coming,”’ Caray said. “I guess I unknowingly plagiarized his call. That’s what came out. My own personal feeling is, if you plan something to say, it’s going to sound . . . planned. I think the great beauty of this game is its spontaneity.”

Later, as if to demonstrate his point, Caray looked out and saw the St. Louis Cardinals game being shown on the JumboTron in right field. In the middle of answering a question he wound up shifting gears and making an impromptu home run call for an audience of one: “Uh-oh . . . I think Mr. McGwire has just gone out of the ballpark.”

Sure enough, it was McGwire’s 63rd.

This time Caray wasn’t on the air. He may never get the chance to call something as monumental again. Maybe he’s used up his luck.

“There’s a special amount of joy, but it’s also tinged with, ‘Well, geez, what will be the next moment?’ ” Caray said.

There’s a sadness that tinges this entire season, a flip side for every special moment. Caray can’t help but think about how much his grandfather would have enjoyed this, and he wishes Harry Caray had a chance to make the calls.

Harry, the Cubs’ play-by-play voice and party ringleader for 16 years, died during spring training. For Chicagoans it was the equivalent of Princess Diana’s death. The memorial services were carried live on television.

This was supposed to be a special season for Chip because he would get to work with his grandfather. Instead it’s been a momentous season on the field, but a little sad in the broadcast booth.

“Not a day goes by” that he doesn’t think of Harry, Chip said.

Of course, he can’t help but be reminded of his grandfather. The Cubs wear a caricature of Harry on their uniform sleeves. Signs around Wrigleyville pay tribute to the self-proclaimed Cub Fan, Bud Man by saying, “Harry, This Bud’s For You.” The Cubs have lined up celebrity guests to continue Harry’s tradition of singing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during the seventh-inning stretch. When they take the mike, Chip stands to the side of the booth and looks a little forlorn.

Sosa is among those who believe that Harry is somehow orchestrating this magical Cub season from above. When discussing his home run prowess at a pregame news conference Tuesday, Sosa said, “Maybe one of the reasons is because Harry Caray is with me.”

Sosa always honored his mother by tapping his heart and blowing kisses after hitting home runs. This year he added a “V” sign in honor of Harry.

“I can’t tell you what it means to our family,” Caray said.

No one knows what the record-setting number will be or who will hit it. The way things have gone this year, Caray thinks it will be Sosa, off Randy Johnson in Houston on the last day of the season.

But if it happens Saturday, Caray won’t be there. That’s the day he’s in the Fox studios in L.A., hosting the network’s game of the week.

“As much as I love my Fox job, we all want to be a part of that moment,” Caray said.

His once-in-a-lifetime moment has happened twice already. But like Sosa, like McGwire--like all of us--he wants a little more.