R.A. Dickey and National Pastime Radio

April 11, 2012

Dickey, the Mets knuckleballer, has been the guest on two NPR programs this week, Fresh Air (yesterday) and The Leonard Lopate Show (on Monday). And I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up on Only a Game at some point.

I always find it interesting to hear the same author on multiple outlets: How do the questions differ? Does the guest always answer the same way or tell the same stories? (On both shows, Dickey repeated the advice from former ML catcher Bob Uecker on how to catch a knuckleball: wait til it stops rolling then go and pick it up.)

One of the main buzz points of Dickey’s book is the sexual abuse he suffered as a child. So naturally you would expect that to be a key point of any interview, but I’ve found more time was spent on the standard “road to success” story. Dave Davies was the host for this segment. By a coincidence (?), Fresh Air had recently rebroadcast an interview he had done last year with Brad Ausmus, a veteran catcher now in the Padres’ front office and I found a lot of the questions about “the trade” similar in nature.

Don’t get me wrong: Dickey is a standout interviews. He’s gracious and introspective. It can’t be easy to talk about your fears to strangers. As he explains regarding the abuse, he thought he would be looked upon as a freak, as somehow being at fault for the horrible things that befell him. It’s another reminder about the inner strength of people and how they have the ability to bounce back from difficulties.

As an interviewer, I try to ask different questions, something the guest has not heard before. After all, it must get a it dull, repeating oneself so often. That’s why I always ask something about the creative process. Dickey was an English major at the University of Tennessee (Knoxville), so he has some experience writing. Then there’s the collaborative effort, since just about every athlete who publishes a book does so with some help. I like to know how that works out. (In this case it’s Wayne Coffey of the New York Daily News.)

Dickey will be appearing at the Yogi Berra Museum on May 10 (6 p.m.-7:30 p.m.  For info or to pre-order: (973) 655-2378.); maybe I’ll have the chance.

You can listen to the interviews here:

R.A. Dickey on Fresh Air

R.A. Dickey on The Leonard Lopate Show

 

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