Pawtucket play-by-play man Andy Freed is hired to fill the same role with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

01:00 AM EST on Friday, February 11, 2005

BY JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

PAWTUCKET -- There will be no more bus trips for Andy Freed.

The Pawtucket Red Sox play-by-play announcer since 2001, Freed was hired by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays yesterday and will join Dave Wills as the club's new radio voices. Freed, 33, becomes the third PawSox broadcaster in four years to be hired at the Major League level, joining Don Orsillo (NESN) and Dave Flemming (San Francisco Giants).

Freed, a native of Ellicott, Md., which is a suburb of Baltimore, was introduced as the Rays' newest play-by-play voice yesterday in Tampa.

After 11 years in the minors, his hard work and dedication have paid off, so there will be no more early morning or late-night bus trips. When he was informed of his new appointment, he was in the middle of shoveling snow. Now his family is headed to the Sunshine State.

"We're elated," said Freed. "We're truly sad to be leaving the Pawtucket Red Sox. It's been our home since 2001, and I had looked forward to working in Pawtucket for so many years prior to that. But this call came and it's a great offer and it's impossible to turn down. My wife (Amy), daughter (Sarah) and I are just thrilled to get started. It's been 11 years in the minor leagues and a lot of years before that, waiting and preparing myself through college and high school to do this. To get this is wonderful validation that the work has paid off."

Freed twice had on been on the cusp of landing a Major League job, including Anaheim (2002) and Florida (1997). Undaunted, he continued to hone his skills in the minors, and has produced a very impressive résumé.

Some of his highlights include calling Bronson Arroyo's perfect game on Aug. 10, 2003, and working the Triple-A All-Star game at McCoy Stadium last season. Prior to his stint in Pawtucket, Freed began his work in the Red Sox organization in 1996 for Double-A Trenton. He spent five seasons as the voice of the Thunder before coming to Pawtucket.

While he was a communications major at Towson State University, he worked as a broadcast assistant for the Baltimore Orioles' flagship station for three years. Following graduation in January of 1994, he immediately became the voice of the St. Lucie Mets of the Florida State League for two seasons.

All the bus trips, early mornings and even later nights paid off.

"I have such an appreciation now, and I always did, for the players and what they go through and sacrifice," said Freed. "I now know what it is like to get called into the manager's office and get the call [to the majors]. You spend so much time honing your craft and working on it, and there are so many things that people don't see that you do. You have to dedicate your life to this, whether it's from a player or broadcaster and front-office member, so to get that call was an amazing moment."

While Freed had been waiting in the wings for an opportunity, other minor league broadcasters had made the jump to the majors. He bided his time, hoping his chance would come.

"The way I've always looked at it," he said, "anytime a minor league broadcaster can break through, it's not only validation for everyone, you realize your work isn't going unseen. I think there's a trend to give minor league broadcasters a shot. We wear so many hats and we're willing to run through a brick wall, and we're elated to be here. To me, if you can work in the minor leagues and build yourself up, that takes a lot of dedication and a lot of time."

His passion to become a broadcaster began when he was a boy growing up in the suburbs of Baltimore. He used to bring a tape recorder to the old Memorial Stadium and would do play-by-play of his hometown Orioles.

"You've got to want to learn," he said. "Egos aside, all the glamour in the business is perceived anyway. The craft of it is still the best part. I still love doing baseball broadcasting now as much as I did when I was 8 years old and lugging my tape recorder to the games. It's the same thing, but you get a paycheck for it now."

But the best part of his new job is that "(I can tell) my family and my parents (I)" made it to the majors.