His legacy stretches beyond the diamond
From workmates to roommates, sports commentator Rod Black reminisces about Joe Carter
Rod Black still laughs at the memory.
The scene was Augusta, Ga., more than a decade ago, in a house rented for various Canadian media covering the Masters.
“One of our producers woke up and came scurrying back upstairs,” recalls Black.
“He said, ‘There’s a man asleep downstairs and he looks like Joe Carter.’ “I had to tell him, ‘that is Joe Carter.’ ” Black’s career has meant he’s filled many roles beamed into Canadian living rooms over the years. He is now primarily a playby-play voice for CFL broadcasts and studio host for Raptors telecasts, both on TSN. But not long after Carter retired from playing baseball, he and Black formed a dynamic partnership for two seasons on Sportsnet, in 1999 and 2000.
That year, in Augusta, came a few years after they had worked together. Carter had arrived in Augusta with a friend and didn’t have a place to stay. The rent between former colleagues? “He made us the best pecan pie,” recalls Black with a laugh.
Black’s association with Carter goes back to his time as CTV studio host during Carter’s time in a Blue Jays uniform, highlighted by the World Series triumphs in 1992 and 1993. But the friendship really took hold during their two seasons together in the broadcast booth. Leading them to spend more than their fair share time together on the golf course.
“Joe hits the golf ball the way he hit a baseball,” says Black, noting one key difference. “I always used to kid him, ‘You know, Joe, you have to play your foul balls now.’
“We’ve played a lot of good golf courses — we touched them all.”
One of their most memorable times together was when Carter and Black were on
the road together in Cleveland, in July 2000, when Black’s wife was about to give birth to their son, Tyler. Tyler showed little regard for his dad’s work schedule, arriving in Toronto on the day his dad was supposed to be calling the game between the Jays and the Indians. Black managed to be present at his son’s birth and still get to Cleveland in time to make the call for what turned out to be an 8-1 Blue Jays victory.
There was a problem: Black had nowhere to stay and Carter’s room only had a single bed.
“I slept with Joe Carter,” laughs Black, later noting that at least Carter had the courtesy to bring a blow-up mattress in Augusta. Black assumes his role as MC for this year’s event and promises to fill the role as long as his friend wants him to. The native Winnipegger makes no secret of his admiration for his former workmate (or roommate) and his charitable efforts with the Joe Carter Classic, and other ventures.
“Joe’s legacy will be not only what he did on the baseball diamond . . . he’s also given so much of himself.
“I grew up in Winnipeg and I saw how a guy like Bobby Hull gave so much of himself, and I see a lot of that with Joe Carter. And it’s not always things that you see in the public eye; a lot of what Joe does to help out is not visible.
“He knows that you only get out of it what you put into it.”
“I always used to kid him, ‘You know, Joe, you have to play your foul balls now.” ROD BLACK SPORTS BROADCASTER