A Grip on Sports: Radio is fading as a mass-market medium but it still holds a place in baseball, and in baseball’s pull on us

A GRIP ON SPORTS • It seems like another great day to take a spin around the dial, if anything electronic had dials anymore. And no, dials weren’t better, no matter what your memories are trying to sell.

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• Late on a hot summer night, driving down a highway just south of nowhere. Alone. The only company a finicky AM radio built into the dash, usually reserved for oldies – before they were oldies.

There had to be a baseball game on somewhere. A 50,000-watt station bouncing its signal off the atmosphere or some such thing. But finding it while driving, that was the challenge. One eye on the road, one hand on the wheel, one mind laser-focused, trying to move the radio dial ever-so-slowly, one kilohertz at a time.

Click, click, click. The miles roll by. So do country-western stations. News. An occasional preacher asking for a few bucks. But baseball remains elusive.

Until, finally, a game. You listen closely. It’s not a power station from a big city but a nearby minor-league game from a minor station in the middle of a mining town. Good enough.

The voice comes through the beat-up speakers. Nothing special, but you try to catch the name. Just in case. There always comes a time when yesterday’s beginners are tomorrow’s Hall of Fame candidates.

It could be Robert Ford doing a Yakima game. Or Rich Waltz in the Spokane booth. Or Rick Rizz from Amarillo.

Everyone has to start somewhere. The voices your radio might pick up on a long drive through the West? That voice just might sound familiar a couple decades down the road.

• Rizz held a press conference Wednesday. And put some pressure on Mariner manager Dan Wilson. Made it clear going out with a World Series title, heck even a World Series appearance, would be storybook.

Of course it would be. And not just for Rizz. For every Mariner fan who grew up listening to Dave Niehaus or Ron Fairly or Rizz himself.

A couple generations have come. Some are already gone. It’s time. Past time, actually.

• If you are wondering, pitchers and catchers report to Peoria on Feb. 12. That’s exactly two weeks from today.

• By then Gonzaga’s basketball’s fortunes will be better known. A big part of it will be written Saturday night in the Kennel. Saint Mary’s makes its last WCC visit. The one conference team with the pedigree and resume – 19-3 record, 36th in KenPom, 30th in NET – to give the sixth-ranked Zags – resume: 21-1, 10th in KenPom, fourth in NET – a challenge.

But which Zags? There is no way it will be the entire roster. Braden Huff (knee) will still be out. And there is no word whether Graham Ike (ankle) will be ready to play. Mark Few’s Lollipop Guild lineup may have to make another appearance.

• Washington State’s men are playing better. Last night’s 12-point home win over Seattle U. drove that home. A big part of that? The emergence of wing Ri Vavers, whose outside shooting – he made five 3-pointers against the Redhawks en route to 24 points – has opened lanes for others.

Offensive basketball emphasizes spacing. A simple concept that becomes more available when a team can force defenses to stretch to shooters.

Vavers’ recent performances – three consecutive double-figure scoring efforts – have done just that.

• Here it is, the middle of winter. Heck, not even the middle. That’s still a week or two away. The NFL season isn’t over yet for goodness sake. And yet baseball, local baseball, is in the news.

Not just Rizz’s retirement. Avista Stadium news. Thanks to a couple surprises, the remodel of the venerable facility is still on-going. And will be even as the season gets going.

The place will have a new video board, one that was scheduled to be in place last season. Stuff happens. It should be ready for this one.

The other big winter project? Not scheduled. At least not as last season ended. Then a fire burned the large concession facility. It’s being rebuilt. But won’t be ready for opening day.

Come June and the meat of the Indians’ schedule? The almost 70-year-old place should be humming along.

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WSU: I mentioned the Cougars’ win above. Greg Woods has the game coverage, which I linked above and here as well. … Zevi Eckhaus almost left Pullman last winter. He had entered the portal. But then-new coach Jimmy Rogers enticed him back. And now Eckhaus takes his place as the Pac-12’s Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Down the road, few will remember there were only players from two schools competing for the honor. Besides, Eckhaus’ credentials are such the conference could have had 12 members and he probably would have won. … Elsewhere in the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, the Washington women, ranked 25th, went to Maryland last night and got past the 16th-ranked Terps 83-80 in double overtime. … Oregon won by double digits at Rutgers. … Second-ranked UCLA has won 14 consecutive games. … Colorado has a big road test at Kansas State. … Arizona State got back on the winning track at the expense of rival Arizona in a storied Big 12 showdown. Yes, I’m still ticked. … San Diego State won its 12th consecutive game, topping Colorado State yesterday. … Utah State fell to Grand Canyon. … The Washington men will face off with No. 9 Illinois tonight. … Oregon State battled past Loyola Marymount for a sweep of the season series. … Oregon is not just reeling. The Ducks are disappearing. They lost to visiting UCLA by 16, their seventh consecutive defeat. … Despite 33 points from Kam Wood, USC couldn’t complete a comeback in Iowa, falling 73-72 on late free throws. … Iowa State is the eighth-ranked team in the nation. And reeling Colorado’s next opponent on the road. … Utah State shot down Wyoming, winning by 32. The Aggies also revealed a fund-raising initiative as they prepare to join the Pac-12. … Both Bay Area schools suffered defeats a long way from home. … How does this top-ranked, 21-0 Arizona team compare to the last Wildcat squad to do that? … Host San Diego State defeated Colorado State to stay in first place in the Mountain West.

• In football news, John Canzano found another West Coast connection to the Clemson/Ole Miss transfer spat. … Who did well in the transfer portal among the Power Four schools? And who did not? … Oregon isn’t listed in either category but the Ducks have been dealing with a roster rebuild nonetheless. … Washington added a receiver from Ohio State. … USC has rebuilt its defensive coaching staff. Well, the Trojans hired a new coordinator with a long resume. … One last story. The University of Utah finally has an on-campus baseball facility.

Gonzaga: Another subject I mentioned (and linked) above? The Bulldogs’ smaller lineup, one invented after a couple of “mother, why does my leg hurt” injuries. Theo Lawson delves into the small lineup and how it may match up with the Gaels come Saturday (7:30 p.m., ESPN). … Speaking of small, freshman Paige Lofing isn’t the tallest Zag guard. But Lisa Fortier’s team has appreciated her big contributions lately. Greg Lee has more in his weekly women’s basketball notebook.

Idaho: Peter Harriman spent some time this week on this story, highlighting the relationship between the Vandals’ Debora dos Santos and women’s basketball coach Arthur Moreira. It was a rapport developed even before either moved to the Palouse.

Preps: There was GSL wrestling last night (covered in this roundup) and some GSL teams will be competing in something new this weekend. Madison McCord shares a look at the first year of the wrestling coaches’ association-sponsored team duals tournament.

Indians: I linked Dave Nichols Avista Stadium construction update above. And do so again here.

Seahawks: As the Hawks continue to prepare for the Super Bowl, there is a story that has been pushed to the background a bit. Kenneth Walker III is not under contract for next season. … Speaking of Walker, he did not appear on the injury report the Seahawks had to produce yesterday. Being he’s basically flying solo at running back, that’s good news. Other big names were though. … Klint Kubiak is still in the running for the remaining two head coach openings. If he leaves after the season, Seattle will be retooling the offense once again. … The Hawks and Pats faced some of the same teams this season. … I found a Sam Darnold story. Well, sort of. I count it anyway. He’s No. 1 on this list.

Mariners: Adam Jude’s Rizz story from the press conference yesterday is linked above. And here too.

Kraken: A bunch of folks threw their hats on the ice when they thought Jared McCann had scored his third goal. But it was disallowed. The team says it will make it good for everyone.

Golf: Brooks Koepka won’t be alone as a LIV expatriate rejoining the PGA Tour. But Patrick Reed’s stunning announcement also includes the news he’ll have to wait longer to regain his Tour card and his Captain America title. … This week the Tour is in San Diego. At Torrey Pines. One of the few venues it plays that I can say I teed it up on as well. I’m sure I lost more balls than will the entire field combined this week.

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• The past few days have been a struggle for me in my quest to have this column on the Interweb in a timely manner. Not to bore you but it seems odd in 2026 to have to still figure out small ways to defeat the gremlins that reside in computer systems. You would think I would have learned not to feed them after midnight. Until later …