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Toucher & Hardy

The perfect day at spring training for Dan Roche

nick By Nick Gemelli

Dan Roche—anchor, host and reporter for WBZ-TV—spent the past few days in Fort Myers, FL covering spring training for the Boston Red Sox. He was gracious enough to get up early and join the Toucher & Rich program after flying into Massachusetts late last night.  

On Wednesday’s show, Jon Wallach asked ‘Rochie’ what a perfect day at Spring Training looks like.

  • jet blue

    Feb 24, 2019; Fort Myers, FL, USA; A general view of the left field wall aka the green monster at JetBlue Park prior to the spring training game between the Boston Red Sox and the Minnesota Twins. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

  • Wallach: Dan Roche gave us all the big-market tease on his Perfect Day at Spring Training. Dan got back from a weekend in Fort Myers with the Red Sox. 

    Dan Roche: Let me start! Five minutes to six o’clock, the alarm goes off. At six, I turn on Toucher & Rich on my app. I like to find out what’s going on in Boston. I listen to you guys and have fun and get ready. 

    Then I meet my photographer downstairs at 7 a.m. Prompt. You can get breakfast in the lobby if you want. That’s an option. You know, grab a cup of coffee. 

    Then we get in the car and drive right to Dunkin Donuts. There’s one down the street from the ballpark. Go in, get my coffee. If you want a breakfast sandwich, you get a breakfast sandwich. 

  • dunkin

    Shutterstock

  • Dan Roche: You drive to the complex, go to the back, get all the equipment out, check in and get your credential. Then there’s a walk. There’s a walk that you take from the outside of the ballpark to where you pick up your credentials. You have to walk down to where the minor league complex is. 

    There it is. You turn left and hear the crack of the bat. The guys are in the cage early. The coaches are all in there too. They’re looking over video because of all the analytic equipment they have now. You hear that crack of the bat. That’s the that’s how you start your day, right? Start your day. 

    And then, you go down and drop your camera/photo guy off. Let them do whatever they need to do. Have another cup of coffee and watch. It’s the morning, people start to walk in, you say, ‘Good Morning!’. 

    The clubhouse is open from eight to nine o’clock. You get a couple of interviews. The guys go into the cage and get extra work in. Maybe they have meetings and what have you. I say good morning to Alex Cora and check in with him. 

    Get a couple more interviews from eight to nine o’clock. I introduced myself to some new players. You know, Adam Duvall, ‘Welcome to Boston! How are you doing? Hope everything is well.’ 

  • Dan Roche: Around nine o’clock, you hear that sound of the clickety-clack of the spikes on the concrete. They open the clubhouse doors and players come to work out. That click, click, click, click, click sound. It’s a good sound and a crisp feeling to your morning. 

    Eventually, you’ll see Jason Varitek and the catchers come out. Tek’s got that game face on, ready to go to work. You watch the catchers get ready to go. And you’ll see guys like Luis Tiant, who was there yesterday. Check in with him. Jim Rice, how are you doing? How’s ‘The Young and the Restless?’ You know, he’s still watching that soap opera, which he has watched for years. So, we talked about that a little bit. 

  • varitek

    Mar 8, 2019; Sarasota, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox guest instructor Jason Varitek (33) prior to the game at Ed Smith Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

  • Dan Roche: Then players go and start their workouts. And then you can kind of pick where you want to go. I want to go to field three and watch infield drills. Then they got bullpens right in front of you. All of this happens around noontime. That’s when Alex Cora comes over to the little picnic tables and does his presser. 

    Then when the clubhouse opens, you get some more sound for the day or whatever you need. Yesterday, Tanner Houck threw live batting practice in the stadium. I did a couple of sit-downs yesterday with Justin Turner and Chris Martin. 

    Then you would walk with your equipment guy around to the press box area. You get in and put together your stories of the day. Then you go live on television at five and six o’clock.

  • Dan Roche: You are able to have fun with Steve Burton, the anchors, and everybody. So, at seven, you usually go to the Miller Alehouse in Fort Myers. Sit at the bar and order a Diet Coke and water. I’ll get the grilled chicken tenders with the sweet Thai chili sauce, please. I’ll do a side of broccoli and a nice salad. 

    And then you get home by 10 o’clock. Go to bed. And you start all over again the next day. I could do that every day. 

  • Full Segment

  • Ryan Beaton is a producer for 985thesportshub.com. You can follow Ryan at @ry_beaton on Twitter.

    Follow @Toucherandrich on Twitter, @Toucherandrichofficial and @fredtoucher on Instagram to keep up with the show!

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