Love of the Game
Oct 01, 2020 12:00AM ● By Story by Shaunna Boyd
Sacramento River Cats broadcaster Johnny Doskow releases a book of haikus titled Goodnight Em. Readers will relate to the poems, which focus on love of the game, love of family, and love of life. Photo provided by Johnny Doskow
SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) - Johnny Doskow, the well-known TV and radio broadcaster for the Sacramento River Cats, recently immortalized his love of the game in a book of haiku focusing on his experiences in both baseball and in life.
Doskow was “raised with the game” and always knew he wanted to call baseball. “I’ve been fortunate to fulfill my dream,” he said. His career began in 1991 calling local sports in Iowa. Two years later he started his first job in professional baseball with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. From there, he moved to California, where he worked with both the High Desert Mavericks and the Fresno Grizzlies before becoming the voice of the Sacramento River Cats in 2001. He also broadcast for the major leagues for 34 games in 2012 with the Oakland A’s.
This past March, with the baseball season forced into hiatus by the coronavirus pandemic, Doskow had no games to call. During his first summer off in 28 years, he started writing. Originally, he didn’t have plans for a book; he was just writing haikus about life and moments he wanted to remember. It was his wife Deb who suggested he write about his life’s passion: baseball. Before he knew it, he had more than enough poems to fill a book. “It just happened organically,” he said.
Doskow has been fascinated by haikus ever since his older brother introduced him to the format as a kid. “I’ve always written them,” Doskow said—even writing them in the margins of in-flight magazines as he traveled during the baseball season. “I never kept any of them,” he said.
Doskow likes the rhythm of haikus (written in a syllable pattern of five, seven, five) and enjoys the challenge of “trying to tell a story in 17 syllables. It’s not easy to do.” Telling a story in such a small space offers the potential for both simplicity and depth. In “Patience,” Doskow writes, “dark cloudy morning/sun squeezing through noon darkness/3 p.m. blue sky.” Such poems ask readers to put themselves into that moment. Doskow hopes that readers can find something to relate to in these poems, something that connects these stories to their own experiences.
In “Scoring,” he writes, “keeping score at game/a religion for some folks/baseball love affair.” For true fans, the book will be like a reading a love letter to the game. Doskow called the writing process “a walk down memory lane,” and the book brings readers on that journey as well. Many of the haikus evoke memories of significant baseball moments—both triumphant and heartbreaking.
In “Sign Off,” Doskow explains the title of the book, Goodnight Em: “ever since her birth/in my broadcast conclusion/my words, ‘goodnight em.’” He started that signature sign-off during the 2006 season when his daughter Emily was just an infant. Long nights at the ballpark and frequent time away from home for away games meant he was often missing his young daughter. The signoff was a way to signify his love and connection to her. When trying to come up with a title for the book, Doskow’s wife Deb suggested Goodnight Em, and he knew instantly that it was perfect.
Goodnight Em honors everything Doskow loves most in this world. The book can be purchased online at www.johnnydoskow.com. It can also be purchased locally at Face In A Book bookstore in El Dorado Hills or at either of the Sacramento locations of Patchamama Coffee (Doskow’s favorite coffee in the world).