MLB On ESPN Spotlight: ESPN employees who are hard at work bringing you MLB coverage (Part 4)
(Photo courtesy Alexandra Leogrande)
“Alexandra is one of the go-to people at Baseball Tonight. She is always ready to help and not afraid to take the extra step to make sure things get done for BBTN.”
Front Row is continuing its MLB on ESPN Spotlight series this week with a special look at Alexandra Leogrande, Baseball Tonight content associate. Alexandra is one of the several employees working behind-the-scenes on ESPN’s Major League Baseball property. She explains her ESPN MLB role, the rewarding elements of her job and her favorite memories from work.
How would you describe your ESPN MLB job?
As content associates on Baseball Tonight, there are a wide variety of assignments we handle. Our main job is to pitch, produce and cut video content for our daily BBTN shows, such as post-game sound, montages and “Web Gems.” We also work with our BBTN analysts to break down key plays and help them explain their analysis through telestrated video elements. As content associates, we are also responsible for producing segments for ESPN.com and producing graphics for the show.
Wild Card Game On Oct. 6
The 2015 Major League Baseball postseason begins exclusively on ESPN with the American League Wild Card Game telecast presented by Hankook Tires on Tuesday, Oct. 6 at 8 p.m. ET. Jessica Mendoza will become the first female analyst to call a nationally televised MLB postseason game when she joins fellow analyst John Kruk and play-by-play veteran Dan Shulman, the voice of Sunday Night Baseball. ESPN MLB Insider Buster Olney will be reporting. For more information, visit ESPNMediaZone.
What is the most rewarding aspect of your job?
Being a part of the Baseball Tonight team is something of which I am extremely proud. I work with a lot of talented people who care about baseball and our show. Having a small impact on the content we execute through 300-plus shows each year is very rewarding. This season, I’ve been challenged with writing and editing a piece for air in the same day and producing my first show, things I would not have been able to do just a season ago. Seeing the growth in myself is one of the most rewarding parts of the job.
What’s your best moment/memory at work?
I don’t think I can pick just one. Being fortunate enough to travel to Kansas City for last year’s World Series was an amazing experience, as was working at the All-Star Game this year in Cincinnati. I will never forget how loud the park got every time [Reds star] Todd Frazier hit a home run during the Derby. There are many other moments I enjoy like listening to [ESPN MLB reporter] Tim Kurkjian’s baseball stories and watching games with our analysts in the green room. ([ESPN MLB analyst] Alex Cora called [New York Mets star] David Wright’s home run in his first at-bat returning from the DL in August! We all cheered when he was right.)
Who’s your MLB team?
My team is the Yankees. I grew up in upstate New York, but my grandfather was the one who taught me to love not only the Yankees, but the beautiful game of baseball. Hearing his stories and memories of the Yankees – and then watching countless games with him – was one of my favorite things to do growing up.
