We have radio personnel news today from the Bowling Green Hot Rods (Low A; Midwest League) and the Walla Walla Sweets (summer collegiate; West Coast League).
In Bowling Green, Alex Cohen is the new play-by-play voice and Manager of Broadcasting and Media Relations for the Hot Rods. Cohen will be responsible for all 140 regular season games and any playoff action on 1340 WBGN – The Ticket, as the Hot Rods have also renewed their existing radio agreement from last season. The former Pioneer and Southern league broadcaster replaces Danny Reed, who was recently named the Director of Broadcasting with Georgia Southern University.
“We’re thrilled to add Alex as the fifth voice in Hot Rods history,” said Hot Rods General Manager and Chief Operating Officer Adam Nuse. “He joins Tom (Gauthier), Hank (Fuerst), Andrew (Kappes) and Danny (Reed) on our list of successful broadcasters and great storytellers. We are confident that the listeners on 1340 WBGN – The Ticket will enjoy hearing Alex over the course of the season.”
Cohen, 27, has broadcasted over 500 professional baseball games while working in affiliated baseball since 2009. Prior to serving as the Director of Broadcasting for the Idaho Falls Chukars (Adv-Rookie/Kansas City Royals) in 2015, the Philadelphia-area native was the play-by-play broadcaster for the Huntsville Stars (Class-AA/Milwaukee Brewers) for two seasons. He has also worked a season in the big leagues with the Oakland Athletics in their Broadcast department and spent his first two years working in baseball as an intern in the Media Relations department with the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs (Class-AAA/Philadelphia Phillies).
In addition to his stateside baseball experience, the Indiana University graduate has also had the opportunity to broadcast baseball globally. After spending last fall in Australia as the voice of the Melbourne Aces of the Australian Baseball League, Cohen went to Asia this past November as one of a handful of broadcasters selected to broadcast the Premier 12 games in Taiwan.
“Knowing the type of reputation this organization has from a broadcast, business and baseball standpoint, I can’t wait to get started and call Hot Rods baseball in a few months,” said Cohen. “April baseball at Bowling Green Ballpark can’t come soon enough.”
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In Walla Walla, Zach Bigley returns as Communications Coordinator and Broadcaster for the 2016 season. He will serve as the play-by-play voice of the Sweets on the club’s flagship radio station, ESPN Walla Walla. Bigley will return to Walla Walla after serving in the same role during the 2015 season.
“Zach did an incredible job for us last season and we are excited to have him back behind the microphone in 2016,” said Sweets general manager Katie Biagi.
Bigley is a native of Eugene, Oregon and is a junior at the University of Oregon where he is majoring in journalism with a focus in broadcasting. He works for KWVA Sports doing play-by-play broadcasting for Oregon volleyball and softball, as well as local high school basketball and softball.
“Last season was a dream-come-true for me. I enjoyed waking up every day knowing that I would be headed to the ballpark to talk about baseball,” said Bigley. “This summer I look forward to getting back in to the booth and gaining new experiences while traveling around the West Coast League.”