"I don't know that I'll last as long as Bob - the fact that he was working in his mid-90s is amazing in any job," Olden said Friday in a telephone interview. "This is one of the best jobs I've ever had, especially coming in the first year and going all the way, the team winning. When this comes along, you want the ride to go for a long time."There had to be a ton of pressure on the guy coming into this year, but he handled it well. He's no Bob Sheppard (nobody is), but he does a good job.
Olden and Sheppard are friends, a relationship forged when Olden was a Yankee broadcaster in the mid-1990s and later when he did Rays games. Olden recalled sitting at Sheppard's corner table in the press dining room at the old Stadium, listening to Sheppard's stories. Sometimes he got Sheppard to tell a few on his pregame show.
Olden knew Sheppard was retiring, saying, "He needed to get to a place where he could hear himself say those words and I think he got there." In recent conversations, Sheppard "kind of gave me his blessing" as his replacement, Olden said.
"That was so important to me," Olden said. "I thanked him. Oh, my gosh, it's almost beyond words to describe a man of his stature saying that to me."
How would you guys rate Olden's first season?
