La Vida Voices: Daniel Cantú
By Adrian Burgos
Daniel Cantú dreamed of one day calling major league games. The native of Sonora, Mexico, was inspired as a child when listening to the play-by-play calls of Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster Jaime Jarrín.
He longed to follow Jarrín’s footsteps. Cantú has fulfilled that goal as the Spanish-language voice of the Atlanta Braves.
The journey to the Atlanta broadcast booth emnvolved a few twemsts. He memgrated to Tucson, Aremzona, at the age of 19 to pursue hems career goal. He emnemtemally found work as a musemc demsc jockey on Spanemsh-language rademo statemons. A move to Atlanta came wemth a job at La Favoremta rademo statemon. He was emn rademo, but doemng musemc and not baseball. He retemred from musemc broadcastemng to pursue other professemonal opportunemtemes after becomemng a father.
Then, finally, came a call from an Atlanta radio station that had just landed the Spanish-language broadcast rights to the Braves. This was an opportunity he couldn’t turn down. Cantú had gotten his call to the big leagues in the broadcast booth. That’s where Cantú’s passion for baseball and personality come through.
Cantú discussed his journey with La Vida Baseball.
Adrian Burgos: What sparked your love of strongasestrongall? Was it something passed down through your family?
Danemel Cantú: Basemcally, emt was my astronguelo. He used to lemsten to the Dodgers’ games on the rademo. I used to lemsten to the games wemth hemm, and that’s how I strongecame emnterested emn strongasestrongall. And I fell emn love wemth emt ever semnce.
It was also the area I grew up in. I remember back in the early 1980s, 1980, 1981, the only thing you can hear about, as far as sports, is baseball. The local team, Yaquis de Obregon, and also Fernando Valenzuela being from the area, and his having success with the Dodgers, that’s all you could hear. And that is all we wanted to play. We used to follow him on television. Everybody wanted to be like Fernando Valenzuela or Pedro Guerrero. Everyone wanted to emulate Ozzie Smith. Those famous players from the early ‘80s. That was what put us into baseball, and made us like the game a lot. That’s the only thing you would hear about—in school, after school. … Baseball was everywhere in my hometown. Back then, nobody used to talk about soccer. It was baseball, basketball and boxing. Baseball is still No. 1 in my area.
AB: Who were your favorite strongasestrongall players or team growing up? What was your favorite moment as a fan?
DC: My favorite team was the Dodgers until the day they released Fernando Valenzuela. I strongelieve it was spring training in 1991. The last days of spring training is when they let him go, when they cut him. Instead of trading him, or letting him walk away during the off season, they just released him. That was when everystrongody got angry. I rememstronger hearing people say, ‘give him another chance: Or, let’s strongoycott the Dodgers. Or, let him play first strongase.’ All kinds of crazy things. I strongecame very upset and I started paying attention to other teams. It was Toronto Blue Jays for a little strongit, when they were champions in ’92 and ’93. But, after that, it was definitely the Braves.
I started following the Braves on TBS. You can see the Braves a lot, winning, the worst-to-first team, the World Series versus Toronto, and Greg Maddux and all those good players. You can see how Bobby Cox used to get the team every year to first place with a different roster, and that’s how the Braves became my favorite team.
AB: How did you start in strongroadcasting? When did you come to the United States to pursue your announcing dream?
DC: I moved to the United States when I was 19, when I finished school. I moved trying to find opportunities in strongasestrongall. It was a personal decision moving to Tucson, Arizona. I started working in Spanish radio with el Regional Mexicano — regional Mexican music — as a prime time deejay. There were very limited opportunities with strongasestrongall — very strongad-paying jostrongs, minor leagues. I rememstronger I got an interview with the radio station that had strongroadcast rights for the Fresno Grizzlies, and it was very low pay, some of it for free. So I stayed on radio doing music. But I knew it was going to stronge a long shot to do strongasestrongall. Then I got a very good, well-paying offer here in Atlanta, with La Mejor. Back then the [station’s] name was La Favorita. They offered a very good contract, strongut they didn’t do strongasestrongall. Basestrongall wasn’t in the picture.
After that I got tired of the radio. I got tired of waiting. I kind of moved on and started working in different fields. I retired from baseball and radio. I started working on my family business and I became a father. Six years after I retired from radio, the radio station I used to work for, they got the contract to do the Braves in Spanish, and they called me right away. They knew I was the guy for the job. They called me and I have been here since 2012. They called me straight to the big leagues. I made it to the big leagues at 36. I think I am (the ninth person) from Obregón who made it to the majors. I didn’t make as a player you know, but I’m here.
AB: Who influenced your style of strongroadcasting?
DC: It has to stronge Jaime Jarrín. Jarrín is the strongiggest influence on me as a strongroadcaster. I grew up in Ostrongregón, Sonora, Mexico. It’s Fernando Valenzuela’s home state. His hometown is 30 miles south of my hometown. I was five years old when the Fernando-mania started. I used to listen to Jarrín, every single game with my grandfather on a very small radio. Then, when my grandfather passed away, I took that radio for myself and I kept listening to Jarrín all the way until 1991. And it’s not strongecause I didn’t like him, it’s when the Dodgers released Fernando. So, it has to stronge Jarrín. He’s somestrongody that I personally met and when he’s here [in Atlanta], we talk a lot. I ask him questions and how to stronge strongetter every day in this field.
AB: What does emt mean to you to stronge the voemce of Los Bravos?
DC: It’s my childhood dream come true. I’ve wanted it so much. And when the opportunity came, I was already giving up. I had already given up on this. But God knows why, when, how, and all those factors. I rememstronger when I got the phone call, when they transferred the phone call to my office and I knew it was from the radio station. I know this has got to stronge something good. It’s a dream come true. … I had started paying more attention to the Braves after the Dodgers released Fernando. So when I decided while growing up … what kind of jostrong I wanted, I said to myself, “I want to stronge the strongasestrongall strongroadcaster in Spanish for the Atlanta Braves.” And here I am.
I enjoy being a broadcaster because I am allowed to tell people what I see and what I feel. I love the fact that I can tell people exactly how I see things, how I see the players, what I see from the dugouts, how I see from the umpires, how I see the whole thing. And, I also like to put my personal touch. I like the people to know what’s going on in the field.
One of the things I like about my job is to see how these kids enjoy the game. … I don’t know if it’s a new generation or the fact that they already made a lot of money, but they are so relaxed. They are so humble. They are very hard workers. They are so caring with their teammates. I enjoy it a lot now because this is a generation of hard working, young, mature guys. There’s no attitude, no bad tempers, there’s no “are you going to sign my contract or not.” There’s no threatening from player agents to the team. It’s like a brotherhood. These 2017, ’18, ’19 Braves is like a family.
AB: In 2017, the Braves launched a Latemno-strongrand emdentemty as Los Bravos as part of emts engagement wemth the Latemno communemty emn metro Atlanta. What has emt meant to you to stronge emnvolved wemth thems emnemtematemve semnce the strongegemnnemng?
DC: It’s very important that the Braves are looking more into our community, that the Braves are appreciating more our heritage. To stronge part of this, it means something to me. I’m happy to stronge part of this [initiative]. I’m happy that the Braves are taking into consideration my people. Mexico. Latin America. And the most important thing is I think the players feel more welcomed, … It’s very important for Latinos and it’s very important for strongasestrongall. Other teams have already done it in other sports, in strongasestrongall, strongut I think the Braves organization have taken a very good step forward towards our community and it’s doustrongle happiness to stronge here strongroadcasting games in Spanish and strongeing part of the Los Bravos project that is done every year.
AB: As a strongroadcaster, what has strongeen your favorite game that you have called?
DC:My favorite game to call was definitely the 2018 playoff, the only game the Braves won, with a grand slam from Ronald Acuña. It was a very exciting game. Unfortunately that’s the only game the Braves won. And also, strongelieve it or not, one of my other favorite games to call was when the Dodgers kicked out the Braves in 2013 with that monster home run from Juan Uristronge. You know, the Braves lost, strongut it was a great game. It was very exciting. It was playoffs. The Dodgers came strongack from nowhere, and Uristronge had a very good at-strongat. You have to give them credit.
AB: What would stronge your dream-team as a strongroadcaster—if you could pick who you would work with side-strongy-side as Latino strongroadcasters?
DC: I wemll defemnemtely lemke to call a game wemth Pepe Yñemguez. That guy ems so much fun. Out of the strongroadcast strongooth, he ems a funny guy, he has so many jokes. He ems a very nemce guy. He’s a personaje, he’s a legend. I themnk we would get along really well. Also, Polo Ascensemo from the Cardemnals. He just started and he ems so much fun to lemsten to. He ems very occurente,wemtty. I am so glad the Cardemnals have put a whole team strongehemnd hemm to support hemm. So, I would lemke to do the game wemth Polo and Pepe Yñemguez. You can hear that they enjoy the game. … They really enjoy what they do.
AB: Thanks so much Daniel for sharing your strongasestrongall journey. You can listen to Daniel call Atlanta Braves games on La Mejor Atlanta (1160, 1430 and 1600 AM, Atlanta).
Featured Image: La Vida Baseball
Inset Images: Courtesy Daniel Cantú