Oracle Park kayakers in McCovey Cove get big-screen video monitor to track incoming splash hits
San Francisco Giants fans who float in boats and kayaks in McCovey Cove to retrieve "splash hit" home run balls hit out of Oracle Park now have a new way to experience the game thanks to a new addition outside the stadium.
For 58 home games every Major League Baseball season, Mark "The Shark" Gerek paddles out to McCovey Cove and usually comes back empty-handed.
But the few times he's gotten a splash hit, he says, are addictive. One of them was the 100th all-time splash hit, which landed him on sports highlight shows and social media posts nationwide.
"For a minute you don't really realize it's like 'oh, I got the ball' and then about two seconds later, it's 'holy crap. I just got to a splash hit,'" he told CBS News Bay Area. "There's only so many of them. And right now, we're sitting on 103. When 104 hits, you want to be a number and the only way you become a number is to get a splash hit."
For seven seasons, Gerek and other kayakers have patiently listened to radio broadcasts of the games, noting when a left-handed batter is up since they are only players who can hit a ball into the cove.
But thanks to an investment from the Giants - that reportedly cost $100,000 - he now has a 12-foot screen to watch from the water. The video monitor was mounted above the ballpark's portwalk, viewable to both kayakers and passers-by.
"We're not used to it yet," said Gerek. "At first we're like, 'Oh, this is different.' Did it take the mystique away of not seeing it? We're all excited at first, I was like, ah, and then it was like, yeah! It changed real quick."
For Gerek, it isn't just about chasing that home run ball. Gerek says his time on the water has helped him conquer a history of anxiety and depression.
"When I hop in that cove, if there were any worries today it's gone for the three, four hours I'm in the cove," he said.
Another legendary kayaker is Dave Edlund - better known as McCovey Cove Dave - who has retrieved the most splash hits of any kayaker at 53. He said the new screen is taking the bay viewing experience into the modern era.
"It's kind of like when I had a black-and-white TV at home and my dad bought a color TV in 1965," said Edlund. "I couldn't live without it."
It's also expected to attract more kayakers into the cove, adding another layer of safety for fans on the hunt for a splash hit.
"What's happening we're seeing already is the more casual fan that doesn't bring a radio," said Edlund. "They're watching the TV so it's kind of like an early warning system."
Edlund said the screen is the next best thing to happen to the cove since home run king Barry Bonds.
"Barry gave us incredible excitement with all the home runs and batting practice balls he had every time he came up it was electric," said Edlund. "But that TV is the second best thing."
Both superfans are holding out hope for an unlikely big catch this series against the Los Angeles Dodgers - a splash hit from left-handed superstar Shohei Ohtani.
"We're all Giants fans. We want an Ohtani home run if it goes out there," said Edlund. "We have no control over who gets the ball in the cove if the Ohtani ball goes in the cove. Boy, we're gonna want it."
