As the New York Mets continue their magical, improbable season and battle for a spot in the World Series, a Fordham graduate will play a key role in bringing the team’s games to the masses.

Chris Majkowski engineers and produces the Mets’ radio broadcasts on WFAN. It’s a job he got in 1993, four years after graduating from Fordham, where he was athletic director at WFUV. And he hasn’t missed a day of work for the Mets since his sister’s wedding the year he started.

What does your average Mets game day look like?
If it’s a night game, I go to the ballpark around 3 p.m., about four hours before the first pitch, and just set up the booth – do all the wiring, check all the connections, check the studio.

And then it’s, “Okay, what are we doing today on the pregame show?” Then we have other segments during the game: “This Date in Mets History” and the “Electrifying Play of the Game.” The sound needs to be edited for that and I will be doing research for ‘This Date’.

Then the broadcasters and I go over the day’s news and notes, not just for our match, but for the rest of the competition. We make sure we go through the commercial logbook. And then I get something to eat and it’s time to play ball.

And what do you do during the game?
If something comes up during the game, like (play-by-play announcer) Howie Rose says, “Hey, I remember I was back in…” or whatever, I’ll look into that. And all the time I’m mixing the show too. When something happens and the announcers are shouting and the crowd is loud, you have to find a balance.

I also do the messaging for the Mets Radio Booth X account to keep the masses informed and say, “Hey, something’s happening. You might want to tune in.” Don’t ever say there’s going to be a no-hitter, though, because if it doesn’t happen, the fans will tell you that you’ve jinxed everything.

Next year you might play your 5,000th consecutive match. Does hearing or thinking about that streak make you sick?
So the funny thing is, I recently worked an event for Bloomberg Radio, and Cal Ripken Jr., who of course has completed the 2,632-game streak, was there as a guest. I’m not one to ever ask for a photo or anything, (but) I wish I had because I think that would have been pretty neat.

In August I worked on my 5000th game in total. The 5,000th consecutive match will take place sometime next year. Well, 5,000 is a nice round number, so maybe I’ll take the next day off.

Do you have any favorite road towns or ballparks?
San Francisco, Chicago, San Diego for the city. Boston too. That’s not a stop every year, but Fenway is great, and Boston as a city is great. We had a few games against the Phillies in London in June and then in 2000 we went to Tokyo.

Maybe I’ll cut back so I can go back for a trip to London or maybe a trip to Tokyo where I have no responsibilities and can just be a tourist.

Was there a moment when you realized this year’s team might have something special?
You may look back and say, “That was the moment,” but that’s just looking back. Earlier in the season we thought, “Oh, this is one of those years,” and it all fell through. And then suddenly we’re flying to California for a League Championship Series and hopefully beyond. So yeah, it was remarkable.

We’ve had a few years – 2015, now this year – where you have moments where the stadium becomes more of a home. This is our place now. It’s not just a baseball field, it’s not just a ballpark, but this is your home.

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How did you decide to attend Fordham and get involved with WFUV?
At Herricks High School (on Long Island) there was an English teacher who was a Fordham alum, and he always tried to send one or two of us to Fordham a year. Around that same time I started listening One on oneFUV’s sports call show on weekends. So through Mr. Desmond at Herricks High School, and listening to FUV, I was introduced to Fordham, and I applied and was admitted.

When I got to Fordham, I thought I would write more, but it never made it into the papers. A bunch of friends and I were all commuter students and instead of hanging out in the commuter lounge, we hung out in the hallway at FUV.

I started doing some on-air stuff. By the time senior year came around, I was an athletic director. We did the play-by-play for football and basketball and even some baseball. There’s a group of us from the radio station that’s still close, and we get the whole gang together when we can.

And you’re still doing broadcasting work at Fordham?
Yes. I was still in school and started doing the public address for some women’s basketball games. I have continued to do that to this day. Joe DiBari and the athletic department people have been very accommodating. They’ll say, “Hey man, when your schedule allows, we’d love to have you still play the game.”

So I still do a few football games a year and about twenty men’s and women’s basketball games. In a way, it’s like I never left because I’m still there all the time. Once Fordham gets in your blood, it’s hard to get it out.

Interview conducted, summarized and edited by Adam Kaufman, FCLC ’08.