21-Year-Old Chicago Native Lands Dream Job As Wrigley Field Voice

CHICAGO — At just 21 years old, Jeremiah Paprocki admits that his exposure to professional sports teams in his hometown has been extremely limited, especially since he has yet to even graduate from college.

So, when he heard that the public address announcing job at Wrigley Field — a place he grew up attending Cubs games at with his mom since he was a baby — was open while he was on spring break in Miami, his heart sank. He was in Miami, after all, and not really in a position to physically do anything about a job that would a dream opportunity for the Chicago native.

But when Paprocki learned that the audition was virtual, he decided he wouldn’t let the chance pass — never expecting that two months later, he would have a birds-eye view of Wrigley Field seated behind a microphone with his voice amplified around the Friendly Confines.

“Having them consider me was just such an honor,” Paprocki says in a video released by the Cubs announcing him as the team’s new public address announcer.

“I’m excited to be a professional major league baseball announcer. It’s been a dream of mine since I’ve been a kid.”

In the video, Paprocki credits his mom for instilling a love of baseball — and the Cubs — in him. Together, they would attend games on Chicago’s North Side as long as he can remember. Listening to Cubs broadcasters and PA announcers helped him shape his craft, he said, but never did he imagine he would ever be the official voice of Wrigley Field.

Yet, even after he auditioned for a job left open after Andrew Belleson left the role to pursue broadcasting opportunities, he didn't know what would follow. But when the Cubs followed up and said they had more questions, Paprocki said he expected just that — questions — rather than a job offer.

Paprocki began his new job with Monday night’s game against the Washington Nationals from the press box behind home plate — a far cry from when he would sit in the stands with his mom as a boy and mimic the voice he heard announcing his favorite players.

The video shows Paprocki seated in the booth, looking out onto the field as he prepares to lend his voice to the team of his youth.

Paprocki is currently a senior at the University of Illinois-Chicago, where he has been the voice of the school’s baseball team. A graduate of CICS Northtown Academy, Paprocki said while the role isn’t one he expected to come along, it is one he takes seriously.

“Being the first African-American PA in Cubs history, it definitely means a lot,” he said, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. “I hope that it inspires other African-American boys and girls out there that are interested in broadcasting that opportunities are available to you if you keep going and to never let anything discourage you from pursuing opportunities.”