Knocking it Out of the Park: Alum Comes Home to Tape Episodes of Chicago Cubs Talk Show

Brigham Avery ’04 turned his lifelong love of the Chicago Cubs into a star-studded talk show celebrating fandom at the Friendly Confines.

In May, Avery brought that original production, Hollywood and Ivy, to Dominican University’s Lund Auditorium, taping two episodes of the Marquee Sports Network program with the biggest voices in Cubs baseball: play-by-play announcers Pat Hughes and Miguel Esparza.

“I got to be the first Cubs radio announcer ever to say, ‘the Chicago Cubs have won the World Series,’” noted Hughes, a Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer whose radio career with the north siders spans 30 years.

Esparza, the Spanish voice of the Cubs since 2018, shared his joy of announcing games that are heard in Latin American countries where families of many Major League Baseball players live.

“I’m able to bring baseball to all corners of the world, which is amazing,” he said. The taping with Hughes also featured special guest Joe Mantegna, award-winning actor, Cubs fan and Avery’s co-executive producer of Hollywood and Ivy, who checked in via Zoom from California to chat.

Avery graduated from Dominican with a degree in communication—setting the groundwork for projects like his talk show.

“Dominican’s faculty and staff—everyone—taught me to believe in myself,” Avery said. “And that’s what Hollywood and Ivy is a product of: believing and knowing that you can make things happen.”

Dr. Christine Platt, assistant professor of communication arts and sciences at Dominican, brought her grandson along to watch the live tapings, and both wore their favorite Cubs gear.

“While our students are frequently focused on that immediate first step after graduation, events like this broaden their horizons,” Platt noted. “Alumnae/i like Mr. Avery returning to campus provide a critical bridge, giving students a firsthand look at what can be achieved years after graduation through their education, dedication and willingness to dream big.”