In a recent phone interview with MLB.com, broadcaster Dave Sims, 71, answered a wide range of topics, from his new gig as the radio voice of the Yankees to how his signature phrase, ¡°Hey Now,¡± came about.

MLB.com: What has life been like since you were named the radio voice of the Yankees last week?

Dave Sims: My text messages approached 400. I feel like I have 800-900 direct messages via Instagram and X. It has been phenomenal. The other thing that has been mind-blowing is, people in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest have said, ¡°Love you. Bummed that you are leaving. I couldn¡¯t be happier for you. Go get ¡®em. You are going home.¡± It doesn¡¯t get much better than that.

MLB.com: You will join Bill White as the second African American to do Yankees play-by-play on a full-time basis. How significant is this assignment for you?

Sims: It¡¯s funny you mention Bill White. A producer in Philly that I know called me yesterday and said, ¡°You have to come to [Pennsylvania] and get a picture with Bill White.¡± I said, ¡°Heck, yeah. We¡¯ll make that happen.¡± We¡¯ll probably do that after Thanksgiving.

Bill is obviously one of my heroes. When he was the National League president, he started making calls trying to help me get a big league gig. First of all, Bill was a great player, and I enjoyed him on those great Cardinals teams. Then he came over to the Phillies. His first on-air gig was in Philly. I remember they made him sports director [on WFIL-TV] and they had a hockey game and they made him call a hockey game. He didn¡¯t know anything about hockey. His baseball broadcasting career? Forget about it. High marks. Why he is not in the Baseball Hall of Fame, I have no idea. That¡¯s just rude. He did it as a player, president of the National League and longtime iconic broadcaster for the Yankees. It¡¯s awesome to follow in the footsteps of Bill White. I couldn¡¯t be more proud of that. It¡¯s an unbelievable honor.

MLB.com: Your radio partner will be Suzyn Waldman. This will be a reunion of sorts because both of you worked together on WFAN during the late 1980s and early ¡®90s. How good is it to be together again?

Sims: It¡¯s going to be great. She covered the Knicks when I was doing the Knicks pre- and postgame shows, as well as doing the talk show with Ed Coleman. We would talk multiple times a week about the Knicks and the NBA. We had a good time. We would needle each other. And then the relationship would become more friendly when I got the Mariners job in 2007. ¡­ Now we can do that baseball talk, personal talk and all that good stuff. We are really going to be hanging out, and I¡¯m looking forward to it.

MLB.com: How much are you looking forward to watching Aaron Judge on a regular basis?

Sims: Judge is a great dude. When I saw him in May, I told him I¡¯m shooting for this gig. I told him and Gerrit Cole separately and they said, ¡°I hope you get it. We are rooting for you.¡± Judge is a spectacular player. He had an unfortunate moment [unable to catch a routine fly ball] in Game 5 [of the World Series], and that¡¯s baseball. He is a smart, caring and a terrific player. Baseball-wise ¨C oh, my goodness ¨C he is so good.

It all fits into the big picture being with the Yankees. It¡¯s an iconic franchise. I know there are a lot of people who say, ¡°They haven¡¯t won a World Series since 2009.¡± Guess what? You still pay attention [to them] every day during the baseball season.

MLB.com: In Seattle, you were known as a homer. Will your style change in New York?

Sims: [Laughing] All home team announcers are homers. I don¡¯t think I ever said, ¡°We, us, them and they.¡± But ¡­ when the Mariners were winning, you can tell by the energy and tone of the voice on who I was rooting for, which everybody does. ¡­ You can hear, ¡°and the Mariners win the game, 2-1!!¡± If that¡¯s being a homer, so be it. ¡­ If you want to go there, I¡¯ll tell you what. I¡¯m having fun. It¡¯s a great gig, a great life. That¡¯s the way I roll.

MLB.com: Your signature phrase is ¡°Hey Now.¡± How did that come about?

Sims: I grew up on American Standard music ¨C Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra. I love the song, ¡°I Got The World On A String.¡± It was written in 1932 during the depression and it was recorded by a lot of people. I¡¯m a Sinatra fan and it just hit me. At the end of the song, it goes, ¡°Hey now, I¡¯m so in love.¡± The other reference comes from Howard Stern and he used the catchphrase, Hey Now, a lot [on his radio show]. As opposed to cussing or saying he hit the hell out of the ball, it just hit me one night. I said it a few times, but the Mitch Haniger base hit [in 2021] was so joyous. I was so happy. It¡¯s very effective for me. It really resonated with people.

MLB.com: My first memory of you was as an NBA writer with the New York Daily News. Do you ever think about writing again?

Sims: I¡¯m putting out a memoir. I don¡¯t know when that¡¯s going to come out. My wife and I are writing that. [Now] I spend a lot of time getting my workouts in and prepping for games. I like writing, but I love broadcasting. The writing chops developed when I was at the Philadelphia Inquirer and the New York Daily News. They come into play every day, crafting the narrative of a broadcast. So basically I¡¯m writing all the time. I¡¯m not just writing for print.

MLB.com: How good is it to have your two sons, Jarett and Jordan, involved in your podcast, ¡°Hey Now?¡±

Sims: Yeah, man. It¡¯s a lot of fun. We developed an on-air chemistry and rhythm. They are getting confident, which I really like. Almost everybody that comes on says, ¡°This is so cool what you are doing with your sons.¡± I had a great relationship with my dad. I have a great relationship with my guys. It¡¯s my Ben Cartwright [Bonanza] moment.

MLB.com: What do you want Yankee fans to know about you?

Sims: I lived in New York my entire professional life. I have a foundation in Philly, but my life is in New York and with a stop off in Seattle. I¡¯m home. This is my life. This is one heck of an opportunity to put a ribbon on it. I¡¯ll tell you what: I¡¯m all in. Let¡¯s go Yankees. I¡¯m so looking forward to this.