Baseball's Best Walk-Up Songs

By: Nick CEsare

Baseball is an individual game. Some call it a team sport compiled by individual performances and its true. A major league at bat is the most unique spectacle in sports. As a player, I can tell you an at-bat can be equal parts an incredibly triumphant experience and can also be incredibly lonely when things don’t go well. The three main characters in a baseball player’s life are me, myself, and I. 

Think about it. The hitter is literally one guy against nine defenders. And you know what? He can beat them. Lionel Messi and Ezekiel Elliot can’t get through 9 defenders. One swing of the bat can outscore the opposing defense; the other team. One of MY hottest baseball takes is that the game’s stars don’t get their national due because you can’t watch its stars the way you watch LeBron and Steph Curry. Those two are on your screen 80% of the game. On the flip side, 45 minutes may go by in a baseball game without seeing Mike Trout. Every major leaguer knows when their number is called, it’s time to put on a show. Their goal is to turn the at bat into a party. 

So it makes all the sense in the world that each hitter’s song should get the crowd’s attention. After all, it’s the hitter’s party; however long it lasts. The ethos behind each song should be threefold. The song should be equal parts a personal statement, crowd pleaser, and tone setter. Call it showmanship. Call it attention seeking. When you go to a party you want good ambiance. Good atmosphere. Good music. Vibes. 

The idea is for everyone to have a good time. You’re at baseball game for God’s sake. Like I said, there is an ambiance to achieve. The at-bat is not a rave. Hitters choose their walk up songs to get locked in rather than get amped out of their mind. Hitting is rhythmic and fluid. Hitters simply don’t have the time to get hyped up and come back down in their leisurely stylized walk to the batter’s box. Minds need to be clear and he needs to have his song of choice speak for himself. Finally, I will say another factor for me in forming this list was how well each song could work in a batting cage playlist. 

Now I never pitched, so I’m really an offense guy. The best hitters have the best swag. Pitchers are quirky weirdos but I’ve made sure they get some love in my list. Even if it may be at their expense. Without further ado- here is my list for the best entrance music in Major League Baseball:

10. Voodoo Child—Jimi Hendrix (Mike Piazza)

    Some home cooking from me to start us off. (If there is a lot of home cooking, I apologize but Citi Field is my best data point.) Voodoo Child fit Hall-of-Fame Mets catcher Mike Piazza perfectly. In addition to Piazza being a noted rock fan, the iconic opening guitar riffs of the song seemed to bounce in unison with the hair sticking out of his helmet. Bonus points awarded for this choice because there used to be a Hendrix impersonator outside Shea all the time in the late 90s/early 2000s. Voodoo Child, and Hendrix in general, just have presence. Piazza was his team’s superstar and the focal point of his team’s offense. Nothing got Shea going more than Piazza coming up in a clutch situation. 

9. The Man—Aloe Blacc (Troy Tulowitzki and David Ortiz)

    “Oh sure be more cliché, this list sucks.”

    It kind of works though. Tightly written, and controlled in a way I find soothing. As I previously explained, the goal isn’t to get psyched up that you can’t work your way back down. Controlled aggression, ready when you call on it. Also, hitters just need some positive reinforcement every once in a while. And David Ortiz was the man.

8. Alright—Kendrick Lamar (Austin Jackson) 

    Its true, we’re all going to be all right. Sometimes big leaguers have to remind themselves that they’re going to fail at least 7 times out of 10 and they will still be alright. Or you can be Austin Jackson and fail more like 8 times than 7, then you really need the positivity. 

7. Your Love—The Outfield (David Wright, Charlie Blackmon, others)

    Similar to Careless Whisper (which is coming up), Your Love made the list because its light, fun, and just keeps you from gripping that bat too tight. Plus, it's a crowd favorite. I remember when the Mets’ David Wright used it, and the crowd would finish singing “toniiiiight” as the sound system cut through Shea. David Wright has never been known for his musical tastes and stylings (see Ladies and Gentlemen by Saliva... yikes), but I think this was his best by far. For Mr. Blackmon, it’s an artistic fit because he’s a centerfielder. He’s a big beard guy too so you know he’s going to have music that will surprise you.

6. Can't Stop—Red Hot Chili Peppers (Anthony Rizzo)

    Used by the Cubs’ Anthony Rizzo inside the friendly confines of Wrigley Field. What I like about it most is that the beginning of the song builds and builds without ever going over the top. Gets the player hyped up just enough, similar, if not more aggressive than “The Man” in that regard. It’s a likable song. Anthony Rizzo is a likable guy. It works for him. 

5.  Panda—Desiigner (Alex Rodriguez, Lorenzo Cain) 

    In terms of getting in the zone, I think this is a damn good choice. The beat just glides and locks you in before you realize what’s happened. This is a near perfect song to hit in the cage with too. It picks up by the end, but for entrance purposes we only need the best 15 or so seconds anyway. 

4. Careless Whisper—George Michael (Josh Reddick, Zack Greinke)

    Incredibly bold, but goofy, choice. In 2014, Josh Reddick made this his song with Oakland and it went viral. I think this takes a certain personality to pull off. The eccentric pitcher Zach Greinke has also used Careless Whisper in his mix through the years. I guess you can call it a West Coast thing. I put Careless Whisper this high on the list because the guys who use it don’t seem to take themselves too seriously. That’s a huge trait to have as a ballplayer! If you can have fun whether you’re hot or slumping you’ve won the day in my book. 

3. Blessings—Big Sean feat. Drake (Robinson Cano, David Ortiz, Jose Reyes)

    Not even a Drake guy. I thought I should give him some love because he’s one of the most popular artists among big leaguers. I’d also just feel bad about myself if I didn’t think David Ortiz, Robinson Cano, and Jose Reyes had good taste in walk up music. So boom that’s the fast track to the list: batflip and swag your way on so that no one will ever question your choices. Anyway let’s face it, big leaguers are blessed. They play a game for a living and they busted their butts to get there.

2. Circle of Life—Carmen Twillie, Lebo M. (Yoenis Cespedes)

    Pretty sure I was at the first game Cespedes used Circle of Life. I thought it was a promo for Broadway to be honest. Then it hit me “oh no way this is actually a thing.” By Yoenis’ 3rd at bat that night, two twelvish year old looking kids were holding up their gloves a la baby Simba. By the 4th at bat more people in our section were doing it. 5th at bat, more and more. Circle of Life, and Glove-Simba (Simba Glove?) became a staple the rest of the season as Yoenis performed his now annual late season heroics to push the Mets into the playoffs. This isn't just a gimmick. This is who Yoenis Cespedes is. The legend and cult of personality around the man known as “La Potencia” has grown to mythic proportions in Queens in a relatively short span of two years. 

1. Kashmir—Led Zeppelin (Chase Utley)

    For a long time, it was not a Mets-Phillies game for me at Citizen’s Bank Park until you heard Kashmir blaring in the background on TV and saw S̶a̶t̶a̶n̶ Chase Utley, packed lip and all, stroll up to the box, take a few quick cuts and dig in. Roughly 10 seconds later he would take a ridiculous half swing and scraped the ball over the short porch at CBP for a home run and wrench my soul once more in the process. 

What I like about Kashmir is the tempo. The song has a foreboding gravitas that allows the hitter to take his time to the box without feeling rushed. They don’t call Chase Utley “the man” for nothing. Showmanship. I never want Utley to top any list of mine other than a list of people I want dead but Kashmir is just so so so bad ass. This is me tipping my cap to an old nemesis for his impeccable choice in walk up music. 

Now let’s talk about pitchers and their music. I’m going to stick with bullpen guys because they have the music everyone remembers. Grand entrances George Costanza would dream of.  Relievers are often the most eccentric players on the team. They usually throw hard for one inning and get the hell out of dodge, hopefully with their team’s lead in-tact. Mariano Rivera had Enter Sandman and Trevor Hoffman had Hell’s Bells. In today’s game late inning relievers have followed their blueprint for entrance music that is really their hallmark. Here’s a good barometer for closers/late inning relievers—if you turn around to get that last beer or hot dog, or to look at a fight in the stands and still know who is coming out of the bullpen based on what you hear, that reliever is doing his job. I have the ultimate classic along with two Metropolitans here that cover the reliever spectrum.

Enter Sandman—Metallica (Mariano Rivera and Billy Wagner)

Iconic. Simply iconic. Made famous in the NY metro area and beyond by the Yankees’ Mariano Rivera. Fun fact: Rivera didn’t originally want the song. He preferred religious music, and Wagner was the one to actually have the song his entire career. People forgot this when Wagner joined the Mets in 2006 and triggered everyone in the Bronx when they heard Mariano’s song in Queens. Wagner was a terrific closer in his own right. He was a small lefty he threw a high nineties fastball. He is actually a natural righty but his father taught him to throw with this left. He gets any song he wants.

But seriously to give Mariano his due: He is The Sandman. There have been more people to walk on the moon than to score off Mariano Rivera and his fabled cutter in the playoffs. The moon. Bananas.

This is Why I’m Hot (Instrumental)—MIMS

Addison Reed’s entrance. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Addison, he has closing experience with the Chicago White Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks before he came to the Mets. He may well close for the Mets this year while incumbent Jeurys Familia (Danza Kuduro) serves a suspension. Addison kind of looks like a big high schooler. He’s strong enough to pitch out of the stretch and has only two pitches, but they are effective and he finds a way. When he gets out of an inning he pops his chain from underneath his jersey, lightly tugs up on the front of his jersey, pops the bill of his cap up, and saunters, and I mean saunters, off the mound. 

Complete nut job. 

The instrumental version of This is Why I’m Hot is almost unrecognizable, definitely un-shazam-able, and certainly a weird choice. I may even ask him if this was on purpose. I may disagree with the choice but label this Exhibit A on vacant minded relievers that do nothing but throw gas. You probably don’t want to know what this guy does in his off time.

Sympathy for the Devil—The Rolling Stones

Enter lefty specialist Jerry Blevins. 

A few things to note here. Not only is Jerry a pitcher, not only is he a reliever, he’s a lefty. They quirkiest of the quirkiest. Lefty relievers are the guys that like red Gatorade and eat one pickle-flavored sunflower seed at a time. None-zero chance they’ve arrived at multiple games high AF on who knows what during their amateur days. Maybe even their pro days, I don’t know. 

One of the greatest rock songs of all time and written from the perspective of the Devil, Blevins' song choice hints that he probably likes to party, has a weird dark side, and that he is confident. Coming into the lines, "Pleased to meet you/ Hope you guessed my name oh yeah/ But what's puzzling you/ Is the nature of my game" tells opposing hitters that he is not scared.

"You very bad man, Jerry. Very bad man."