Entering 2026, there is a lot of newness to the Washington Nationals. From the front office, to the coaching staff, to many of the players on the roster, there are a lot of new faces. That extends to the broadcast booth as well, with the Nationals bidding farewell to beloved play by play man Bob Carpenter last year. However, in Dan Kolko, the Nats have a new voice but a familiar face in the booth.
I had the chance to talk with Kolko about his new job and his thoughts about the team before Opening
Day. He has been ingrained in the Nats culture since joining the MASN beat in 2012. Now, Kolko is going from the sideline to the booth, which adds an element of pressure he has not faced before.
Kolko is acutely aware of the pressure that comes with his new job. He told me that the new role can be “A little daunting” and that there is “pressure to live up to the moment”. After all, there are just 30 of these jobs, and Dan Kolko now has one of them.
However, he did not want to drown himself in that pressure either. Kolko realizes how special this opportunity is, saying, “some people say a job is a dream job, and it might be hyperbole, but there is no hyperbole here”. He is right about that, and it is especially true when you get to call games for your local team like Kolko is.
Dan Kolko is a DMV native who grew up in Silver Spring and attended Albert Einstein High School. This is home for him, and now he gets to live out his dream while staying in the area. Like many people who work in sports, broadcasting was not always the dream for Kolko. He wanted to play, but described himself as too small and unskilled to be a ball player past high school.
Instead, he studied at the University of Delaware and even got some reps as a play-by play announcer. After school, he began at MASN and eventually found his way on the Nats beat as a sideline reporter. As a younger guy, he became a bit of a little brother figure to some of the veterans on those 2010’s Nats teams, such as Jayson Werth and Ryan Zimmerman. He actually got invited to watch some horseracing with Werth and Shawn Kelley this winter.
One important relationship he developed around that time was with Kevin Burkhardt, who was a Mets sideline reporter at the time. Now, Burkhardt is one of the biggest broadcasters in the world, sharing the screen with Tom Brady. However, in 2012, Burkhardt and Kolko were two sideline reporters chopping it up during Spring Training. Kolko considers Burkhardt to be a “mentor” and the two still stay in touch.
Another big influence for Kolko is obviously his predecessor Bob Carpenter. Filling Bob’s shoes is a big responsibility, but Kolko is not trying to imitate his predecessor, saying, “I am not going to pretend that I am Bob, or try to be Bob”. Carpenter himself even told him to “make it your own” when they talked. Right after Kolko got the job, he texted Carpenter, and in typical Bob fashion, he called him within seconds.
While Carpenter’s schedule lightened, Kolko got valuable reps in the booth. Before that, he really did not have much play by play experience. However, getting all of those reps have allowed him to learn before the job in a way. One thing Kolko learned about being a play by play guy is that “you have to juggle so many things at the same time”. Between all the stats that are available, interacting with your production team and just following the action on the field, there is a lot going on for a play by play guy.
Kolko admitted that was a lot at first. He told me that getting thrown into the fire made him realize how hard the job really was. However, as he got more reps over the years, he became more comfortable and more natural. Making things “feel and sound more natural” is something Kolko admitted he has been working on.
There are strengths that Kolko thinks he will bring to the table though. Over his time as a sideline reporter, he has cultivated relationships with many players. Kolko believes that those strong ties will help his storytelling during the game, particularly with those quick anecdotes and nuggets of information.
Kolko will not be the only new part of the broadcast though. The Nats are moving from MASN to the MLB run Nationals TV this year. This change allows them to do new things and for fans to see different angles. Kolko was excited about all the different camera angles they have access to now. There will also be more access to the players and manager during the game. Kolko noted that, “Knowing we can do these things and we have the support of the team and the league to do them is very exciting”.
When the first pitch is thrown tomorrow, it won’t just be the first Opening Day start for Cade Cavalli, it will also be the case in the broadcast booth. However, while Dan Kolko may be a first year play by play guy, he is not a new face. Much like Cavalli, we have known about Kolko for a long time, but now he is stepping to the plate for his biggest challenge yet.
