The worst-kept secret in town was officially revealed when the Brewers introduced Brian Anderson as their new TV play by play man Wednesday afternoon at Miller Park.

"This is a huge opportunity for me," said Anderson, 35. "It's what I've always wanted to do."

When news of Anderson's hiring leaked last week, many Brewers fans were surprised to hear that Anderson had spent the past five years as a tournament and studio host for The Golf Channel and had worked eight seasons on pre- and post-game shows for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association.

"I always say I've been a mile wide and an inch deep in my career," Anderson said. "Now, I want to take it a mile deep and stay here."

Though he enjoyed working for The Golf Channel and the Spurs, Anderson never gave up his dream of announcing big-league baseball games. It was that dream that prevented him from pursuing a career out of college as a scout for the Cincinnati Reds. It was that dream that drove him to spend long, hot summers in the radio and TV booth for the minor-league San Antonio Missions and winters as a cameraman shooting boxing matches, high school, college and pro football as well as pro basketball.

"I actually got pretty good at it," Anderson said of his photography skills. "I was actually making three times as much doing camera as I did doing minor-league baseball. I did both for about seven years and I became a full-time announcer in '99, when I joined the Spurs."

While his wife, Michele, provided financial stability with her teacher's salary and benefits, Anderson picked up extra money working in the pro shop at a golf course, where he took tee times and folded shirts -- once while ESPN rebroadcast a game that he had called with analyst Tommy John.

"That's kind of how my life was," Anderson said. "People thought I was insane for doing what I did. I had to support a family. That's the way it was for me for a long time until I was able to be a full-time announcer."

Before the Spurs and The Golf Channel came around, no assignment was too small for Anderson made his way up the broadcasting ladder. For a time, he worked as a "runner" on "Monday Night Football," where his primary duty was procuring newspapers for lead announcer Al Michaels.

"I would go get nine different newspapers and I would bring them to Al's door and he would crack the door and I'd slip them in and he'd close it," said Anderson, who also dabbled in sports talk radio and worked in the Spurs scoreboard booth. "I was the guy who did the 'Let's Make Noise!' that you all hate," he said.

While working the Class AA Texas League, Anderson befriended a young El Paso announcer named Matt Vasgersian, who went on to make noise during a successful stop in the Brewers' booth.

"I knew Matt when he had a 'd' in his last name," Anderson said, smiling. "We were the guys throwing water balloons on the players during BP (batting practice). We had a lot of fun. Matt is one of my very best friends, but I can tell you, I'm nothing like Matt."

Asked to describe his broadcasting style and influences, Anderson tilted toward the "old school," and mentioned names like Mel Allen, Ernie Harwell and Vin Scully.

"I try to stick to the game," he said. "On television, I think the analyst is the star. The analyst needs to shine. I want to support him. You'll hear a lot of crowd noise. I like to lay out for big moments, home runs. I love the sounds of the game. I love the strike calls. I like to lay out and hear that."

Vasgersian, whose pop culture references and high energy made him a cult hero in town, was seldom subdued. Color analyst Bill Schroeder adapted to his style and doesn't anticipate a problem meshing with Anderson.

"It'll take two or three weeks to kind of anticipate how a guy is going to respond and react," said Schroeder, who has worked with Jim Paschke, Vasgersian and Daron Sutton since joining the broadcast team in 1995.

"I would imagine the first few weeks, we'll be talking over each other from time to time. I have to get to know his pace and his pattern. He's got to know my style and when I like to jump in. You get to a point with a partner where they know -- when you pause but you're not done yet -- just by looking at you. You really have to look at each other when you do this stuff."

Schroeder and Anderson can begin to build chemistry by calling spring training games on the Internet.

"That's a bit different, because it's radio, but it won't take long," Schroeder said. "I think Brian is going to be a lot like Matty (Vasgersian) in that he'll be a little self-deprecating. He's going to have some fun with it. I sat down with him (to do a practice broadcasts) and felt comfortable right away. I could tell he was a good guy, and Matty called me a couple times to say how much he likes him. I respect Matt's opinion. Look where he's gone."

While Vasgersian came to the Brewers from the minor leagues and Sutton arrived after a radio stint with the Angels, Anderson comes from what he called "a great gig" in golf, which he said is tougher to broadcast than baseball.

"I loved The Golf Channel," he said. "The people there were unbelievable. We had this really creative palette. We didn't have a lot of people breathing down our neck. We were able to do a lot. Plus, they encourage you to play golf. It's a great gig. It was tough to leave."

When he left Texas in the second week of December for what turned out to be a 7 ½-hour interview at Miller Park, Anderson wasn't sure he wanted to change jobs.

"When I got on the plane in Texas to come here, I said to myself, 'There is no way I'm leaving The Golf Channel for this job. I'm going to just go here and see what's going on,'" he said. "I walked in the ballpark and I'm looking around at a 42,000-seat stadium, the roof was open it was 30 degrees outside and I couldn't move. I said, 'Oh, my God. This is what I've been waiting for.'

"It's been my dream. It's in my blood. It's where I belong."

After reviewing demo tapes from more than 100 applicants, including several with extensive big-league experience and one guy who used a camcorder to record himself "broadcasting" the action on a video game, the Brewers agreed.

"Brian stood out right away," said Tyler Barnes, the Brewers' vice president of communications. "He's got a broad base of experience, which we liked, and he has done more than 1,000 games in the minor leagues."

While doing an audition broadcast with Schroeder, Anderson realized how much he missed baseball.

"(There are) so many balls in play so much going on (in golf)," he said. "You've got to keep a lot of things straight. It seems slow on TV, but in your ear, there is constant communication. I had to grind every show. Baseball, it feels natural because I did so many games in the minor leagues. It's just a natural, natural feel."

The Brewers noticed that comfort level both in his work and during his interview.

"It sounds corny, but it really seemed like this was Brian's destiny," Barnes said. "This was an easy next step for him to make. He was very deliberate in his decision, and we really wanted that. We felt like he really took the responsibility of evaluating the situation very seriously. I'm sure it wasn't an easy choice, especially since he's never lived outside of Texas, but I'm glad to have him here."

Anderson, who plans to move Michele and daughter Madeline to Milwaukee this spring, is so glad to be back in baseball and with the Brewers that he became emotional during his press conference.

"When I left baseball, I wasn't sure if I was ever going to be able to get back," he said. "It's hard enough to get a baseball job being in baseball. I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to get back.

"Now, I was labeled as a golf announcer. We were doing a lot of good things. We had a lot of success. Our network was growing. I was booked to do a lot of PGA Tour events this year, including the US Bank Championship in Milwaukee. When this opportunity came about, I couldn't believe it. I still can't believe it. I can't believe I'm standing here.

"The process was easy. I wasn't even stressed during the interview process. That's when you know it's right. I told them who I was, what I'm about, the way I am and the way I go about my business and they still wanted me.

"I hope I can cash in on what they have invested in me here."