Greatest Announcers in Baseball History, Ranked

Longtime seamheads marvel that New York played host to three Hall of Fame center fielders in the 1950s decade. They would be the Yankees’ Mickey Mantle, the Giants’ Willie Mays and the Dodgers’ Duke Snider, of course.

But what about the voices who called their shots, the ones behind the mics? Those same teams employed not three but four broadcast voices who would become legends themselves — Mel Allen, Red Barber, Russ Hodges and Vin Scully, all of whom became future HOFers. As Allen liked to say, “How about that?!”

Here’s where the Gotham four (and 27 co-conspirators) rank on my list of best broadcasters in MLB history… 

Kuiper career: 36 seasons (1986-present)

Kuiper teams: San Francisco Giants, Colorado Rockies 

Stone career: 40 seasons (1982-present)

Stone teams: Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox

How can one separate these two? After all, it was Stone who threw the fatal pitch on Aug. 29, 1977, that Kuiper hit for his only big-league home run in 3,754 plate appearances. Allegedly.

A reported 6,000-plus fans were at Cleveland Stadium that night.

Career: 13 seasons (1961-66, 1970-71, 1973-77)

Teams: Minnesota Twins, Washington Senators, Milwaukee Brewers 

Any game with Scott behind the mic should have included a portable defibrillator just in case. I can’t recall another broadcaster who turned so few words into so much drama with a deliberate pace, well-timed pauses and impeccable voice inflection.

Twins radio-TV broadcasts with Scott, Halsey Hall and Herb Carneal were a real hoot, all right. 

Career: 45 seasons (1974, 1978-present)

Teams/network affiliates: Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers, Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles, NBC, ESPN, San Francisco Giants

It’s a real challenge to liven up three hours of pitching changes and protective cup adjustments, but the witty Miller has done it as well as anyone over the decades. Other than Giants sidekick Duane Kuiper, nobody has called more meaningless home runs in baseball history. (Those of Barry Bonds, of course.)

I have to admit, though, that his ”Adios pelota!” call has worn me out a bit. If he screamed “Tam idzie pika!” once in a while, he would be in my top 10. OK, maybe top two. 

Career: 32 seasons (1990-present)

Teams: Cleveland Indians 

Tom Hamilton has had a bunch of hits.

If/when the Team Formerly Known as the Indians ever wins it all, I want to hear his robust voice call the final pitch. (Waiting. Still waiting.)