On retirement day, John Sterling reflects on 64 years of 'being lucky'
John Sterling is known for his off-the-cuff quips, so it was no surprise that when he stepped up to the microphone for his retirement presser at Yankee Stadium Saturday, he started with a funny:
“Is this where Boonie says I think he’s getting close?” John said to raucous laughter.
Saturday’s festivities were the official end of a career that began more than six decades ago at a tiny daytime radio station in western New York.
“I can’t believe this has happened to me. I retired because doing the games are easy, and working with Suzyn is easy, but I don’t have the strength and stamina – and I don’t want to work anymore,” John said candidly. “My first day on the air was Feb. 1, 1960; that’s 64 years, and I’m really tired, so I’m looking forward to not being on the air.”
Way back when in February 1960, John was just happy to live out a dream he had since he was a boy growing up in Manhattan.
“When I was a little boy, the radio was on and the music swelled, and this guy with a great voice said, “LIIIIIIIVE from Hollywood, it’s The Eddie Bracken Show – I wanted to be that guy, not Eddie Bracken,” John said. “I didn’t worry about school because I knew what I was gonna do, and I’ve had a very good life. I got a job, and my first day, the midday guy was the GM, and he would leave for sales calls, and I was alone on the air and in the building! I knew I could always open my mouth and talk, and now, it’s been 64 years.”
And while that signature “LIIIIIIVE” has been a part of John’s repertoire for years, and he’s taken things from some other heroes of yore – he specifically named Mel Allen, and Giants broadcaster Russ Hodges doing ‘outlandish things’ – the one who influenced him most was his first sports partner way back in Baltimore in the 1970s.
“Jim Karvellas in Baltimore gave me a lot of ideas on rhythm and pace, and I’ll tell you a story,” John said. “Jim did a golf tournament, and I did my first game alone in Boston, Bullets-Celtics, and that was great. The joy of doing that game, I’ll never forget. But he got home and asked his wife how I did, and she said, ‘he did great.’ He asked what I sounded like, and she said ‘he sounded like you,’ and Jim said, ‘well, that’s not so bad!’”
And finally, after almost 20 years of doing any and every sport in Baltimore, NYC, Atlanta, and elsewhere, John left WTBS in 1989 to join the Yankees radio booth on WABC, and the rest is history.
“When I broadcast the Braves, I was a junior member, so I rarely did the end of games, and then I got this job, and it was MY job, and it was thrilling,” John said of coming to New York. “I realized right away this is what I want, and this is what I can do. Everyone has been so fabulous to me, and I’m a very fortunate individual. Bing Crosby wrote a book called ‘Call Me Lucky,’ and that’s what I think.”
From Feb. 1, 1960 to one last inning on April 20, 2024, John’s legacy is cemented, and he has earned his stripes over a career that saw him do 5,631 Yankees games – including, in Ripken-like fashion, one stretch of three DECADES without missing a day.
“Someone asked Bob Uecker what he’d want people to say about him in 100 years, and Uecker said, ‘that he’s still working,’” John laughed. “My family had to be supported, and someone had to send them to college! I was working, and luckily I had good health and stamina. People can remember me any way they want, but anything that happens is grist for my mill.”
Including, maybe, a plaque in Monument Park?
“Hey, if they tell me they’re gonna do that, I wouldn’t say no, don’t!” John smiled. “I never dreamt I’d be recognized, so this might be the biggest day of my life outside of marrying my wife! If it happens, it happens, but as someone once said, baseball has been very, very good to me.”
There’s only one thing, maybe, he would change:
“I did it all wrong. I have the greatest boss, Chris Oliviero (The Architect!), who is so kind and nice and willing to do whatever he could for me,” John said. “I should’ve quit on March 1, but I did one exhibition game and then we went on that long trip to Houston and Arizona, and I knew that was it, I didn’t want to work every day anymore. If you work 64 years and you’re gonna be 86, I think it’s time.”
John has heard from hundreds since announcing his retirement on Monday, and admitted he hasn’t slept a wink since; he’s hopeful that changes tonight, and if it does, he’ll surely see the capacity crowd inside Yankee Stadium cheering as he said goodbye…and perhaps, his final words on the field during the Yankees’ ceremony will ring in his ears as he does:
“I want to thank the Steinbrenner family, my partner for 10 years Michael Kay – we had a good partnership – and for the last 20 years, the greatest partner in the world, Suzyn Waldman,” John said, “but what I really want to do is thank you. I’ve been here 36 years, and in that time, many have come to me with kindness, respect, and love. How lucky can you be to have people celebrate what you do for a living? The fans have been phenomenal to me over the last 36 years, and from the bottom of my heart, thank you very much, and God bless you all.”
