Tim McCarver, a veteran MLB catcher and television baseball commentator, died Thursday at the age of 81, the National Baseball Hall of Fame announced. No cause of death has been announced.
The two-time World Series winner and two-time All-Star with the St. Louis Cardinals played 21 seasons in the majors before moving to the broadcast booth after retiring in 1980. He has also played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Montreal Expos and Boston Red Sox. McCarver continued to call games for the Phillies, New York Mets, New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants from 1980 to 2002 and also did national broadcast work for ABC, CBS and Fox.
He and Joe Buck averaged memorable duet for Fox from 1996 to 2013. In total, McCarver has called 23 World Series and 20 All-Star Games in his career. He won the Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasting in 2012 and was inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2016. He also won three sports Emmys during his career.
As a hitter, McCarver finished with a career on base percentage of .337 and an OPS of .725. He had 645 career RBIs and 97 home runs in 1,909 games. During his three World Series appearances in 1964, 1967 and 1968, McCarver hit .311 with two home runs and 11 RBI.
Tim McCarver played catcher for 21 seasons, mostly with the St. Louis Cardinals. (Photo by Joe Corrigan/Getty Images)
“All of us at Major League Baseball are grateful for Tim’s impact on sports broadcasting and his illustrious career in our national pastime,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “I extend my deepest condolences to Tim’s family, friends and the generations of fans who learned about our great game from him.”
Cardinals and Phillies honor McCarver
The teams with which McCarver was most closely associated have offered their thoughts and condolences on his passing.
