Bob Sheppard, New York Yankees legend and voice of the Bronx Bombers, has died at 99
The "Voice of God" is silenced.
Bob Sheppard, the beloved Yankee Stadium public address announcer for 57 years, died Sunday at his home in Baldwin, L.I., his wife, Mary, by his side. He was 99.
Reggie Jackson is credited with aptly dubbing Sheppard "the Voice of God" for his introduction of players in a resonant baritone, delivered with perfect elocution at Yankee Stadium from April 17, 1951, until 2007, when Sheppard was felled by a bronchial infection, fatigue and weight loss that caused him to break his streak of 121 consecutive postseason games as the Stadium public address announcer. His hand-picked assistant and periodic sub, Jim Hall, succeeded him that season but when the Yankees moved to the new Yankee Stadium in 2009, Paul Olden was hired for the P.A. duties.
During his first 50 years behind the Stadium mike, Sheppard missed only five games, all of them for family commitments, and he also did P.A. for the football Giants from 1956 (when they played at Yankee Stadium) to 2005. On May 7, 2000, Sheppard was honored by the Yankees with the 17th plaque in the Stadium's Monument Park, on which is inscribed: "His clear, concise and correct vocal style has announced the names of hundreds of players - both unfamiliar and legendary - with equal divine reverence, making him as synonymous with Yankee Stadium as its copper façade and Monument Park."
Born Oct. 12, 1910, Sheppard was a speech major at St. John's and a lefthanded quarterback on the football team from 1928-31. He was teaching speech and earning $25 a week when he was hired by the Brooklyn Dodgers of the long-defunct professional All-American Football Conference, who played their games at Ebbets Field. When the Dodgers folded he moved to the Yankees in the same league where, at Yankee Stadium, Dan Topping, owner of the baseball Yankees, liked his work and hired him in 1951 to replace Arthur (Red) Patterson, who had been doubling up as the team's promotions director and P.A. announcer.
Through the years, Sheppard's signature introductions - "Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, welcome ... to Yankee Stadium, here are the lineups: Batting first, num-buh eighteen, Johnny Da-mon, num-buh 18. Batting second, num-buh two, De-rek Jet-uh, num-buh two ... " - became part of Stadium lore. (When the Yankees moved to Shea Stadium during the renovation of Yankee Stadium in 1974-75, Sheppard was careful to alter his greeting to: "The Yankees welcome you to Shea Stadium.") And he had an equally classic "exit" announcement - "Thank you for coming and arrive home safely" - that, in the early '80s was replaced by what he called "an even bigger voice" in Frank Sinatra, singing "New York, New York."
Read more: Bob Sheppard, New York Yankees legend and voice of the Bronx Bombers, has died at 99
The "Voice of God" is silenced.
Bob Sheppard, the beloved Yankee Stadium public address announcer for 57 years, died Sunday at his home in Baldwin, L.I., his wife, Mary, by his side. He was 99.
Reggie Jackson is credited with aptly dubbing Sheppard "the Voice of God" for his introduction of players in a resonant baritone, delivered with perfect elocution at Yankee Stadium from April 17, 1951, until 2007, when Sheppard was felled by a bronchial infection, fatigue and weight loss that caused him to break his streak of 121 consecutive postseason games as the Stadium public address announcer. His hand-picked assistant and periodic sub, Jim Hall, succeeded him that season but when the Yankees moved to the new Yankee Stadium in 2009, Paul Olden was hired for the P.A. duties.
During his first 50 years behind the Stadium mike, Sheppard missed only five games, all of them for family commitments, and he also did P.A. for the football Giants from 1956 (when they played at Yankee Stadium) to 2005. On May 7, 2000, Sheppard was honored by the Yankees with the 17th plaque in the Stadium's Monument Park, on which is inscribed: "His clear, concise and correct vocal style has announced the names of hundreds of players - both unfamiliar and legendary - with equal divine reverence, making him as synonymous with Yankee Stadium as its copper façade and Monument Park."
Born Oct. 12, 1910, Sheppard was a speech major at St. John's and a lefthanded quarterback on the football team from 1928-31. He was teaching speech and earning $25 a week when he was hired by the Brooklyn Dodgers of the long-defunct professional All-American Football Conference, who played their games at Ebbets Field. When the Dodgers folded he moved to the Yankees in the same league where, at Yankee Stadium, Dan Topping, owner of the baseball Yankees, liked his work and hired him in 1951 to replace Arthur (Red) Patterson, who had been doubling up as the team's promotions director and P.A. announcer.
Through the years, Sheppard's signature introductions - "Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, welcome ... to Yankee Stadium, here are the lineups: Batting first, num-buh eighteen, Johnny Da-mon, num-buh 18. Batting second, num-buh two, De-rek Jet-uh, num-buh two ... " - became part of Stadium lore. (When the Yankees moved to Shea Stadium during the renovation of Yankee Stadium in 1974-75, Sheppard was careful to alter his greeting to: "The Yankees welcome you to Shea Stadium.") And he had an equally classic "exit" announcement - "Thank you for coming and arrive home safely" - that, in the early '80s was replaced by what he called "an even bigger voice" in Frank Sinatra, singing "New York, New York."
Read more: Bob Sheppard, New York Yankees legend and voice of the Bronx Bombers, has died at 99
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