Few broadcasters take more grief than Joe Buck. Over the last fifteen to twenty years Buck, along with Verne Lundquist and Phil Simms, have probably drawn the ire of sports fans more than any other occupants of the press box. Well, we know that Verne Lundquist will no longer call college football games after this season, and after an interview with 590 The Fan’s Tim McKiernan in St. Louis, Joe Buck won’t be here to kick around much longer either, at least not at World Series time.
McKiernan inquired about a podcast interview where Buck seemed to say that he would not broadcast the World Series much longer. McKiernan asked Buck if he might soon stop calling World Series games.
Buck answered, “Yeah, I think I — I love it — but I’ve been doing it for a long time and I feel like somebody else should do it. I’ve done enough. I’m signed for three more World Series, and that’ll be 22 — which is stupid to even think about. If somebody said right now, before I walk outta here, you’re done, I’ve had the greatest career miles beyond anything I could have ever dreamed.
“But I would like to get some of my time back and be at home, be in St. Louis, be with my wife and watch my kids, even though they’re 20 and 17, and doing their own thing. I’ve been gone a lot this year, and I’m not crying about it. I love it. But I need to take stuff out.”
So yeah, when you’ve done enough World Series broadcasts to qualify for a full pension you can walk away, no problem. For my money, the fan angst towards Buck has always been overblown. Sure, the guy, at times, sounds like he’s calling a golf tournament instead of the World Series and sometimes errs too much on the side of understatement instead of injecting more passion into the call.
However, for those of us who like a break from the Gus Johnson-style bombastic eruptions, Buck provides a nice change of pace. In any event, he wants to spend time with his kids, which anyone should understand. He also probably wants to just watch a World Series, instead of having to call it.
He’s earned that too.
Follow Dylan Gwinn on Twitter: @themightygwinn
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