Skip Caray
Skip Caray | |
---|---|
Sportscaster | |
Years active | 1967–2008 |
Spouse |
Paula Caray (m. 1976) |
Children | Chip, Cindy, Shayelyn, and Josh Caray |
Parent | Harry Caray |
Harry Christopher "Skip" Caray Jr. (August 12, 1939 – August 3, 2008) was an American
Early life and education
Skip Caray grew up in baseball as the son of Hall of Fame broadcaster Harry Caray, who would routinely refer to his son at 8:30 p.m. during every broadcast by saying, "Good night, Skippy", a phrase for which the younger Caray was teased throughout his adolescence.[2]
He studied television and radio at the
Career
Atlanta Braves
In
Perhaps Caray's most memorable call was his description[6] of Francisco Cabrera's game-winning hit in Game 7 of the 1992 National League Championship Series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The game itself was ultimately decided on Braves first-baseman Sid Bream beating out Pirates left-fielder Barry Bonds' throw to home plate.
Swung, line drive, left field! One run is in! Here comes Bream! Here’s the throw to the plate! He is...SAFE! BRAVES WIN! BRAVES WIN! BRAVES WIN! BRAVES WIN! Braves win!
Three years later, the Braves defeated the Cleveland Indians in Game 6 of the 1995 World Series to earn the city of Atlanta its first major professional sports championship. Caray called Marquis Grissom catching the final out in center field.
Swung, fly ball, deep left-center. Grissom on the run ... YES! YES! YES! The Atlanta Braves have given you a championship!
According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Caray's calls of the 1992 pennant win and 1995 World Series win were "the two most iconic calls" in Braves history.[8]
Caray was inducted into the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame in 2004 alongside long-time Braves broadcaster Pete Van Wieren.[9] He has been recognized with six Georgia Sportscaster-of-the Year awards from the National Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association, as well as a Georgia-area Emmy award.[10]
On December 18, 2006, the Braves organization announced that Caray (and partner Van Wieren) had signed three-year contracts to continue doing Braves game broadcasts on their radio network. However, Caray only announced ten games on TBS in the 2007 season before being relegated to Peachtree TV.[11]
On the final broadcast of Braves TBS Baseball (September 30, 2007), Caray thanked fans saying, "To all you people who have watched the Braves for these 30 years ... thank you. We appreciate you more than you will ever know. ... Thank you folks and God bless you. And we're going to miss you every bit as much as you miss us."
NBC Sports
In 2000, NBC hired Caray to do play-by-play with Joe Morgan on the AL Division Series between the New York Yankees and Oakland Athletics. Caray was filling in for Bob Costas, who sat out the Division Series after anchoring NBC's prime time coverage of the Summer Olympic Games from Sydney, Australia.
Other appearances
On December 11, 1982, Caray along with
Broadcasting style
Caray's broadcasts were characterized by his witty and
Among other memorable lines, Caray said of Braves pitcher Charlie Kerfeld, who was 6'4" and 245 lbs., "Boy, he is big enough to go to work." And during a losing streak, after talking about a promotion in which Braves fans could come on the field and meet the players, Caray commented, "The way things are going, we may make the fans go through a metal detector on the way to the field."
Caray was also known for his tendency to identify the hometowns of fans who catch foul balls during Braves games in jest. Fans who reside in the metro Atlanta area were identified by a random suburb, though there was no legitimacy behind these references. Similarly, when daytime home games went long, Caray would routinely give a "traffic report" at exactly 5 o'clock on radio broadcasts. It consisted of his rattling off a random list of major Atlanta arteries, and describing each one as hopelessly backed up. When the Braves suffered a severely bad outing, and the score was strongly lopsided in favor of the other team, in late innings he would often tell fans "It's OK to walk the dog now, folks, if you promise to support our sponsors."[20]
In addition to his play-by-play duties, Caray also hosted a pre-game call in show on WSB until 2004.
Criticism
In June 2000, Caray, along with fellow Braves broadcasters Joe Simpson, Pete Van Wieren and Don Sutton, were banned from Atlanta Braves team charter flights for several games after criticizing Braves catcher Javy López for being penalized for setting up outside the catchers box during a game against the Milwaukee Brewers.[21]
In an attempt to combat criticism of Caray's on-air "home team" bias and to market its baseball coverage to non-Braves fans, during the
Death
On August 3, 2008, the Atlanta Braves announced that Caray had died at the age of 68. His wife, Paula, reported to the
Shortly after Caray's death, the Atlanta Braves began wearing a memorial patch on their uniforms that read "SKIP", which appeared on the sleeve opposite the "BEACH" patch honoring Jim Beauchamp that they had been wearing since the beginning of the 2008 season.
References
- ^ Karp, Jonah (June 18, 2021). "Josh Caray remembers father Skip Caray, play-by-play announcer for the Atlanta Braves". Fox 54. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
- ^ "Longtime voice of the Atlanta Braves". Los Angeles Times. August 5, 2008.
- ^ "Famous Fijis". Phi Gamma Delta. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
- ^ tbs.com Archived 2006-04-05 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Skip Caray Feels Snubbed by TBS
- ^ Morgan, Joe (August 4, 2008). "Skip Caray: An Atlanta Braves Legend". Bleacher Report.
- ^ "WS1995 Gm6: Caray calls final out of Braves' WS win". Major League Baseball. January 18, 2018.
- ^ Hummer, Steve (May 21, 2020). "1995 Braves: 'Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!' A championship call years in the making". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- ^ atlanta.braves.mlb.com
- ^ abradionetwork Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ ajc.com Archived 2006-12-27 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Rothenberg, Fred (July 22, 1982). "Superstation Wtbs Fights Network Methods, Programs". Toledo Blade. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
- ^ Richard, Chris (July 22, 1982). "Awesome Basketball Game Spotlights Sampson-Ewing Confrontation". The Cavalier Daily. Retrieved June 1, 2011.
- ^ Meade, Peter (December 8, 1982). "The Biggest Showdown?". The Times-News. Retrieved June 21, 2011.
- ^ positivelyatlantaga.com/1999/10/18 #1
- ^ rateitall Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Why I Hate Those Braves Archived 2005-12-30 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ http://www.ajc.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/ajc/bradley/entries/2008/08/10/truth_be_told_van_wieren_wont.html [bare URL]
- ^ thehudespethreport.com
- ^ Of Mikes and Men, Pete Van Wieren
- ^ wndu.com Archived 2001-05-12 at archive.today
- ^ "Ajc.com | Braves | BRAVES NOTEBOOK". Archived from the original on April 13, 2003. Retrieved April 13, 2003.
- ^ Archived June 20, 2003, at the Wayback Machine[dead link]
- ^ "Skip and Pete Back In TBS Booth". www.chattanoogan.com. July 8, 2003. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
- Atlanta Journal-Constitution, August 5, 2008. Accessed August 5, 2008.
- ^ http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/08/03/skip_caray_dies.html?cxntlid=homepage_tab_newstab [bare URL]
- ^ myfoxatlanta.com (WAGA-TV) announcement of Skip Caray's death. – accessed August 4, 2008.
- ^ cbs46.com (WGCL-TV) announcement of Caray's death. Archived 2008-09-16 at the Wayback Machine – accessed August 4, 2008.
- ^ WGST 640 AM tribute to Caray. – accessed August 4, 2008.
- ^ wsbtv.com (WSB-TV) announcement of Caray's death. Archived 2008-08-22 at the Wayback Machine – accessed August 4, 2008.
- ^ 11alive.com (WXIA-TV) announcement of Caray's death. – accessed August 4, 2008.