Never keep a legend off his schedule
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Jul 18, 2007 
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Quick turnaround tomorrow (clubhouse opens at 9:35 a.m.) so no extensive postgame blogging tonight.
But I did want to share this with you:
Bob Sheppard, the 96-year-old stadium announcer, stands at the door of his booth when there are two outs in the ninth inning. Once the ball is on the air or on the ground, he heads for the elevator as fast as he can go.
Which, given is age, is impressively fast.
Mr. Sheppard gets dropped off in the lobby, gets in a waiting car and is on his way home within a minute or two. I suspect it’s a routine he has timed to the second given his 57 years on the job.
I happened to get on the elevator with him tonight and the kid running the elevator accidentally went up a floor before going down. Nobody said anything. Then that unmistakable voice was heard.
“Maybe in 50 years you’ll know what button to push,” Mr. Sheppard said.
Everybody laughed, including the kid. Then the elevator stopped and off went the legendary announcer into the night.
the voice of God
He has to have a more famous voice than most people in the world whom you never really see. Him and Dan Lafontaine.
And the guy who does Kasey Kasem
imagine doing the same job for 57 years. If it could be any job, it would be the announcer for the Yankees.
My guess is that he’ll try to make it at least 1 season in the new stadium then “retire” whatever that means at 99 years old.
how much do you suppose that job pays?
It truly is amazing at how long he has been doing that job. Its always great to here him at the games
Thanks for the post Pete. That’s the kind of stuff that keeps us coming back. Mr. Sheppard is a true gentleman and we should all take time to appreciate him bc he’s not going to be around forever.
Nice win. And how about Andy Phillips? I remember all of you negative nancies complaining when Torre said he would be taking the job from Cairo.
Why would you want to retire from a job that allows you to be a part of a Yankees game?
Thanks – Mr. Sheppard is a living legend. Great post.
96 or 86?
The Red Sox are folding like a cheap cardboard box and I love watching it.
96. It’s true. He won’t tell his age but USA Today published it once, and he graduated from high school in 1928 and college in 1932. Say those years out loud. Ninteen twenty eight!
Good for Sheppard, but I don’t want to live to 96.
Great anecdote Pete. Thank you.
good to hear he’s still moving well. I just hop I can move when I’m that age, nevermind calling ballgames.
BeegcellentBaseball
At Sheppard’s first game, Julio Franco batted lead off….he went 1 for 3.
Thanks for the post, Pete. I have to say, I envy your being able to meet the legend and in such a wonderful situation. Here’s to you Bob Sheppard, and another 57 years on the job if medical science allows it.
Just read his Wikipedia and learned he worked his entire fifty year tenure with the Giants on a hand shake agreement with Wellington Mara, talk about a gentleman’s agreement.
Pete I hear what you are saying about Ramirez in the 8th but the guy has pitched twice in over 3 weeks…. how is he suppose to pitch well and how are the Yankees able to valuate if he can help the team????
There pen stinks that is there problem, 2nd is there bench..
they can win with Damon hitting like this and other issues if the pen improves and they get a bench.
they are getting back hughes, karstens, giambi, and minky if they want them….Hughes is the big addition he can give them a legit 4/5th starter who can strike people out!!!!!!
Pete that sounds like something I would do. I would probably be so caught up in him being in the elevator I would do something that dumb and laugh too.
Thanks Pete for the story
brilliant stuff pete
Nice that the elevator guy was able to laugh, I think I would have wanted to jump down the shaft!
Good Story
Awesome stuff Pete.
The Voice of God indeed.
Pete, this blog and your thoughts and information is priceless. Dont listen to the haters who think Neyer or Olney is some baseball god. You do a great job.
Also, I sat there at the game tonight with my dad, and we debated…what the hell is Torre supposed to do? Go to Viz for the 6th time in 7 games, or go to a rookie who pitched in the Texas independent league?? His choices in that bullpen for the 6th, 7th, & 8th are pathetic…he cant walk to the mound and force these idiots with 95 mph to throw the ball over the plate. You go to battle with what you have, and trust your GM and owner to get you a weapon to use in the bullpen.
Thanks for sharing Pete. I love your little behind-the-scenes mini-posts. Most of us would never catch such glimpses.
Some friends of mine recorded Shephard’s voice for The Bronx is Burning. They promised to ask him if he would record some outgoing answering machine messages, but chickened out at the last moment. Which means I DON’T have…
“Now not answering the phone for the Peyton family. Harley…Peyton.”
Damn.
Pete – your post brought a very big smile to my face.
I keep sending through blank posts.
Anyway.
My dad told me once that for some reason, Bob Sheppard could not finish a game. So Joe Girardi can apparently do a really great Bob Sheppard impression, so they let him announce half an inning or something. Any truth to this, you think, or was my dad just telling an old…husband’s…tale?
I don’t know about Girardi doing an impression but the old Yankees PR man Rick Cerrone has filled in for him before and he definitely does a good impression of Mr. Sheppard.
Peter:
Great story. Bob Sheppard. is God.
Pete,
That post is priceless.
I’ll bet you knew that would make a great blog entry the second it happened.
What some of you may not know is that Mr. Sheppard was a lector at St. Christopher’s church in Baldwin (where he lives). He generally read at the 7:00 am daily weekday mass. Imagine his booming voice: “A reading…from the book…of the prophet…Isaiah.” The “Voice of God”, indeed.
I should also add that I have a recording of Bob Sheppard announcing my at-bat from a charity softball game some years ago. As a Yankees fan, it’s one of the coolest things I own.
Great post, Pete. Inside stuff like this lets us see our heroes as human beings, and appreciate them more.
Thanks!
Thanks for the anecdote, Pete. Keep ‘em coming!
Why are some Yankee fans complaining about the bullpen/pitching staff in a post about Bob Sheppard? Show some class and stop obsessing over the Yanks every second. This was about Bob Sheppard.
I always loved hearing Sheppard’s voice at Giants Stadium. A true legend.
I wonder how many times did Bob do that only to get burned by a fielder’s error?
Bob Shepphard. One of very few people to have been alive for TWO Red Sox Championships!
Thanks Pete for the Bob Sheppard take. It’s staggering to think how many player’s names he’s announced since 1951. He’ll never be duplicated. Any kid playing his 1st game at the Stadium must have shivers hearing his name announced by a true legend.
2 outs in the ninth, waiting to bolt? How much does Bob Sheppard love Mariano Rivera? And what evil mutters does the Voice of God have when it’s someone like Farnsworth taking over 9th inning duties in a non-save game.
Now there’s a man I would pay good money to watch a ballgame with.
Am I the only person here who’s amazed at the concept of a non-self-service elevator in 2007?
Pete,
maybe I’d be cool to do a blog-only interview with Bob Sheppard. He’s one of the fixtures in Yankee-stadium and the fans love him, but frankly, we know nothing about him. (at least I don’t)
Porkpoker: in NYC, there are a lot of manned elevators. Tiffany’s is full of them. Most fancy hotels. It’s half for security reasons.
I agree with Alfred–Bob Sheppard for next Q&A?
and he can remember both. There might be some alive for both but they were babies when it happened.
That would have been so cool to have his voice answer your answering machine.
Q%A with Bob Sheppard!! Pete, git er done!
uh, I mean Q&A…..doh!
“Now writing…for the JOH-nal Newwws…Peetah…AYYbraham. The JOH-nal Newwws.”
I did know that Bob liked to hightail it out of there as soon as the last out was made. But what YOU all might not know is that Eddie Layton frequently joined Sheppard in his getaway. Both men live (past tense for Eddie, RIP) on Long Island, and Sheppard would drop Layton off on his way home. I doubt Shep drives himself anymore, though it wouldn’t surprise me.
I thought Kasey Kasem was married.
I’ll fourth Alfred’s request. A Q&A with Bob Sheppard would be very interesting.
I will echo the calls for a Bob Sheppard Q&A. He must have the most amazing stories to tell.
What in God’s name are the Yankees going to do when Mr. Sheppard finally decides to take a summer off? He will be missed dearly, as he is a staple of the Yankees Stadium experience.
Now that’s a great story to tell the grandkids, Pete – loved it!
Shhhh. Don’t let god know Mr. Sheppard is using his voice to announce Yankee games. Whats that? Gods a Yankee fan! Nevermind then.
It’s crazy to think he announced “Joe DiMaggio” and “Mickey Mantle” and now “Derek Jeter” and “Mariano Rivera”. Man, he’s seen some things. What a life.
“What in God’s name are the Yankees going to do when Mr. Sheppard finally decides to take a summer off? ”
offer him more money to reconsider
This is great. He is a legend and I love this little tale about his patented and mastered exit from the Stadium at the age of 96. What a Champion.
A Q&A with Bob would be GREAT!!
The funny thing is this…given his age…he was AROUND in 1918. He probably chuckled at a lot of those chants from the Yankee faithful.
A Q&A with Mr. Sheppard would be awesome.
Here’s what Pete left out of his story on Mr. Shepard…
After Mr. Sheppard gets out of the elevator – he gets into a waiting limosine where he is greeted by a couple of beautiful blond bomshell’s and a stiff Jack Daniels…
“Let’s get this party sarted!” Sheppard proclaims in his God like voice.
Then it’s off inot the seedy New York nightlife for Shep and “flock”.