My first memories of Joe Garagiola are from NBC’s Saturday Game of the Week in the 1980s. At the time, Garagiola frequently teamed with Bob Costas, but on certain occasions, he’d be paired with Vin Scully. I recall Joe and Vin calling the 1983 All-Star Game from Comiskey Park when Fred Lynn hit the first All-Star Game grand slam. However, the best memory I have of Scully and Garagiola was their call of the 1984 World Series…the last time my beloved Tigers won the championship.
| I | Split | G | GS | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | HBP | IBB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 Totals | 68 | 50 | 200 | 164 | 17 | 46 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 22 | 0 | 29 | 14 | .280 | .397 | .415 | .812 | 4 | 6 |
There’s no doubt that the kid from The Hill, the Italian-American section of St. Louis, wasn’t the best ballplayer. Heck, he wasn’t even the best player on his street, that was Yogi Berra. But he was a solid catcher and a terrific personality. His personality allowed him to become a legendary announcer and television personality. I was too young to remember Garagiola on NBC’s Tonight Show or his first co-hosting term on the Today show, but there’s little doubt his folksy personality helped make Joe one of the most beloved personalities of the later 20th century.
Still, I only remember Garagiola from baseball. Some of our older APBA Blog readers might remember him as a radio broadcaster for the New York Yankees, the host of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, or his television broadcasts in the 1970s with Curt Gowdy and Tony Kubek.
Because he retired as a player when he was only 28 years old, Garagiola had a long, distinguished broadcasting career. His mark on the game was strong enough to earn him a place in the Baseball Hall of Fame as a broadcaster when he received the Ford C. Frick award in 1991.
Joe Garagiola’s final APBA card is one of his best of his nine-season career. This is a unique card with some quirky characteristics. Not only is it a double column card with an 11-6, but it also contains a 42, 38, and 36. Because of those numbers, coupled with five 14s, I project this card to produce a .286 average. At first glance, this card doesn’t look like much, but it should produce a .400+ OBP. That’s not bad for your final season.
In his career, Joe Garagiola kicked around with several teams. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs, and New York Giants. At one point Joe said he thought he was modeling uniforms. The same could be said of Garagiola’s broadcasting career, but that’s was part of his charm and success. Most baseball fans have their favorite announcers. Many of them are the local broadcasters for our favorite teams, but some of them transcend the sport. Without a doubt, Joe Garagiola transcended baseball.
While he wasn’t a great baseball player he was a good man. Since I was only 1 year old when he retired I have no memories of his playing days outside of stories. I remember him from the Today Show most of all. He had a great personality and I enjoyed listening to him talk about the other players of his day.
Bob Uecker is another catcher with not so great stats I like to listen to.
“There’s no doubt that the kid from The Hill, the Italian-American section of St. Louis, wasn’t the best ballplayer. Heck, he wasn’t even the best player on his street, that was Yogi Berra.”
Not only was he not the best ballplayer on his street, he wasn’t even the best CATCHER – LOL.
BTW, if anyone is in St Louis, the Hill is a nice place to visit. Good Italian restaurants and old-style markets.