Thursday, 16 April 2026

    Joe Garagiola

    • Contest: The US Athletic Hall of Fame - Commentators 2026
    • Embed from Getty Images
    • Sport(s): Baseball
    • Statistics & Accolades: National Sports Media Hall of Fame
      Ford C. Frick Award
      Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award
      1x Peabody Award
      Missouri Sports Hall of Fame
      Alabama Sports Hall of Fame
    • After a modest career in the Majors, Joe Garagiola enjoyed a far more successful career as a broadcaster and television host.

      Garagiola began his broadcasting career with KMOX radio, calling games for the St. Louis Cardinals (1955-1972), and later did work for the New York Yankees, but his 30-year run with NBC is what made him a national figure.

      Alternating play-by-play duties with Curt Gowdy until 1976, he later worked with Tony Jubek, but it was his association with Vin Scully on NBC’s “Saturday Game of the Week” where he called three World Series and enjoyed his high-water mark as a baseball commentator.

      Garagiola had a likability factor that was off the charts. With the ability to channel the “everyman” and poke fun at himself, he was extremely relatable. This allowed him to venture off the sports grid, as he co-hosted NBC’s morning show, “Today”, and was also an occasional guest host on “The Tonight Show”.

      Following a pay dispute with NBC, Garagiola settled into calling games for the Arizona Diamondbacks from 1998 to 2012.

      We are proud to nominate Joe Garagiola for the United States Athletic Hall of Fame.
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