“He was our voice, our friend, and an icon for generations.” Those were the opening sentiments on Sunday in a statement from the St. Louis Cardinals on the death of legendary Cardinals broadcaster Mike Shannon. He was 83.
“The St. Louis Cardinals were saddened to learn this morning of the passing of Cardinals Hall of Famer and beloved St. Louisan Mike Shannon,” said Cardinals’ owner and chief executive officer Bill DeWitt, Jr. “Mike’s unique connection to Cardinals fans and his teammates was reflected in his unbridled passion for the game, the Cardinals, and the St. Louis community. On behalf of the entire Cardinals organization, we share our condolences with Mike’s family and friends, and his many fans.”
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“My dad’s life was encapsulated by his devotion to his family, his friends, the Cardinals organization and the St. Louis community,” stated his son, Tim Shannon, on behalf of the Shannon family. “My dad lived his life to the fullest, and he squeezed every drop from it.”
Between playing for the Cardinals and announcing for them, Shannon spent more than 60 years with the baseball team. Shannon was also a St. Louis native, born here in 1939, and a graduate of Christian Brothers College High School. He signed with the Cardinals in 1958, joined the big leagues in 1962, and, according to the Society for American Baseball Research, was a member of three pennant-winning teams and “became a hometown hero with a game-tying home run at Busch Stadium that helped win the first game of the 1964 World Series.” He retired from playing baseball in 1970.
But that wasn’t the end of his time with the Cardinals. At age 32, Shannon became the color commentator on the Cardinals’ radio and TV broadcasts for the 1972 season alongside another legendary announcer, Jack Buck. Eventually the two would share play-by-play duties. By the time Buck passed in 2002, the two had worked together for 30 seasons. Shannon himself enjoyed a 50-year, Emmy-winning announcing career before retiring in 2021. He is included in the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame and was recognized by the National Baseball Hall of Fame as a finalist for the prestigious Ford C. Frick broadcasting award. Upon retirement, he told Channel 5, “I had a good time. I made sure of that.”
That zest for life was felt among Cards spectators and followers as well. During his career as an announcer, Shannon became famous for distinctive phrases—Shannonisms—such as “the old ballpark,” “stee-rike call!” and “Get up, baby, get up! Oh yeah!” when watching a home run. (In 2014, St. Louis Magazine wrote about a website that generated his classic quotations, shannonisms.com.)
St. Louis Magazine followed Shannon throughout his decades-long career. Here are some of our favorite stories featuring him:
