Joe Garagiola Show

Joe Garagiola
(1926 – 2016)

Fans spend hours discussing the fascinating statistics of the game's great players, but the Major Leagues are also home to some great personalities. Joe Garagiola was a good, but not quite great catcher during his playing years. However, he is better remembered for his work behind the microphone than behind the plate.

Joe grew up on "The Hill", a neighborhood of Italian American families in St. Louis, on Elizabeth Street. His childhood friend who grew up across the street was Yogi Berra. Garagiola jokes that "Not only was I not the best catcher in the Major Leagues, I wasn't even the best catcher on my street!"

The pro scouts spent a lot of time on Elizabeth Street (the block where Garagiola and Berra grew up was eventually renamed "Hall of Fame Place"), but the Cardinals passed over Berra, thinking that Joe was a better prospect. There is a story that team president Branch Rickey wanted to hold off signing Berra because Rickey knew that he would be taking over operations for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Although Rickey wanted Berra for the Dodgers, he signed with the Yankees.
Garagiola played for nine years and was traded four times during a period when there were only eight teams in the league, "I thought I was modeling uniforms for the National League." When he hung up his catchers mitt after the '54 season, he began calling games for KMOX, St. Louis. This collection of broadcasts includes five minute interviews with Cardinals players and personalities during Spring Training Camp for the 1955 season.

When Joe Garagiola announced his retirement from broadcasting, he stated that he wanted to spend more time with Audrey, his wife of 63 years. "I've often said it's the best catch I ever made".