Bob Costas is retiring as an MLB play-caller after a career that has lasted over 40 years.
Costas himself confirmed the decision to The Athletic, but declined to offer a statement, telling Andrew Marchand that he “would prefer to address the decision and his MLB play-by-player career at a later date.”
The final call of Costas’ play-by-play career came at the end of Game 4 of the American League Division Series between the New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals. The Yankees defeated the Royals to move on to the American League Championship Series (which they’d also win).
Costas, 72, called MLB games for 44 years, the vast majority of that with NBC. He started there in 1980 and over the years would provide play-by-play for three World Series and 10 championship series. But he also expanded beyond baseball, most notably hosting NBC’s Olympic coverage for several years. He began calling games for TBS in 2020 following the end of his contract with NBC in 2019. Costas will also retire from calling games on MLB Network, where he’s been since the channel began broadcasting in 2009.
According to Marchand, Costas made the decision to retire from play-by-play work before the 2024 season began, which happened to coincide with the end of his contract with TBS.
While Costas is retiring from calling baseball games, he’s not done with broadcasting. He’ll keep on working as an analyst and commentator on MLB Network, and will also continue to serve as the voice of the Baseball Hall of Fame.
