The baseball season is a long, 162-game marathon, and the announcers you have to listen to for 6+ months can really add to—or detract from—your enjoyment of the game. Imagine having to listen to a pompous, egomaniacal dolt like Joe Buck every day! Luckily for us Yankees fans, YES has done a good job of hiring their announcers:


Jim Kaat My favorite announcer on the YES Network. Intelligent, well-spoken, insightful, fair, and with a good old-fashioned sense of the game. An old veteran, his smooth style oozes confidence. Love his funny baseball anecdotes, too, especially the one involving Graig Nettles. Back in the day, Kaat was facing Nettles when Nettles stepped out of the box to swat at a butterfly fluttering by. Graig quipped to Kaat, "I thought that was one of your fastballs." Kaat immediately buzzed him with the next pitch.

Ken Singleton My second favorite annoucer on YES, and not just because he's from my hometown of Mt. Vernon, NY. Smooth, assured, and kick-ass knowledgeable about baseball. Ken has a nice, easy-going style that makes you feel like you're sitting in his living room with him, casually discussing the game in progress. A month or so ago, he was forced to announce a game solo, and did an incredible job. Singleton and Kaat could broadcast the phone book to me and I'd listen.

Michael Kay Kay knows his stuff. He can come off a bit arrogant, though, and with his own YES show, CenterStage, he has even more of a reason to have a swelled head and believe he is the star of the YES family. But you know what? I like this guy. He makes some really good points during a game, issues that I myself had been thinking, and he is not afraid to be critical of the Yankees on the air. He doesn't shy away from issues like steroids, and actively tries to engage the other announcers in debates.

Al Leiter Leiter is growing on me. He has a good voice, a strong vocabulary, and is still close enough to the game (having played with most of the guys just last year), that he can really explain what's going on on the field, and what's going through a player's head in a certain situation. Will continue to improve.

Paul O'Neill Paul is likeable, but doesn't work enough games to improve his style. He loves baseball, and that comes through, but sometimes I feel like he'd just rather be on the field. I wonder: If he has a bad game broadcasting, does he knock over the coffee pot?

Bobby Murcer Murcer seems to be the pinch-hitter of the broadcasters, filling in when someone else can't make a road trip. He also seems to be a bit of a failed experiment; YES was probably hoping he'd become the new Phil Rizzuto. A home-grown Yankee who moves into the booth and becomes a lovable personality—folksy, and an obvious rooter for the home team. But it didn't pan out. Sometimes it's painful to listen to the games he broadcasts. But his heart is in the right place.

John Flaherty John Flaherty has made a smooth transition from the field to the broadcast booth. I really like his matter-of-fact style, the catcher's intelligence that he brings to the booth, and the confidence he already displays. I can see him following in Joe Girardi's steps, however, and bring his knowledge of the game into the manager's office.