John Sterling, Radio Voice for the New York Yankees, Dies at 87

The voice of a generation has left us. John Sterling, the longtime radio broadcaster for the New York Yankees, has died at age 87, ESPN reports. WFAN Sports Radio and the Yankees confirmed Sterling's passing on Monday.

Born on July 4, 1938, in New York City, as John Sloss, Sterling began his radio career at a station in Wellsville, New York. He also served as a play-by-play announcer for the Baltimore Bullets during the 1970-71 season. Then, Sterling became the voice of the New York Islanders and New Jersey Nets from 1975 to 1980. After this, he ventured to Atlanta, where he hosted a sports call-in show and covered Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Hawks' games for Turner Sports.

Sterling later returned to New York to commence his legendary tenure with the Yankees beginning in 1989. He was on the mic for 5,060 consecutive games from 1989 to 2019, when he broke his streak to take time off due to illness. In total, Sterling called 5,631 games--5,420 regular-season games and 211 postseason stints.

The radio broadcaster was known for his vocal idiosyncrasies and announcing style, including his trademark "Yankees win!" victory call and his home-run call "It is high, it is far, it is gone!" Sterling retired almost two years ago, getting in the booth for the final time on Oct. 30, 2024.

Major League Baseball had this to say regarding Sterling's passing:

"Through his unique style and passionate play-by-play calls, Sterling endeared himself to generations of players and fans as radio voice of the Yankees from 1989 to 2024. His signature punctuation of Yankees victories included calling the final out of five World Series championships."

The X (Twitter) account for the New York Yankees also shared a statement:

The Yankees mourn the loss of legendary broadcaster John Sterling. Our thoughts are with John's family, friends and loved ones at this time. pic.twitter.com/1rCeRC1D61

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) May 4, 2026

This story was originally published by Men's Journal on May 4, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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This story was originally published May 4, 2026 at 9:04 AM.