FanHouse BobSheppard

Bob Sheppard, the public-address announcer at Yankee Stadium from 1951 through 2007, may never make it behind the microphone at the new Yankee Stadium.

The New York Times reported that Sheppard has decided to retire. Then Sheppard denied it.

[Friend and agent Paul] Doherty said that Sheppard's son, Paul, told him about Sheppard's plans on Wednesday morning.

"I think Bob just wants to take it easy and no longer have the pressure of, 'Can he? Will he? Or won't he?'" Doherty said in an e-mail message. "And, at 98, who can blame him?"

The Yankees like to say they're taking the ghosts from the old Yankee Stadium across the street to the new one.

But Bob Sheppard won't be making the trip. Not yet anyway.

The Yankees said Tuesday that because of illness, Sheppard, the long-time public-address announcer at Yankee Stadium, will not be on hand for the two exhibition games this week against the Chicago Cubs or the April 16 regular season opener.

The Yankees played their last game ever at Yankee Stadium last night. (Crazy, huh? You'd think they would've tried to let people know about this ahead of time or something.) After the game, the team gathered for one last conference at the mound while Derek Jeter took the mic to address the fans.

Keeping reading below the jump for more Last Game fun.

Bob Sheppard is more than an announcer; he's an institution. For 57 years, fans at Yankee Stadium have listened to him introduce everyone from Joe DiMaggio to Bernie Williams, from Mickey Mantle to Derek Jeter.

Unfortunately he's been able to announce a single game this season while recovering his stamina and strength following a serious bout of bronchitis last winter. There was hope early in the season that he'd recover in time to announce the All-Star game, but it wasn't meant to be. Fortunately, though, there's still hope that he could make an appearance at the team's final game at Yankee Stadium on September 21st. From Jim Baumbach of Newsday:

"The doctor is questioning my stamina," Sheppard said. Then he repeated the word stamina while slowly and carefully annunciating all three syllables. "Sta-min-a."

"In other words, can I leave my home in Baldwin at 4 o'clock in the afternoon and get home at midnight and not suffer any relapse?"

[...] So, really, the only thing Sheppard can do is wait and see. And there are other options. Sheppard said his backup Jim Hall, who has filled in for Sheppard all season, is willing to sit by his side during the final game. "And if I begin to get too tired, he would be my relief speaker, like a relief pitcher," he said.

That's a compromise I think every fan would be willing to accept. Sheppard is as ingrained in Yankee Stadium lore as Monument Park and the bleacher creature's role call. Just having him at that final game, in any capacity, only seems right.

Given the length of last night's All-Star Game, it's not surprising that it featured a little bit of everything. The only thing missing, in fact, seemed to be the voice of Bob Sheppard over the public address system. The 97-year old Yankee Stadium fixture hasn't been well and has missed the entire season, including last night's game.

Thanks to technology, though, there may not be a need for the Yankees to go without Sheppard's signature tones for any stretch of time, whether he's living or dead. CNBC's Darren Rovell spoke with a representative from a company that specializes in text-to-speech technology who says that it's not far-fetched for the team to use Sheppard's voice ad infinitum.

"Doing names and numbers is easier than creating what they call a full domain voice, which is voicing full sentences. But if we had some time and money – and the Yankees certainly might have that bankroll -- we could do this."

I grew up going to Yankee Stadium and have always enjoyed hearing Sheppard announce the names and numbers. That said, there's something a little creepy about the prospect of hearing him 25 years from now. I could see using his voice for a bit that's the same every night, a welcome to the Stadium perhaps, but I think it would be okay to hand the day-to-day role over to someone else who can become a fixture for a new generation of Yankee fans.

Legendary Yankees public address announcer Bob Sheppard has had some health issues over the last two seasons, limiting his appearances at Yankee Stadium. Unfortunately, the 97-year-old (!) Sheppard may not see any time at the Stadium in 2008.

Bob Sheppard, who has been the public-address announcer at Yankee Stadium since 1951, may not be able to resume his duties this season.

"He's struggling to regain his health," Yankees spokesman Howard Rubenstein said. "He's in poor health. He and the Yankees both hope he's back in the booth. For now he's not."

Sheppard missed the final homestand of last season and the playoffs with what the team called laryngitis.

Rubenstein said Sheppard's son, Chris, will "try out" for a spot as a substitute by working some spring-training games.

You might have known that Sheppard was also the PA announcer for the New York Giants for many seasons. What you may not have known unless you were there (or if you check Sheppard's Wikipedia page) is that Sheppard also did the public address announcing for St. John's basketball and football games (he was a professor at the school as well). It always amazed me that the same voice known the world over for announcing names like Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, and Reggie Jackson in front of crowds of over 50,000 was the same voice that announced Division III football in front of crowds of 800. But whatever the sport, whatever the crowd size, he brought the same professionalism to every game he worked. Hopefully, there will be more announcements from Sheppard at some point in '08.