Joe Buck's 'proud dad' story about his father, Jack, will warm your heart

Joe Buck will call the Opening Day game from Yankee Stadium for ESPN on Thursday, his first turn in a baseball booth in four years. In an interview with ESPN's Buster Olney on the Baseball Tonight podcast, Buck shared an amazing story about how proud his father was of his accomplishments in broadcasting.

Hall of Fame honoree Jack Buck passed away in 2002. Two years prior to his death, the younger Buck told Olney that his father sang his praises in a radio interview — the contents of which he did not hear for more than a decade later.

"My dad said, 'I'll say this right now: he's better than I am, better than I ever was, and people who work with him really like working with him. And that he's a good guy,' " Buck said.

"I didn't cry when my dad died, because we'd been at the hospital every day for seven straight months," Buck continued. "It was long for everybody, mainly him, obviously. But when I heard him say that, I broke down because he had been gone at that point for 10 or 11 years when I heard that for the first time. It was so affirming, or re-affirming, that he was aware of what I was doing. I don't agree with him, by the way, but as long as he felt that way, I know how proud he was of me."

Buck, the voice of ESPN’s Monday Night Football and a veteran of 24 World Series, will call his first national MLB game since the 2021 “Fall Classic.” He will be joined by guest analysts Joe Girardi (YES Network) and Bill Schroeder (Milwaukee Brewers) on commentary for the 12 p.m. ET game as the Yankees host the Milwaukee Brewers from Yankee Stadium.

Home/Sports Media