(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
Mike Shannon - Shannon holds no formal education in broadcasting, but St. Louis Cardinals fans could care less. His style will never be emulated, nor will his tone ever be recommended for aspiring broadcasters, but both are what make him so damn great.
A native son, Shannon grew up on St. Louis’ south side and attended the University of Missouri, where he left a promising football career behind for baseball.
Though he finished his nine major-league seasons (all of which were spent with St. Louis) as a .255 hitter, Shannon helped the Cardinals to World Series titles in 1964 and 1967 with a pair of crucial home runs.
The rare kidney disease nephritis cut Shannon’s career short in 1970, and he joined the Cardinals’ radio booth two years later. The ying to former broadcast partner Jack Buck’s yang, Shannon represented everything atypical of a seasoned broadcast professional for nearly 30 years while manning the side of the late Hall-of-Famer.
Now seven years removed from Buck’s passing, Shannon still warms the hearts of fans spread across Cardinal Nation with his pedestrian and conversational approach. Only adding to his appeal is the fact that his nonsensical epithets and propensity for calling a game in the company of a six-pack are well-documented.
And it is this originality and genuineness that not only makes him the best untrained voice in the game, but an Emmy Award-winner as well.
Honorable Mention: Kevin Slaten - Host of The Kevin Slaten Show (2 PM-6 PM) on KSLG (1380 AM)
Frank Cusumano - It’s certainly no secret throughout the Gateway City that if you want your ass kissed, you go see Cusumano.
A true brown-noser dressed in an eight-time Emmy Award-winner’s clothing, this former basketball standout at St. Louis’ DeSmet High School has an intricate network of connections and a wealth of experience—both of which he utilizes as the host of KFNS’ (590 AM) The Press Box by day and a sports anchor at KSDK-TV by night—but that’s where the excitement stops.
If he’s not firing off some cheesy analogy or attempting some half-concocted catch phrase on television, Cusumano’s spending his afternoon radio program wedging his head up the rear ends of the Cardinals’ ownership group.
I do not disregard Cusumano as an unintelligent man, for I have no doubt he has at least some idea of what he is talking about.
But perhaps if he didn’t spend so much time telling people what they want to hear and shying away from tougher questions, his audience would acknowledge some semblance of a backbone and Cusumano would gain credibility beyond what is used to obtain high-profile guests for what usually amounts to G-rated talk suitable for Disney Radio.
Dishonorable Mention: John Hadley, co-host of Sportsnight on KTRS (550 AM) from 6 PM-9 PM weeknights
Note: This list excludes those St. Louis media personalities who are deceased.
6 Comments
Loading more comments...
This comment and all replies have been deleted This comment has been deleted Undo delete