It’s four months late, but we’re just one week away from Major League Baseball’s Opening Day. And as a number of prominent players have opted out of the 2020 season because of COVID-19 concerns, Hall of Fame broadcaster Tim McCarver is doing the same.
Just a week ago, McCarver said he was ready to go, but now the former Major League catcher and longtime TV analyst told Rick Hummel of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he won’t be working Cardinals games this season.
“My doctor obviously had an input in this,” McCarver said to The Post-Dispatch. “He recommended that I not work because of the travel and because of the obvious things (the coronavirus).”
Although most broadcasters will work road games from their home stadium in lieu of traveling with the team, McCarver resides in Florida so he would still need to travel to St. Louis for his slate of games.
No word yet if this will mean the end of a great broadcasting career for McCarver who turns 79 in October. After leaving his position as a national game analyst for FOX’s lead broadcast booth in 2013, McCarver joined FOX Sports Midwest in a part-time role. He signed a one-year deal with the Cardinals in February to work around 30 games in the 2020 season. With the adjusted 60-game schedule, McCarver would have ended up with only 10 broadcasts or so this season.
McCarver said he feels good and feels young, but wouldn’t commit to next season, acknowledging it seems like a long way off. “Who knows about next year? Who knows about tomorrow?” McCarver told Hummel.
Brandon Contes is a former reporter for BSM, now working for Awful Announcing. You can find him on Twitter @BrandonContes or reach him by email at Brandon.Contes@gmail.com.
