A legend extinguished before 2005 ignited
12/20/2024 08:00 AM
"Nooooooooo smoking..."
A few weeks ago, I unearthed the earliest collegiate writings—like prehistoric paintings on a cave wall—of a burgeoning baseball scribe. After that championship comparison hubris, the next baseball-related installment of the U of M-Morris Register featured a somber tone—that following the March 2005 passing of legendary Twins public address announcer Bob Casey.
Here is that article...
During the 1984 baseball season, Minnesota Twins pitching coach John Podres knew he had found a special player. Before one game, Podres put in a plea to Twins public address announcer Bob Casey to give the kid a little pizzazz, knowing super-stardom was on the horizon. When the young phenom dug in for his first at-bat of the game, the call was as follows: "Now batting...Number 34...the center fielder Kirbyyyyyyyyyyyy Puckett!" The legend of Bob Casey was born.
In 1961, when the Washington Senators packed up and became the Minnesota Twins, Bob Casey was hired as the public address announcer at Metropolitan Stadium. Throughout the next 40+ years, Casey would become the "voice of God" for Twins fans at the Old Met and later the Metrodome. Known for his boisterous proclamations—right or wrong!—some memorable Casey-isms included:
- "Nooooooooooooooooo smoking in the Metrodome!"
- "Please do not throw anything or anyBODY onto the playing field at any time!"
- Dustin Mohr became Dustin Hoffman
- Otis Nixon became Amos Otis
- Nomar Garciaparra became Garcia Parra
- "Christian Guuuuuuuuuuuuzman!"
- "Lewwwwwww Ford!"
Those flubs and flummoxes were what endeared him to Twins fans—a regular guy with one of the greatest jobs ever given to a baseball fan. It was obvious he loved his work, as witnessed by an infamous 2001 incident in the Metrodome:
With the Twins embroiled in a heated pennant race, the hated New York Yankees were in town. Besides normal Yanks hatred, former Twin Chuck Knoblauch was in left field. A few years earlier, Knoblauch had left the Twins with a great deal of bad blood. About halfway through the game, a few drunkards out in the LF bleachers starting throwing batteries and $1 hot dogs at Knobby. Fearing injuries, NYY manager Joe Torre pulled his players off the field. With the game in danger of being forfeited, Bob Casey could be heard on the mic pleading with fans "Please stop throwing things! This is a very important game! Quit this!"
I believe I speak for everyone who has ever gone to a Twins game when I say that the atmosphere will just not be the same without Bob Casey's booming voice. His loss is a sad one for the game of baseball, and he will be sorely missed not only by the fans but by the players—home and away.
