The postseason got underway in the Bronx on Tuesday, and radio broadcaster John Sterling was ready for it. The Yankees ended up winning Game 1 of their ALDS matchup against the Cleveland Guardians handily by a score of 4-1. It didn’t always look like it’d be that easy, though.
Trying to shift the narrative about his postseason performance in pinstripes, Gerrit Cole gave up a solo home run to Steven Kwan to give Cleveland a 1-0 lead. While the Yankees’ ace then got locked in to prevent any more scoring, New York had to get themselves on the board.
The local kid and trade-deadline acquisition from this past summer, Harrison Bader, tied things up with this solo homer:
Not a bad time for your 1st blast in pinstripes. @aybaybader ? pic.twitter.com/cFFujDrIXN
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 12, 2022
I mean, my goodness, that was a straight fastball pretty much right down Broadway. Launching it into the seats was really the only possible outcome at that point. The call from Bob Costas was a little lackluster here, but thankfully for Yankee fans, John Sterling was there to provide entertainment on WFAN 660.
His home run calls are legendary (whether you like them or not), and he’s likely been holding on to this one since New York traded for Bader in August. For the outfielder’s first homer as a Yankee, Sterling started singing a song that virtually nobody has ever heard of:
Here is the audio. pic.twitter.com/h0r0X8P41k
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) October 12, 2022
As it turns out, Sports Illustrated‘s Jimmy Traina nailed it, which was confirmed by Tyler Kepner of the New York Times, and, of course, Wikipedia:
"I'm Just Wild About Harry" is a song written in 1921 with lyrics by Noble Sissle and music by Eubie Blake for the Broadway show Shuffle Along. — Wikipedia https://t.co/xjdjSYd7ic
— Tyler Kepner (@TylerKepner) October 12, 2022
Just when you think Sterling can’t get any more creative with what he does on the radio, he goes and does this. It probably made lots of people hop on their phones and do a quick Google search, too, but that’s all par for the course. You just know the 84-year-old radio broadcaster has been holding onto that song for the majority of his life, just in case he needed it.
Finally, the moment presented itself and he took advantage in typical John Sterling fashion.
Matt Musico can be reached at matt.musico@xlmedia.com and you can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
