Joe Castiglione
Encyclopedia
Joseph John Castiglione (born 2 March 1947) is an American radio
announcer for the Boston Red Sox
baseball
team, an author and lecturer.
and graduated from Colgate University
with a BA
in Liberal Arts
. He was the radio voice of Colgate football
and baseball while a student. He then received a MFA
from Syracuse University
. While at Syracuse, he worked a variety of on-air jobs for WSYR-TV (now WSTM-TV
). He began his career in Youngstown, Ohio
broadcasting football games for $
15 a game, and as sports reporter for WFMJ-TV
in 1972. His first major job as a sportscaster was in Cleveland in , where he called Cleveland Indians
and Cleveland Cavaliers
games and did sports reporting for WKYC-TV
. He also called a handful of Milwaukee Brewers
games for pay-cable channel SelecTV in .
. He admitted not being in the booth when the ball rolled through Bill Buckner
's legs in the 1986 World Series
, as he was in the clubhouse covering Red Sox' seemingly impending victory celebration. After Coleman's retirement in 1989, Bob Starr became the lead announcer for the Red Sox. After Starr's departure at the end of the 1991 season, Castiglione became the team's lead radio announcer along with Jerry Trupiano
. Castiglione became nationally known when the team won the 2004 World Series
, with his broadcast of the end of the game. During the 2007 season he shared announcing duties with a rotating duo of Dave O'Brien and Glenn Geffner
. With Glenn Geffner
leaving for the Florida Marlins
broadcast booth, Castiglione shared the booth with Dave O'Brien, Dale Arnold
or Jon Rish
in 2008. Dave O'Brien and Jon Rish have been his partners since 2009.. In 2011, Dale Arnold returned to be the primary fill in on Wednesday games.
Castiglione claims to have been a New York Yankees
fan as a kid. He said in his autobiography that he then closely followed the Pittsburgh Pirates
because they were the closest to Youngstown
, and likewise became an Indians fan after moving to Cleveland
.
Castiglione is currently a Lecturer
in the department of Communication Studies
at Northeastern University, where he teaches a course on Sports Broadcasting. Current Red Sox play-by-play announcers Don Orsillo
and Uri Berenguer
were among his students and broadcast booth interns. He has also taught at Franklin Pierce University in New Hampshire
.
and the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, where he worked alongside his oldest son, Duke
, now with WNYW
in New York.
.
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
announcer for the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
team, an author and lecturer.
Early life and career
Castiglione was born in Hamden, ConnecticutHamden, Connecticut
Hamden is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The town's nickname is "The Land of the Sleeping Giant." Hamden is home to Quinnipiac University. The population was 58,180 according to the Census Bureau's 2005 estimates...
and graduated from Colgate University
Colgate University
Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York, USA. The school was founded in 1819 as a Baptist seminary and later became non-denominational. It is named for the Colgate family who greatly contributed to the university's endowment in the 19th century.Colgate has 52...
with a BA
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Liberal Arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
. He was the radio voice of Colgate football
Colgate Raiders football
The Colgate Raiders football team represents Colgate University in National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Championship Subdivision college football competition as a member of the Patriot League.-History:...
and baseball while a student. He then received a MFA
Master of Fine Arts
A Master of Fine Arts is a graduate degree typically requiring 2–3 years of postgraduate study beyond the bachelor's degree , although the term of study will vary by country or by university. The MFA is usually awarded in visual arts, creative writing, filmmaking, dance, or theatre/performing arts...
from Syracuse University
Syracuse University
Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...
. While at Syracuse, he worked a variety of on-air jobs for WSYR-TV (now WSTM-TV
WSTM-TV
WSTM-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for Central New York State licensed to Syracuse. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 24 from a transmitter on Sentinel Heights Road in LaFayette. The station can also be seen on Verizon FiOS channel 3 and Time Warner channel 4...
). He began his career in Youngstown, Ohio
Youngstown, Ohio
Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Mahoning County; it also extends into Trumbull County. The municipality is situated on the Mahoning River, approximately southeast of Cleveland and northwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
broadcasting football games for $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
15 a game, and as sports reporter for WFMJ-TV
WFMJ-TV
WFMJ-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for Youngstown, Ohio. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 20 from a transmitter on Mabel Street in Youngstown. Owned by the Maag family, the station has studios on West Boardman Street in downtown Youngstown. WFMJ-TV is...
in 1972. His first major job as a sportscaster was in Cleveland in , where he called Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
and Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
games and did sports reporting for WKYC-TV
WKYC-TV
WKYC, virtual channel 3 , is an NBC-affiliated television station located in Cleveland, Ohio, owned by the Gannett Company. Its studio is located on the shores of Lake Erie, while its transmitter is located in Parma, Ohio....
. He also called a handful of Milwaukee Brewers
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are a professional baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, currently playing in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
games for pay-cable channel SelecTV in .
Career with the Red Sox
Castiglione joined the Red Sox broadcast team in , teamed with Ken ColemanKen Coleman
Kenneth R. Coleman was an American radio and television sportscaster for 38 years . He was born in Quincy, Massachusetts....
. He admitted not being in the booth when the ball rolled through Bill Buckner
Bill Buckner
William Joseph Buckner is a former Major League Baseball first baseman. Despite winning a batting crown in , representing the Chicago Cubs at the All-Star Game the following season and accumulating over 2,700 hits in his twenty-year career, he is best remembered for a fielding error during Game 6...
's legs in the 1986 World Series
1986 World Series
The 1986 World Series pitted the New York Mets against the Boston Red Sox. It was cited in the legend of the "Curse of the Bambino" to explain the error by Bill Buckner in Game 6 that allowed the Mets to extend the series to a seventh game...
, as he was in the clubhouse covering Red Sox' seemingly impending victory celebration. After Coleman's retirement in 1989, Bob Starr became the lead announcer for the Red Sox. After Starr's departure at the end of the 1991 season, Castiglione became the team's lead radio announcer along with Jerry Trupiano
Jerry Trupiano
Jerome Michael "Jerry" Trupiano is an American radio sportscaster and the former color commentator voice of the Boston Red Sox...
. Castiglione became nationally known when the team won the 2004 World Series
2004 World Series
The 2004 World Series was the Major League Baseball championship series for the 2004 season. It was the 100th World Series and featured the American League champions, the Boston Red Sox, against the National League champions, the St. Louis Cardinals...
, with his broadcast of the end of the game. During the 2007 season he shared announcing duties with a rotating duo of Dave O'Brien and Glenn Geffner
Glenn Geffner
Glenn Geffner, a Miami native, is a radio play-by-play announcer for the Miami Marlins. Geffner joined the Marlins radio broadcast team in 2008, his 12th season in the Major Leagues and his 17th year in professional baseball as a broadcaster and front office executive. Geffner partners with Dave...
. With Glenn Geffner
Glenn Geffner
Glenn Geffner, a Miami native, is a radio play-by-play announcer for the Miami Marlins. Geffner joined the Marlins radio broadcast team in 2008, his 12th season in the Major Leagues and his 17th year in professional baseball as a broadcaster and front office executive. Geffner partners with Dave...
leaving for the Florida Marlins
Florida Marlins
The Miami Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Established in 1993 as an expansion franchise called the Florida Marlins, the Marlins are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Marlins played their home games at...
broadcast booth, Castiglione shared the booth with Dave O'Brien, Dale Arnold
Dale Arnold
Dale Arnold is a New England sportscaster who hosts Boston Bruins broadcasts on NESN. He is formerly the co-host of a popular midday sports talk radio show on WEEI and formerly the Bruins' play-by-play announcer on NESN...
or Jon Rish
Jon Rish
Jon Rish is an American radio personality.Rish is a radio host for WEEI in Boston. He hosts the Boston Red Sox pre and post game show on the Boston Red Sox Radio Network. Rish has also served in the Red Sox broadcast booth alongside Joe Castiglione since 2008, sharing time with Dale Arnold and Dave...
in 2008. Dave O'Brien and Jon Rish have been his partners since 2009.. In 2011, Dale Arnold returned to be the primary fill in on Wednesday games.
Castiglione claims to have been a New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
fan as a kid. He said in his autobiography that he then closely followed the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
because they were the closest to Youngstown
Youngstown, Ohio
Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Mahoning County; it also extends into Trumbull County. The municipality is situated on the Mahoning River, approximately southeast of Cleveland and northwest of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
, and likewise became an Indians fan after moving to Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
.
Castiglione is currently a Lecturer
Lecturer
Lecturer is an academic rank. In the United Kingdom, lecturer is a position at a university or similar institution, often held by academics in their early career stages, who lead research groups and supervise research students, as well as teach...
in the department of Communication Studies
Communication studies
Communication Studies is an academic field that deals with processes of communication, commonly defined as the sharing of symbols over distances in space and time. Hence, communication studies encompasses a wide range of topics and contexts ranging from face-to-face conversation to speeches to mass...
at Northeastern University, where he teaches a course on Sports Broadcasting. Current Red Sox play-by-play announcers Don Orsillo
Don Orsillo
Don Orsillo is the play-by-play announcer for Boston Red Sox games on the New England Sports Network.-Early life and career:...
and Uri Berenguer
Uri Berenguer
Uri Berenguer-Ramos is the play-by-play announcer for the Boston Red Sox Spanish Beisbol Network.Berenguer joined the Spanish Beisbol Network in 2002 as a statistician, engineer, pregame and postgame host, and play-by-play announcer. He had previously worked as a statistician for WEEI and in the...
were among his students and broadcast booth interns. He has also taught at Franklin Pierce University in New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
.
Non-Red Sox work
He occasionally has called college football and basketball, most notably including games of Lafayette CollegeLafayette College
Lafayette College is a private coeducational liberal arts and engineering college located in Easton, Pennsylvania, USA. The school, founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter,son of General Andrew Porter of Norristown and citizens of Easton, first began holding classes in 1832...
and the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, where he worked alongside his oldest son, Duke
Duke Castiglione
Joseph "Duke" Castiglione Jr. is an American sports journalist working for WNYW Fox 5 in New York City. He is also the host of Sports Extra on Sunday at 10:30 p.m. Before WNYW, he worked as a fill-in sports anchor and reporter at WHDH-TV, the NBC affiliate in Boston...
, now with WNYW
WNYW
WNYW, virtual channel 5 , is the flagship television station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, located in New York City. The station's transmitter is atop the Empire State Building and its studio facilities are located in the Yorkville section of Manhattan...
in New York.
Book
In 2004, Castiglione published a book called Broadcast Rites and Sites: I Saw It on the Radio with the Boston Red Sox (ISBN 1-58-979324-2). The book is a collection of stories from his days covering the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox. It was updated in 2006 to include material on the 2004 World Series2004 World Series
The 2004 World Series was the Major League Baseball championship series for the 2004 season. It was the 100th World Series and featured the American League champions, the Boston Red Sox, against the National League champions, the St. Louis Cardinals...
.