“Now batting for the New York Yankees, number 2, Derek Jeter, number 2”. For almost 59 years, the distinctive voice of Yankee Stadium announcer Bob Sheppard billowed out from the announcer’s booth. When you heard that voice, you knew you were in Yankee Stadium. For 59 years before each game, you would hear the haltingly distinctive voice welcome you: “Ladies and Gentlemen ……..Welcome………to Yankee Stadium”.
Bob Sheppard was a New Yorker, born on October 20, 1910, in the Richmond Hills neighborhood of Queens. He attended Saint John’s Preparatory in Brooklyn and went to St. John’s University on an Athletic Scholarship.