Joe Buck addresses Fox career, nepotism, what he misses about MLB in Ford C. Frick Award speech - Awful Announcing

What the report says

Awful Announcing reported that Joe Buck used his Ford C. Frick Award speech in Cooperstown on Saturday to reflect on his long baseball broadcasting career, his family legacy and the scrutiny that followed him into major assignments at a young age. Buck, now ESPN’s Monday Night Football voice, was recognized during National Baseball Hall of Fame Weekend after being announced as the award winner last December.

Buck called St. Louis Cardinals games from 1991 to 2007 and served as Fox Sports’ lead MLB play-by-play announcer from 1996 through 2021, a run that included 135 World Series games, according to the report. His father, Jack Buck, won the same Hall of Fame broadcasting honor in 1987, making them the first father-son pair to receive the Frick Award. In the speech, Buck said he felt deeply honored and recalled being present as an 18-year-old when his father received the award.

The report said Buck directly addressed nepotism, acknowledging that being Jack Buck’s son helped him reach Cardinals broadcasts quickly and that he had long felt guilt over passing others with more minor-league experience. He also praised former Fox partner Tim McCarver, saying McCarver helped establish his credibility, and recounted major games he called, including World Series moments involving the Yankees, Diamondbacks, Angels, Red Sox, White Sox, Cardinals and Cubs.

Buck also discussed what he does not miss about national baseball work: criticism from fans who believed he favored their opponents. He noted that Fox’s MLB booth is now in the hands of Joe Davis, while also recognizing his wife, Michelle Beisner-Buck, and his football broadcast partner Troy Aikman.