Longtime Baltimore Ravens radio voice and WBAL-TV sports director Gerry Sandusky announced on April 1 that he’s retiring. Sandusky has been the radio play-by-play announcer for the Ravens since 2006, and he’s been at WBAL-TV (Baltimore NBC affiliate) as an anchor since 1988 and as sports director since 1993.
Sandusky, known for his catchphrase, “The hay is in the barn,” discussed his retirement decision and reflected on his career in a recent interview with Awful Announcing.
And on Friday night, an emotional Sandusky signed off from WBAL-TV with a message for Baltimore.
“All good stories have a beginning, a middle, and an end. And tonight, it’s time for my end,” Sandusky began. “My beginning happened here at WBAL (in) November, 1988, working with the legendary Vince Bagli… And as the years, and the seasons, and the stats, and the stories rolled by, there was really one constant. You. You invited me into your home. You joined me for Ravens broadcasts. You made it possible for me to come back night after night, game after game, year after year.
“The middle of my journey here saw Cal (Ripken Jr.) become the Iron Man, the NFL return to Baltimore, the arrival of Ray Lewis, Super Bowls, upsets, heartbreaks, longshots. And I became the voice of the Ravens. Best job anyone ever had. And you and I shared it all.”
“But no one shared more of this journey with me than my wife Lee Ann,” Sandusky continued, while getting choked up. “We were newlyweds when we came to Baltimore, and we raised our family here. Katy and Zack spent a lot of time hanging out with me in this sports office over the years. Lee Ann did all the work that you never saw. Keeping our family on track when I was on the road or on the air. She doesn’t much care for the spotlight and is probably a little irritated with me at this moment, but she’s the real star of our family. Not one of my dreams comes through without her boundless unselfishness. Thank you, baby. This past year, Lee Ann and I became grandparents. Malakai and Kairo. For decades, my family has supported my pursuit of dreams. And now it’s time for me to support their journey and their pursuit of dreams.”
“And so, as you and I reach this fork in the road, please know the gratitude I feel for you, for your support, for watching, for listening, for giving me the gift of time and attention that will stay with me forever. As my late college football coach Phil Albert used to say at the end of every practice, ‘When you have done what you came to do, it’s time to go home. Because the hay is in the barn.’ Thank you.”
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.