Marty Brennaman says he'll maintain relationship with Reds, but won't call games in retirement
Longtime Cincinnati Reds and Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Brennaman announced Wednesday that 2019 will be his last season broadcasting with the Reds.
Brennaman announced the decision at the Reds on Radio affiliates luncheon in the FOX Sports Club at Great American Ball Park.
The 2019 season will be Brennaman's 55th as a broadcaster, and his 46th in Cincinnati.
Brennaman talked to reporters at the Reds Caravan in Louisville on Thursday about his decision to retire and if he would consider a guest spot in the booth.
“The last game I broadcast in 2019 will be the last game I broadcast in the city of Cincinnati. That will be it," he said.
Brennaman joined the Reds radio team in 1974 and for 31 seasons (1974-2004) shared the 700 WLW Radio booth with Reds Hall of Fame pitcher Joe Nuxhall.
“I worked 31 years with Joe Nuxhall and I used to kid with him that he could cry at door openings and the sun coming up. I was a masculine guy who refused to show any emotion. Well, after spending time with him and growing older, I think it's a very masculine thing to do, and I quite honestly think I'll probably cry a lot this season," Brennaman said.
Brennaman has been named Ohio Sportscaster of the Year 17 times, most recently in 2018.
He also has broadcast games during the NCAA's men's basketball tournament, including 15 regional tournaments and 11 Final Fours. His son, Thom, is a Reds broadcaster.
Brennaman has received many awards during his career, including the Ford C. Frick Award on July 23, 2000, in ceremonies at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. The award is presented each year by the Hall of Fame to a broadcaster "for major contributions to the game of baseball." Brennaman, Red Barber (WSAI, 1934-1938), Al Helfer (WSAI, 1935-36) and Russ Hodges (WFBE, 1932) are the only Reds announcers ever to receive the Hall of Fame's prestigious broadcasting award.
He was inducted into the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association Hall of Fame in Salisbury, North Carolina on May 2, 2005.
On Nov. 5, 2005 he was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in Chicago. In 1999 he was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame.
In 2009, he was selected by the American Sportscasters Association as one of the Top 50 broadcasters of all time. In January 2013 he received the Tom Hammond Lifetime Achievement Award for Sports Broadcasting, presented by the Bluegrass Sports Commission in Lexington, Kentucky.