John Sterling, Yankees’ radio legend, dead at 87, WFAN reports

John Sterling, the legendary radio voice of the Yankees, has died, according to WFAN. He was 87.

Rickie Ricardo, Sterling’s friend and the Spanish-language radio play-by-play voice of the Yankees, confirmed the news to NJ.com’s Randy Miller on Monday morning.

Ricardo said that Sterling died after being hospitalized on Saturday.

Sterling retired as the Yankees’ radio broadcaster in 2024 after 36 seasons in the booth. He was revered for his iron-man status — at one point calling 5,060 straight games — and his famous “The Yankees Win!” sign off after victories, as well as his signature home run call, “It is high, it is far, it is gone!”

“We are devastated to hear about the passing of John Sterling, a WFAN and Yankees radio icon whose voice was synonymous with an entire generation of Yankee fandom,” WFAN posted on X.

Sterling called 5,420 regular-season games, the last against Toronto on April 7, plus 211 postseason games. His consecutive game streak lasted from September 1989 through July 2019 after starting with the Yankees as a pregame host. His partners included Jay Johnstone (1989-90), Joe Angel (1991), Michael Kay (1992-2001), Charley Steiner (2002-04) and Suzyn Waldman (since 2005).

“A voice that made me fall in love with radio and pushed me to chase a career behind the mic. RIP John Sterling,” wrote Nick Craig of the Carolina Journal.

“Regardless of what New York baseball team you call home, John Sterling was and is a staple of baseball in this city,” wrote Michael Hauff.

In 2024, the Yankees honored Sterling after his run ended. Former Yankees greats Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams and Paul O’Neill , and Sterling was given gifts, including an 83-inch television and a Yankees home jersey with the number 5,631 — the total number of Yankees games he called on the radio.