Longtime Red Sox radio broadcaster Joe Castiglione announces retirement following 42 seasons

NEW YORK (AP) — Boston Red Sox radio broadcaster Joe Castiglione said Sunday he is retiring at the end of the season, his 42nd calling the team's games.

Castiglione, 77, made the announcement on the WEEI broadcast as the Red Sox batted in the fourth inning against the New York Yankees.

“For him to be part of our family is amazing. For him to spend more time with his family is great,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said after a 5-2 loss. “We talked a little bit yesterday about it. I think everybody here and everybody in the (Red Sox) nation we know what he means to this organization.”

Castiglione will remain with the team in an honorary ambassador role. The Red Sox will honor him before their regular-season finale on Sept. 29 against Tampa Bay.

Castiglione joined Boston’s broadcast crew in 1983 during the final season for Hall of Fame outfielder Carl Yastrzemski and is the longest tenured play-by-play announcer in team history. He was on the air when the Red Sox ended an 86-year title drought by sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals in 2004 and called three more championships in 2007, 2013 and 2018.

Castiglione received the Hall of Fame's Ford. C. Frick Award for excellence in broadcasting last July. He was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2014 along with Pedro Martinez, Roger Clemens and Nomar Garciaparra, and in 2022 the home radio booth at Fenway Park was named the Joe Castiglione Booth.

“After 42 seasons with the Red Sox and more than 6,500 games, I have decided it’s time to retire from a regular broadcast schedule,” Castiglione said in a statement released by the team. “While I feel I am at the pinnacle of my career ... it’s time to spend more time with Jan, my bride of almost 53 years, my kids, and grandkids.”

Castiglione began his broadcasting career at WFMJ-TV in Youngstown, Ohio, before calling big league games for Cleveland (1979, 1982) and Milwaukee (1981). He also broadcast games for the Cleveland Cavaliers and college basketball on NESN.

“Joe is one of the greatest in baseball broadcasting,” Red Sox principal owner John Henry said in a statement. “His recognition by the Hall of Fame in July punctuated a career of vivid storytelling that has brought the game to life for generations of listeners."

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FILE - Boston Red Sox broadcaster Joe Castiglione arrives at the National Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony July 21, 2024, in Cooperstown, N.Y. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson, File)

PAWLET, Vt. (AP) — A Vermont town official, his wife and her son were found shot to death in their home over the weekend, state police said.

Police identified them Tuesday as Brian Crossman, 46, a selectboard member in Pawlet; Erica Crossman, 41; and Colin Taft, 13. The town of about 1,400 people is near the New York state line.

They were found dead Sunday, Vermont State Police said in a news release Tuesday night. All three deaths were ruled homicides.

Police said their investigation was active and no one was in custody. They said on Sunday that initial work by detectives indicated it was an isolated event and there was no threat to the community.

Members of the Pawlet selectboard, who are elected by residents to oversee town expenditures and enact ordinances, held their regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday night. Crossman's seat was vacant and there were flowers at his place at the table.

Mike Beecher, chairperson of the five-member board, read a statement: “Brian Crossman was a friend and neighbor, a hardworking community member who just this year stepped up to join the Pawlet Selectboard.

"This tragedy that struck him and his family has also hit our community hard, and we are shaken and grieving. Our hearts go out to everyone affected by this devastating loss.”

In this Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024 photo provided by Cherise Forbes, Pawlet Selectboard members Jessica Van Oort, left, and Rich Hulett, right, are seated near flowers at a table where slain Pawlet Selectboard member Brian Crossman, who along with his wife and son were found shot to death in their home over the weekend, usually sat during meetings, in Pawlet, Vt. (Cherise Forbes/Vermont News & Media via AP)

In this Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024 photo provided by Cherise Forbes, flowers rest on a table where slain Pawlet Selectboard member Brian Crossman, who along with his wife and son were found shot to death in their home over the weekend, usually sat during meetings, in Pawlet, Vt. (Cherise Forbes/Vermont News & Media via AP)