John Sanders, the longtime baseball play-by-play announcer whose familiar voice called Major League games for more than 25 years, has died. He passed away on June 10, 2026, at the age of 83.
A Kansas native, Sanders built a broadcasting career that carried him across the country and through some of the most storied booths in the game. He got his start at WIBW-TV in Topeka before moving to KMBC-TV in Kansas City, where he spent 12 years and called preseason play-by-play for the Kansas City Chiefs.
In 1978 he headed east to Pittsburgh, joining KDKA-TV as a weekend sports anchor and later rising to sports director, a fixture on the station’s 6 and 11 o’clock newscasts. His big-league baseball break came in October 1980, when KDKA announced he would join Pirates broadcast legend Lanny Frattare for televised games beginning in the 1981 season. He remained part of the Pirates’ broadcast team for nine seasons.
In 1991 he moved to Cleveland, where he spent 16 years as a television play-by-play announcer for the Cleveland Indians on FSN Ohio, the longest and most defining chapter of his career. He called the team’s games until the Indians declined to renew his contract following the 2006 season. Beyond baseball, his versatility kept him busy, calling Big East football and basketball games into the mid-2010s.
Sanders is survived by his wife, Cherie, and their two daughters.