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Traina Thoughts: John Sterling Is About To Accomplish Something Truly Remarkable

Yankees broadcaster John Sterling is entering his 30th straight year of calling every game of the season.
Jimmy Traina|
Henry S. Dziekan III/Getty Images

1. Over the weekend, I received this tweet from the NFL Network's Rich Eisen.

If you follow me on Twitter, as Eisen does, you probably know that I am an unabashed John Sterling fan. The voice of the New York Yankees is pure entertainment. He's also a polarizing figure. You either love him or hate him. There is no in-between with the man nicknamed "Pa Pinstripe," because he comes across as a fatherly figure to Yankees players and fans. 

But I'm not here today to defend my stance on Sterling. You either get him or you don't. You either appreciate his over-the-top, truly authentic performances on a day-to-day basis, or you get hung up on him making an incorrect call here and there.

What am I here for, though, is to highlight a truly remarkable stat that even his haters have to respect.

This upcoming season will be Sterling's 30th straight year calling Yankees games on the radio. For the past 29 seasons, Sterling, who turns 80 in July, has not missed oneinning. According to my fuzzy math, that's 162 games times 27 full seasons, which equals 4,536 games. Add in 113 games from the strike-shortened 1994 season and 144 games from the 1995 strike-shortened season and that makes 4,793 games. Now add in another 166 playoff games over that time span and you're up to 4,959 games.

One more tidbit: Since 2005 when Suzyn Waldman became Sterling's partner in the Yankees' radio booth, Sterling has handled all the play-by-play duties. So he has called every single inning of Yankees baseball since 2005. 

Haters will hate, but if you're being fair, you have to admit that Sterling has had an amazing run.

Lou Gehrig is not the Yankees' only Iron Man.

2. Mets outfielder Tim Tebow was injured over the weekend when he ran over a sprinkler head. This was a layup for Twitter jokesters.

3. I'm going to do something that is against Internet law. I'm not proud of this, but I have no choice, I have to take a small shot at Bill Walton. I love Bill Walton. Just like Sterling, he provides endless entertainment on a regular basis. Having said that, you can't take basketball or any sport this seriously. College basketball being corrupt should not be the low point of any human being's life.

4. Joey Votto is on quite a roll this spring. Last week, he talked about "getting fat," and this weekend he gave a must-see in-game interview in which he taunted Reds broadcaster, Jim Day.

5. I read this tweet about 10 times over the weekend and the thought of "Philosophical Gronk" is still wrecking my mind.

6. Cam Newton would be proud of DeShaun Waton's effort with this outfit.

7. If you enjoy live newscasts going completely off the rails, this one is for you.

8. RANDOM WRESTLING VIDEO OF THE DAY: Ronda Rousey is a big zzzz for me. Here is when guest-star publicity stunts worked in perfect ways for the WWE.

Traina Thoughts is the best of the Internet, plus musings by SI.com writer, Jimmy Traina. Get the link to a new Traina's Thoughts each day by following on Twitter and liking on Facebook. Catch up on previous editions of Traina Thoughts right here. And check out Jimmy Traina's weekly podcast, "Off The Board."

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IN CLOSING: I can't wait to see the crowd lose their minds at WrestleMania when Roman Reigns beats Brock Lesnar for the WWE title.

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Jimmy Traina
JIMMY TRAINA

Jimmy Traina is a staff writer and podcast host for Sports Illustrated. A 20-year veteran in the industry, he’s been covering the sports media landscape for seven years and writes a daily column, Traina Thoughts. Traina has hosted the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast since 2018, a show known for interviews with some of the most important and powerful people in sports media. He also was the creator and writer of SI’s Hot Clicks feature from 2007 to '13.

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