McCarver’s career in baseball spanned 63 years and eight decades. As a catcher, he made his major league debut with the Cardinals in 1959, playing with the team through the ’69 season. Along the way, he made two All-Star Games and was part of the 1964 and ’67 World Series champion teams.

In 1970, he jumped to the Phillies, and he would go on to play for the Expos and Red Sox, along with second stops in St. Louis and Philadelphia. He ended his career with the Phillies in 1980, making his transition to broadcasting in the city that same year.