HOF broadcaster Van Horne retires

January 16th, 2022

MIAMI -- Longtime Marlins radio voice Dave Van Horne is retiring, the club confirmed via Twitter on Sunday.

Van Horne, 82, will not pursue work elsewhere, and he finishes his broadcasting career with 56 years worth of experience -- 53 at the Major League level, including 21 with the Marlins. He was the 2011 recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award from the National Baseball Hall of Fame, the highest honor for a broadcaster. His signature home run call of "Up, up and away!" was a fan favorite.

During the 2021 season, 940AM WINZ lessened Van Horne's workload, bringing in a rotation of analysts that included Kelly Saco, J.P. Arencibia, Tommy Hutton and Gaby Sanchez. Glenn Geffner will assume the majority of the play-by-play work in 2022 in his 15th season since returning to the Marlins. Kyle Sielaff, who serves as the pregame host and does play-by-play for select games, will be back for his 10th year.

Van Horne's retirement isn't the only change in the Marlins' broadcast landscape. Earlier this offseason, it was reported that Todd Hollandsworth wouldn't return for his sixth season as the color analyst for Bally Sports Florida television broadcasts. His replacement has yet to be announced.

Van Horne's career began in the International League in 1966, where he broadcast Richmond Braves games for three seasons. During Van Horne's years in Virginia, he earned Sportscaster of the Year twice for his work on football, baseball and basketball broadcasts. His MLB broadcast career began in 1969, when he became the Montreal Expos' lead announcer during their inaugural season. He remained there for 32 years on radio and television before taking over as the Marlins' radio voice in 2001.

A native of Easton, Pa., Van Horne has called South Florida home since 1982. In addition to the National Baseball Hall of Fame honor, he was presented the Jack Graney Award in 1996, given by the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame for contributions to baseball through broadcasting. In 2014, he was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.