OAKLAND -- Chris Caray stood inside the NBC Sports California broadcast booth delivering the introduction for Monday night’s game between the A’s and Cardinals. The voice of his father, Chip, who just two doors down was providing pregame commentary for Bally Sports Midwest, echoed through the booth.
A new milestone was added to the illustrious Caray family legacy. For the first time in their careers, the father-son duo was calling the same MLB game.
“I feel like the happiest man on Earth right now,” said Chris. “I get to see my Dad and him being incredibly proud of me. And me being equally, if not more, proud of him for being able to do this and set the framework for what our family does.”
Chris has had quite the eventful past week. Hired by NBC Sports California in March as its secondary play-by-play announcer for A’s television broadcasts, the 24-year-old made his regular season debut on Friday night. It came with a dramatic finish. The game went into extra innings and ended up a 2-1 A’s victory over the Nationals on Lawrence Butler’s walk-off single in the 10th.
There were some normal pregame jitters that night. But for the most part, Caray felt like he handled the nerves with relative ease. He certainly met the moment with an excited walk-off call that drew rave reviews on social media from viewers who listened to him for the first time.
Monday night’s three-game series opener against St. Louis, though, was different. Even a few hours before first pitch, Chris was already battling a range of emotions as he gave his Dad a tour of the ins and outs of the Coliseum.
“I think my competitiveness has been kicked up a notch,” Chris said before the game. “I think [my Dad] is one of the best broadcasters in Major League Baseball, if not the best. I know there are probably going to be some more eyes on me because Cardinals fans and other people will be interested in seeing how I sound. So, I have a unique responsibility to do him justice both on the air and off the air this week.
“Now, everybody can see the DNA and where it came from. How we're very similar.”
What are some of those similarities?
“I think the biggest thing I've taken is when the ball is in play,” Chris said. “We’re really big play callers, as you could see with the walk-off or Butler’s home run. I don't want to minimize any of these players’ successes. Those moments are the ones that people remember, and he's captured plenty of them in his career, whether it was Jason Heyward's first at-bat being a home run or the Kerry Wood 20-strikeout game. ...
"I want to be that type of guy here in Oakland. The guy that can make those moments even more memorable. I have the most fun job in the world, and I want to be sure to articulate that every day and every way that I can.”
The only thing that could have enhanced the elation of Monday night would have been if Chris’ twin brother, Stefan, could have been in attendance. Stefan was on assignment for the Amarillo Sod Poodles, the D-backs' Double-A affiliate for whom the two both called games from 2022-23.
“We kind of go hand in hand with my father,” Chris said. “We came up together. I, obviously, would have wanted my brother to be here as well. But that time will come.”
Sitting atop the Caray family lineage is Harry, grandfather of Chip and great grandfather of Chris. The legendary broadcaster is remembered mostly for his time calling White Sox and Cubs games for over two decades, but a year before moving to Chicago, Harry actually spent the 1970 season as a broadcaster for the A’s.
“It's amazing that the Coliseum is one of the stops that he made,” Chris said. “Baseball has this weird cosmic way about it. Even though we play on a diamond, baseball comes full circle. For me, it has truly happened. … I want to be able to be the next Caray, and hopefully, stay a little bit longer than a year.”