Lanny Frattare

Who is Lanny Frattare?

Lanny Lawrence Frattare is a former American sportscaster. For 33 years he was a play-by-play announcer for Major League Baseball's Pittsburgh Pirates, the longest such tenure in the team's history. In 2008 he was nominated for the Ford Frick Award, which is given by the Baseball Hall of Fame for broadcasting excellence.

Frattare attended Ithaca College, graduating in 1970. He started his career in his home town as a radio disk jockey at the city's top rated station, WBBF. During his time in Rochester radio he expanded his on-air role to include work as a sportscaster and lead play-by-play broadcaster for the American Hockey League's Rochester Americans. As the radio broadcaster for the Pirates' AAA affiliate Charleston Charlies in 1974 and 1975, Frattare was mentored by then-Pirates broadcaster Bob Prince, who invited Frattare to Pittsburgh after the Charlies' seasons concluded and allowed Frattare to take over the microphone on occasion.

He moved to Pittsburgh and joined the Pirates major league broadcasting crew on radio and cable television in 1976. He started as Milo Hamilton's junior partner, calling just two innings of most games and serving as Hamilton's color man. His role began to increase after Hamilton left following the 1979 season. The Pirates gave Frattare a new contract late in the 2006 season that was to keep him on the air through 2009. In August 2008, Lanny announced his 5000th Pirates game. He began sharing primary announcing duties with Greg Brown, as the Pirates evolved toward a transition that will come with Frattare's retirement. On October 1, 2008, Frattare announced he was retiring from the Pirate broadcast booth and would not return for the 2009 season.