Mets radio voice Howie Rose to fans on final broadcast before retirement: 'I love you all'
Mets radio broadcaster Howie Rose speaks at his retirement press conference at Citi Field on Sunday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Howie Rose, as he so often did during his long broadcasting career, put it perfectly.
No, he didn’t get to use his signature “Put it in the Books!” in his final Mets radio broadcast before retirement. The Mets lost to the Phillies, 7-2, on Sunday at Citi Field.
But that didn’t stop Rose from letting Mets fans know how he feels about them in his postgame comments on 880 Radio.
Rose choked up at one point. Many Mets fans likely did more than that as they listened.
“When you’re a broadcaster, you’re supposed to be able to find the right words to say,” Rose said. “But I don’t think I can find the right words to express just how much all of you mean to me.
“We’ve known each other a long, long time, and whether we’ve met personally or not, it feels as though we’re on a first-name basis with each other, right? We’ve been together in the car, at the beach, enjoying a backyard barbecue, maybe even under the covers if you tried to hide your radio or smartphone from Mom and Dad during those West Coast games.
“But most importantly, we shared some time bonding over the exploits of the team we love, the New York Mets. And so, as I said [Saturday], in closing, thank you, and I love you all.”
Sunday’s scheduled pregame ceremony honoring Rose was called off by the Mets at about 10:30 a.m. because of the threat of all-day rain. Instead, the team will honor Rose during next season’s opening weekend at Citi Field (April 2-4), assuming there isn’t a lockout that delays the start of the 2027 season.
Rose said he agreed with the decision. Even though the Mets and Phillies were able to play nine innings in the rain, it’s not the same for a ceremony. It literally could have dampened everyone’s spirits, especially if the dignitaries who were on hand at Citi Field despite the postponement (among them Cleon Jones, Art Shamsky, Mookie Wilson, Howard Johnson, John Franco, Terry Collins, Lee Mazzilli and, of course, Rose’s family) had gotten soaked during an on-field ceremony. The home run apple has an image of Mets radio broadcaster Howie Rose during an MLB game between the Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies at Citi Field on Sunday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
So the Mets, as Rose later quipped, decided to “wait ’til next year,” which is a sentiment Mets fans are familiar with.
“I just want to thank the Mets organization for honoring me not only with their intentions for today, but in some ways even more so, when they could have just said, ‘Well, we’ll do something a little more muted,’ ” Rose said. “But they were adamant about wanting to reschedule this for opening weekend next year, and I’m so flattered by that, particularly because there are so many emotions involved running around inside me right now.
“There’s a certain — I don’t know — melancholy. It can be kind of somber when you reach the end of a career. But God willing, we’ll all reconvene here next year, and it’s going to be a party.”
Rose, 72, announced his retirement before the season and the Mets chose the final regular-season home game to honor him. As the forecast loomed, Rose prepared for the possibility of a rainout of not just the ceremony but of Sunday’s game by speaking directly to fans after Saturday’s Mets victory.
“I treated [Saturday] as though it was going to be the last game because of the forecast,” Rose said. “So everything in my mind was kind of moving in that direction, with the hope that we played [Sunday] because I just wanted to get some closure.”
Because the Phillies likely are playoff-bound, MLB was going to do all it could to get the game in, and the possibility of playing on Monday afternoon existed because both teams have an off day. But if that had happened, Rose would not have been there because Yom Kippur began at sundown on Sunday.
“I’m going to have enough trouble if this game goes late today,” Rose said while looking up at the heavens.
That was one thing that went right on Sunday. The game started on time and was played without a delay. And Rose did get a tribute after all.
After the game was over, the Mets players and the fans who were left near the broadcast booth saluted Rose, the players by tipping their caps and the fans by chanting his name.https://x.com/SNYtv/status/2101771410058223627
That seems perfect, because when Rose was asked how he’d like to be remembered by Mets fans, he said: “As one of them.”
Anthony Rieber covers sports media and business and professional sports (you know, games and trades and things). He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since Jan. 1, 2026.
