Cardinals broadcast team sees marginal improvement in ratings from fans

Chip Caray is about to wrap up his third season behind the microphone for the St. Louis Cardinals on FanDuel Sports Midwest, and while his play-by-play tenure has coincidentally coincided with the fall of the Cardinals empire, the Cardinals broadcast team has seen a slight upswing in quality according to fans who voted in Awful Announcing's 2025 MLB television broadcast rankings.

The Cardinals' television broadcasters ranked 19th in baseball according to Awful Announcing's fan votes.

With 968 votes, the Cardinals broadcasters held an average rating of 2.17, where a grade of "A" corresponds to four points and a grade of "F" equals zero points. In 2024, the Cardinals broadcast team placed 23rd, with a 2.13 rating, and in 2023, Caray's first season in St. Louis, the group finished 26th, holding a rating of 1.92.

Voters appeared to direct most of their criticism toward Caray, but one repeated topic was "homerism" from both Caray and the main color analyst, Brad Thompson. Personally, I have never had an issue with broadcasters openly supporting the teams that they cover throughout the season, but the criticism that Caray and Thompson appeared mostly unwilling to be negative about the Cardinals, even in their current diminished state, does hold some water. Mark Sweeney, who has taken a part-time color analyst role this year, received some praise for his willingness to take the Cardinals to task at times.

Sweeney replaced Jim Edmonds, who stepped down as a color commentator prior to the 2025 season and revealed some harsh truths about the organization after he departed. Fans often panned Edmonds for his broadcasting style, although I stand by my belief that he was the Cardinals' most informative and knowledgeable man in the booth.

Despite Awful Announcing's ratings, it's been a mostly smooth year for Caray and Thompson, who have meshed well in games. Caray's most notable mishap on air took place on June 21, when he inadvertently left out the L in "flag" as he advertised Disability Pride Night at Busch Stadium. Luckily for Caray, MLB sensibly recognized that it was merely a slip of the tongue and did not carry out any disciplinary measures.

The Cardinals broadcast team isn't exactly rocketing up the rankings, but Caray and Thompson's steady climb up the list is indicative of more chemistry between them as well as the presence of Sweeney. The Cardinals may soon be tearing everything down to studs on the field, so an entertaining and informative television crew will be more crucial than ever. Let's just hope people tune in to see it.