Al Trautwig, longtime MSG Networks broadcaster, dies at age 68

Al Trautwig, for decades a familiar face and voice on New York sports television, died Sunday at age 68.

Trautwig had an extensive national TV resume, but he made his mark at MSG Networks, serving primarily as a studio host with some play-by-play work.

Trautwig’s wife, Cathleen, confirmed the news to Newsday, saying he died from complications of the cancer he had been treated for in recent years.

“Needless to say, we are devastated,” she wrote in an email. “He was a wonderful husband and father in addition to being a 4-time National Emmy award winner and over a 30-time NY Emmy award winner. As you know he covered almost every sport in his career, including 16 Olympic Games. We hope he is remembered for all his professional achievements but also for the kind and caring person he was.”

“MSG Networks is truly saddened by the news of Al Trautwig’s passing,” the network said in a statement. “Al was a staple on MSG Networks’ Knicks, Rangers and Yankees coverage for more than 30 years, and his passion for the teams he covered was undeniable.

“He leaves behind one of the great legacies in New York sports broadcasting history. Our thoughts and prayers are with Al’s family and friends.”

Born on Feb. 26, 1956, he grew up in Garden City South and attended Carey High School and later Adelphi.

He worked as a stick boy for the Islanders and a ball boy for the Nets at Nassau Coliseum.

Trautwig caught the announcing bug when someone asked him to help with color commentary on an Adelphi basketball radio call. He loved it.

By the time he was in his early 20s, he was working for “SportsPhone,” the long-ago service that provided scores to fans — and bettors — who paid a fee.

“In college I remember hearing an ad for it,” Trautwig told Newsday in 2015. “What a concept! You can actually get the scores whenever you want.”

As a young announcer, he quickly developed a reputation for calling anything and everything in the sports world.

In 1984, Newsday TV columnist Stan Isaacs called obscure sports assignments “a Trautwig” and compared the then-28-year-old to Wayne Terwilliger, a 1950s-era baseball infielder known for his versatility.

When Trautwig showed up in Los Angeles to help ABC with the 1984 Olympics, he was assigned to shooting, and when he aced that, to other non-marquee events.

“I was just ecstatic to be there,” he told Newsday in 1984. “And we were lucky. We would get throwaway assignments and come away with gold-medal performances.”

Trautwig hosted USA Network’s hockey coverage in the 1980s and did a variety of other work on various sports.

He called gymnastics at five Olympics for NBC as well as ironman competitions, foot races, car racing, cycling, boxing, golf and much more.

“He was not only a friend but a mentor and a teacher,” Alan Hahn, an MSG Networks analyst and ESPN New York radio host, wrote on X. “He was, personally, one of my biggest resources of support when I moved into this career.”

Trautwig’s first big golf assignment came at the U.S. Open at Shinnecock in 1986, which had him recalling visits to the Hamptons in his youth.

“I pinch myself to make sure it’s real,” he told Newsday.

Trautwig’s last Olympics for NBC was 2016. He sparked controversy by referring to the adoptive parents of gymnast Simone Biles as her biological grandparents and not her parents, as Biles considered them to be.

In the 1990s, Trautwig hosted Yankees pregame and postgame shows for MSG and became one of that network’s most ubiquitous personalities.

“I have been blessed to work with some amazing broadcasters but there was no one better than Al Trautwig,” YES Network Yankees play-by-play man Michael Kay wrote on X. “He was meant to be on the air. Smooth. Unflappable. Al patiently walked a young writer through growing pains on TV. His lessons were invaluable. He was part of the soundtrack of New York sports all those years on MSG. I will miss him.”

Added Jets radio broadcaster Bob Wischusen: “When Al’s voice was the first you heard to start a pregame, no one made a local broadcast feel bigger. He was also as nice as they come.”

Trautwig appeared unwell to many viewers during a Rangers preseason game in 2019 and soon thereafter announced he was taking a leave of absence.

Other than a pretaped interview with Rangers president John Davidson later that year, he did not reappear on MSG before the network declined to renew his contract in late 2020.

“I have over 30 years of wonderful memories at MSG,” Trautwig told Newsday in 2021. “Unfortunately, the nonrenewal of my contract after 30 years with no real explanation is not one of them.

“MSG’s decision, to my knowledge, was not based on my health, as I am healthy and was cleared to return to air by doctors MSG requested I consult,” he said.

In a 2024 interview with Newsday, Trautwig said he held no grudge against MSG. “I think when you work in this business long enough, you’re prepared for that,” he said. “I was disappointed, but I wasn’t shocked.”

He added, “I’m very happy. The MSG thing ran its course.”

After leaving MSG, he taught at Adelphi, his alma mater, and underwent treatment for cancer. His speech was unclear at times in the February 2024 Newsday interview, but he said that was a result of his treatment and that he was on the road to recovery.

Trautwig said he was planning to write a book about his experiences in the business but that it would be no tell-all.

He said the Knicks’ run to the 1994 NBA Finals stood out in his memories.

“Oh, my God, yeah; it was fantastic,” he said. “[The Knicks] should have won a championship [in 1994], and they didn’t. They were in a great run.

“On any given night, for the longest time, they were good enough to win. And the Garden was electric. Pat Riley was there, and it was fantastic.”

Mets radio broadcaster and former Islanders announcer Howie Rose shared his thoughts on Trautwig on social media.

“During my years broadcasting Islander games, whenever we brought in a new host/sideline reporter, if I was asked for advice I would simply say, ‘Just watch Al Trautwig,’ ” Rose wrote. “The best to ever do it.”

By Neil Best

neil.best@newsday.com@sportswatch

Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.